The Daily Stoic - You Don’t Control When, You Do Control How

Episode Date: April 8, 2020

As we’ve discussed, one could look out at the world right now and see a lot of negative. Or you could grab the other handle, as Epictetus says, and see the positive. It’s an open question: Is this a great time to be alive or a terrible one? Are we blessed to have spent twenty years without any major wars, without any truly global crises, with sustained periods of economic prosperity and incredible technological advances? Or has it been twenty years with three major recessions, with the terror of terrorism, disruptive or disappointing tech, and now with a global pandemic?Here’s the Stoic’s answer: It doesn’t matter. Because you don’t control when you live. What history will think of this period compared to other periods is meaningless. The only thing that counts is that you’re alive right now. We don’t choose when we live, we choose how we live. That’s it. You didn’t ask for this moment. Maybe you’d prefer things to be different. Well...they aren’t. And you’re going to have to make do. Understand this and you will be wise. Adhere to it and you will be successful. How can we make the most of right now? That’s the question. How can we live well within—or in spite—of what’s happening? That’s our job. You think Marcus wanted to live through the plague or Epictetus in a time where slavery existed or Seneca during Nero’s rule? Nope. But they figured it out. They made it work. And so can you. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey, prime members, you can listen to the Daily Stood Podcast early and add free on Amazon Music. Download the app today. Hi, I'm David Brown, the host of Wundery's podcast business wars. And in our new season, Walmart must fight off target. The new discounter that's both savvy and fashion forward. Listen to business wars on Amazon Music or wherever you get your podcasts. music or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to the Daily Stoic. For each day we read a short passage designed to help you cultivate the strength, insight, wisdom necessary for living good life. Each one of these passages is based on the 2000-year-old philosophy

that has guided some of history's greatest men and women. For more, you can visit us at dailystowach.com. You don't control when. You do control how. As we've discussed, one could look out at the world right now and see a lot of negative, or you could grab the other handle, as Epictida says, and see the positive. It's an open question, is this a great time to be alive or a terrible one? Are we blessed to have spent nearly 20 years without any major wars,

without any truly global crises, with sustained periods of economic prosperity and incredible technological advances, or has it been 20 years with three major recessions with the terror of terrorism, disruptive and disappointing technology, and now a global pandemic? Here's the stoic answer. It doesn't matter. Because you don't control when you live. What history will think of this period compared to other periods is meaningless. The only thing that counts

is that you're alive right now. We don't choose when we live, we choose how we live. That's it. You didn't ask for this moment. Maybe you'd prefer things to be different. Well, they aren't. And you're going to have to make do understand this and you will be wise. It's here to it and you will be successful. How can we make the most of right now? That's the question. How can we live well within or in spite of what's happening? That's our job.

You think Marcus wanted to live through the plague or epictetus in a time when slavery existed or Seneca during Nero's rule? No, but they figured it out. They made it work. And so can you? Hey there, if you're wondering how to get the most out of this time, you have stuck at home. Maybe you're working only part time or you're working from home. You've got a child care situation. None of this

is what we would choose, but the Stokes say we don't choose what happens. We choose how we respond. And so that's why we've been scrambling here at Daily Stoke to put together what we're calling the Daily Stoke a live time challenge. It's 14 days of inspired stoic wisdom that will help you get the most out of this moment that will help you seize this moment rise to the occasion. We're gonna challenge you, it's not gonna be easy,

but I think you will emerge from it better and that will be some small good that's come out of this experience. So you can check that out right now at dailystowick.com slash a live time. Hey, prime members, you can listen to the daily stoic early and ad free on Amazon music. Download the Amazon music app today, or you can listen early and add free with Wondery Plus in Apple podcasts. Celebrity feuds are high stakes. You never know if you're just going to end up on page six or Du Moir or in court. I'm Matt Bellesai. And I'm Sydney Battle. And we're the host of

Wondery's new podcast, Dis and Tell, where each episode we unpack a different iconic celebrity feud from the build up, why it happened, and the repercussions. What does our obsession with these feud say about us? The first season is packed with some pretty messy pop culture drama, but none is drawn out in personal as Britney and Jamie Lynn Spears. When Britney's fans form the free Britney movement dedicated to fraying her from the infamous conservatorship, Jamie Lynn's lack of public support, it angered some fans, a lot of them.

It's a story of two young women who had their choices taken away from them by their controlling parents, but took their anger out on each other. And it's about a movement to save a superstar, which set its sights upon anyone who failed to fight for Brittany. Follow Disenthal wherever you get your podcast. You can listen ad free on Amazon Music or the Wonder App.