Philosophy is the love of wisdom. Wisdom is the fruit of experience, insight, knowledge, compassion and common sense.
The turbulence of the past two years has made me take a hard look at my life. I’ve re-balanced the foundation: sleep, diet, stress management and exercise. I’ve re-prioritized the pillars of my life — relationships with family, relationships with friends, my relationship with myself, pursuit of the hobbies that make me me — weighing it against the relative importance of my career and financial support of my kids, my life and my parents.
More and more, I found myself remembering my university days when I first met my husband. He studied philosophy and spoke often about the ancient philosophers’ relevance to modern life: Epictetus, Seneca, Heraclitus, Aurelius, Descartes, Hume, Voltaire, Nietzsche, and so on.
I was especially drawn to Stoicism, a philosophy that has endured for over two millenia.
There are many, many resources on Stoicism, books, blogs, reddit forums, podcasts and tiktok videos. Here are my top 10 takeaways:
Reflect virtues like honesty, compassion, forgiveness, stability and tranquility in all your words and deeds.
Realize that you will screw up, so forgive yourself and try again. Each moment is a new chance.
Understand and focus on what you can change, letting go of responsibility for what you can’t.
Prepare for failure as much as you prepare for success.
Live in the present, not the past or the future.
Be grateful for what you have and what you can get from the present moment, no matter how difficult that moment is.
Live each day as if you will die tomorrow. Take action to always improve the present moment.
Don’t simply react. Be still and be thoughtful of how you frame your perspective.
Know that the feelings, thoughts, and actions you choose to value and pursue define your character.
Know that your character determines your fate. So take time to reflect on the person you choose to be.
Stoicism has given me a way to live my best life. However, it isn’t an easy way to live.
Many people talk about living with integrity and wisdom but the actual practice of it demands insight and reflection.
It isn’t enough to talk about it, it’s far more important to walk the talk … and do it every day.