It’s one of the most critical and dangerous moments in perhaps the greatest story ever told. Odysseus ties himself to the mast of his ship because it’s the only way to avoid steering the ship toward the beautiful sound of the Sirens. It’s an ingenious little trick that makes him the first person ever to hear the Sirens and live to tell the tale (The Odyssey), to avoid fatally crashing into the rocks where countless ships lay wrecked, their sailors lured to their deaths by a temptation they could not resist.
On an episode of the Daily Stoic podcast, behavioral scientist Katy Milkman talked about this as a powerful and important example of what’s known as a “commitment device”—a way of deliberately constraining ourselves to help us achieve our goals. “It’s talked about in every behavioral science book and every behavioral science class,” Milkman explained, “because we think of it as the original example of someone facing temptation and coming up with this clever workaround to prevent giving in.”
Everyone knew the Sirens were deadly. Every captain warned his crew about those beautiful voices that lured ships to destruction. They all knew that following that sound meant certain death. That knowledge should have been enough. But it wasn’t. Ship after ship crashed on those rocks. Sailor after sailor couldn’t help themselves.
What made Odysseus different wasn’t that he had more willpower or discipline than other captains. It was that he was wise enough to know he didn’t. He understood that in the moment, with those beautiful voices calling, he’d be just as weak as everyone else. So he came up with a way to protect himself from himself.
It’d be wonderful if we always did what we know we want or need to do. But that’s not how the world is. It is filled with temptations, distractions, and forces tugging us toward the rocks.
We need commitment devices. We need constraints that protect us from our weaker selves, that keep us on the right course. We need devices and programs and practices that help us do what deep down we know we need to do.
That’s exactly what the 2026 Daily Stoic New Year, New You Challenge is designed to be—your commitment device for the year ahead. It’s a way to start 2026 off with something that will make you make the changes and develop the habits you want to make but have always had trouble committing to.
For 21 days, you don’t have to make hard choices. You won’t have to guess. You won’t have to think. You don’t have to rely on willpower alone. You just open the email each morning and do what it says. One challenge. One action. One step forward, designed and inspired by the best Stoic wisdom.
Like Odysseus binding himself to the mast, signing up for this challenge is you acknowledging that you’re human. That your willpower wavers. That resolutions often fail. That we all give in to the Sirens of procrastination, distraction, and bad habits.
But with this commitment device in place—with thousands of other Stoics doing it alongside you, with daily challenges arriving in your inbox, with live Q&As to keep you accountable—you’ll sail right past those rocks where so many resolutions have crashed before.
The question isn’t whether you need help staying on course. We all do. The question is whether you’re wise enough, like Odysseus, to tie yourself to the mast.
Take the Challenge
