I enjoyed the book “A Guide To The Good Life: The Ancient Art Of Stoic Joy” by William B. Irvine.
And you could say that it made me think.
The book aims to inspire readers to adopt and practice a life philosophy.
It’s better to have one than to be guided on autopilot.
What is the purpose of Stoicism?
If I try to sum it up in one sentence, I would say “the search of tranquility.”
And what does that mean?
Tranquility is a psychological state in which we experience few negative emotions, such as anxiety, grief, and fear, but an abundance of positive emotions, especially joy.”
You are not attempting to eliminate negative emotions, but rather to reduce their intensity.. Get out of the lousy spiral as soon as possible and embrace the feelings of abundance.
Life is a kind of playground for you to become a better person through the difficulties of everyday life.
- How to better manage human relationships?
- How to deal with criticism, insults, anger?
- How to minimize the impact of grief?
- How to free yourself from the judgment of others? from your social status?
The Art of Living.
The stoicism and the author try to be as practical as possible to learn the art of living.
But practical does not mean easy. It all depends on willpower, self-discipline, consistency, and responsibility.
In exchange, the stoics gain tranquility and clarity. Their decisions become easier. And the whole process helps them to cope with life’s difficulties.
Our modern lives do not favor this way of thinking. Politics and media offer us countless distractions, making us think that our happiness depends on external factors.
4 practical tools of the stoics
Adapting is a quality, but it can also become a difficulty in some cases. Psychologists talk about “Hedonic Adaptation.” And it seems that this is a big part of our permanent dissatisfaction.
“We’re unhappy because we’re insatiable. After working hard to get what we want, we lose interest in the object of our desire. Rather than feeling satisfied, we feel a bit bored, and in response to this boredom, we go on to form new, even grander desires.”
1.Negative Visualization.
To combat this, the Stoics use “Negative Visualization.”
What is this again, Dror? 😀
That’s also the question I asked myself. I have understood and practiced positive visualization for years but I didn’t know this Stoic technique.
It’s about imagining for a short time (2min) the worst. It can be about a situation (loss of your job), a person (loss of a loved one), health (loss of vision, ability to walk, etc.).
After this bad daydream, you become more aware and appreciate what you have.
In a podcast, I heard the author explain that he sometimes shouted in the house, “thank you for being with me.” A message he sends to his wife right after the exercise. And, of course, his spouse knows what he is talking about.
2. Remember the big picture.
“As we go about our day, periodically pause to reflect on the fact that you will not live forever and therefore this day could be your last.”
In the same vein as the previous exercise. The Stoic likes to remind himself that he is only here for a short time and doesn’t even know how long it will last. It helps him to appreciate each day, hour, minute, second.
I’m a big believer in this concept. And it is part of my decision to leave the corporate world at 46 to appreciate the time I have left on this planet. As long as possible, I hope, but it’s not in my control. This brings us to the next point.
3. What is in my control?
The stoic takes responsibility for his happiness. And for that, he focuses on everything that is within his control.
You have no control over the weather, but you can choose to enjoy any weather. The idea is to create goals within our control and accept without anger or negative emotions what is outside our circle.
I consciously learned this principle more than 20 years ago when I read “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen Covey. The first habit, “Be Proactive” encompass this point.
I owe a lot to this idea. I can’t do it all the time, but I feel I’m making improvements every time I take 100% responsibility.
4. Voluntary discomfort.
“And why is self-discipline worth possessing? Because those who possess it can determine what they do with their life.”
Stoics voluntarily put themselves in positions of discomfort. Going out underdressed, walking barefoot, sleeping on the floor instead of in bed, fasting….By doing this, they train themselves to dominate their minds.
The stoic appreciates everything but does not want to depend on anything. For him, less comfort is also a way to reach more joy.
Conclusion
This book provides a better understanding of the origins, reasons, and search of the stoics. It translates the thought found in the ancient texts into modern and practical language. It makes it accessible to everyone.
I believe in the search for continuous improvement, and this book is an excellent companion.
I highly recommend it.
Excellent write-up here, I’m so interested in these concepts and try to live by them as much as I can. I’m definitely going to look into the book, merci!
Hi Ella, thank you for the feedback. I appreciate. 🙂
I wish you all the best in your search.
Have a great day.