The Daily Stoic - You Should Always Find Something to Learn

Episode Date: March 20, 2020

We all have our way of doing things. We have what we were directly taught. We have the values that our culture gives us. We have the lessons we picked up by experience. It’s understandable then, when we see someone else doing things totally differently, that we might assume they’re doing it the wrong way. That’s not how that’s supposed to go, we think to ourselves.This, the Stoics would tell us, is a recipe for folly. “It’s impossible to begin to learn that which you think you already know,” Epictetus said. Cato the Elder, the great-grandfather of Cato the Younger, coined a maxim in his famous essay, On Agriculture, which explained best practices for farming in the Roman era. “Be careful,” he said about the management practices of your neighbors, “not to rashly refuse to learn from others.” This lesson was picked up on and rephrased by hundreds of writers since, including Ben Franklin in Poor Richard’s Almanack. Only an idiot turns up their nose at how other people do things. Sure, nine times out of ten, you’re right and they’re wrong. But that one time? That’s the game changer. It’s worth always remembering that other people have different perspectives, different experiences, and, in some cases, better schooling than you. What if they discovered a shortcut? What if they learned, painfully—through trial and error—something that could save you from suffering? A Stoic cannot allow their logic and their habits to become rigid or their mind to harden into condescension. We have to be open. We cannot be rash or dismissive. There is always something to learn—from everyone and in any situation. Even if it is only a reminder of why you do the things you do the way you do them. But hopefully you seek out disconfirmation even more than confirmation.Learn from others, always. 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 Wondery'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 the 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 should always find something to learn. We all have our way of doing things. We have what we're directly taught. We have the values that our culture gives us. We have the lessons we picked up by experience. It's understandable then that when we see someone else doing things totally differently, we might assume that they're doing it wrong. We say that's not how things are supposed to go. This, the Stoics would tell us, is a recipe for

folly. It's impossible to learn that what you think you already know, Epictetus said, Cato the Elder, the great grandfather of Cato the Younger, coined a maxim in his famous essay on agriculture, which explained best practices for farming in the Roman era. Be careful, he said, about the management practices of your neighbors. Be careful, he said, not to rashly refuse to learn from others. This lesson was picked up on and refraised by hundreds of writers since including Ben Franklin in poor Richards Almanac. Only an idiot turns up their nose and how other people do things.

Sure, nine times out of ten year right and they're wrong, but that one time, it's a game changer. It's worth always remembering that other people have different perspectives, different experiences, and in some cases better schooling than you. What if they discovered a shortcut? What if they learned painfully through trial and error? Something that could save you from suffering? A stoic cannot allow their logic and their habits to become rigid or their mind to harden

into condescension. We have to be open, we cannot be rash or dismissive. There is always something to learn from everyone and in any situation, even if it's only a reminder of why you do the things the way you do them, but hopefully you seek out disconfirmation even more than confirmation.

Learn from others, always. Hey everyone, just a reminder, the obstacle is the way as an ebook in the US is on sale for $199 for a little bit longer. Check it out, it will not be cheaper than this. Give the book as a gift if you've been on the fence about trying it out. I promise you it is worth at least $1.99.

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$199. 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 ad free with Wondery Plus in Apple podcasts. to learn how they built them from the ground up. Guy has sat down with hundreds of founders behind well-known companies like Headspace, Manduke Yoga Mats, Soul Cycle, and Codopaxi, as well as entrepreneurs working to solve some of the biggest problems of our time, like developing technology that pulls energy from the ground to heat in cool homes, or even figuring out how to make drinking water from air and sunlight.

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