Your Saturday Stoic Review — Week of June 13 - 19

​ ​ PASSAGE OF THE WEEK: This moment is a gift. Show up for it. Enjoy it. Don't cast it aside for Door #2. Because eventually, behind that door will be death. Don't choose death. Choose life. Be here now. — Where Are You Rushing To? (Listen) YOUTUBE TAKEAWAY OF THE WEEK: ​ ​In one of the most watched videos on the Daily Stoic YouTube Channel this week, Ryan Holiday traveled to Annapolis, Maryland to speak to the US Naval Academy about the power of courage. Ryan tells the story of the question that changed the course of Jimmy Carter's life, he tells the story of Florence Nightingale and the many forces that almost prevented her from fulfilling her destiny, he talks about the difference between moral and physical courage, and he talks about the nuances of courage: "You might think that courage is about putting your ass on the line, about taking a stand. But it's more complicated than that. Courage is putting your ass on the line, but for what? As Lord Byron says, 'tis the cause makes all, Degrades or hallows courage in its fall. So courage is not just risking, but for what are you risking? Franklin buchanan, Matthew Maury—controversial figures here at the naval academy. You can imagine it was risky to to give up everything, to give up your appointments, to risk death in the U.S. Civil War. For what cause did they choose to do that? The worst cause that you could possibly imagine. They were immensely courageous to take that risk, but it's a hollow courage—not a hallowed courage—but a hollow courage. Because the cause makes all." PODCAST TAKEAWAY OF THE WEEK: ​ On the Daily Stoic podcast this week, Ryan Holiday interviewed San Antonio Spurs basketball player Keita Bates-Diop about how Keita got introduced and interested in Stoicism, what he's learned playing for legendary coach Gregg Popovich, what the best leaders tend to have in common, and one of the most common reasons people don't last long in the NBA: "If you make it to the NBA, for your entire life up to that point, you were probably the best player on every team you were on. When you get to the NBA, one of the things they tell you coming in is that 80% of the league is role players. Essentially they tell you, you're no longer going to be the star of your team. Most of us are not going to be the star ever again. That's a hard pill to swallow. Honestly, the reason a lot of guys don't make it in the NBA is they can't swallow that pill, they can't accept it, they can't take a back seat, they're unwilling to take on a 'lesser' role." WHAT RYAN HOLIDAY IS READING: I had the best conversation with my dad, who's a lifelong musician. He had an incredible career without "making it" and yet still was a working musician, which is so hard to do. He played with the Righteous Brothers on and off for twenty years, and he played in Vegas, and he'd had his own bands and this and that. He'd seen enough of the big time, so to speak, and we went to lunch one day, and I said to him, "I think I'm going to try this comedy thing. I think I'm going to give it a shot. Do you have any advice for me?" And his big gut talk to me was, "You know what? I think you have the skill, but it takes a lot of luck. If you don't make it, don't worry about it. You can just try something else." Like, don't worry if you fail, because it's a crapshoot anyway. And so, from that point, I was like, Oh, I'm just playing the lottery here so I might as well just go have fun. —Will Ferrell, Sicker in the Head by Judd Apatow YOUR STOIC WEEKEND REMINDER: Grab the smooth handle. "Every event has two handles," Epictetus said, "one by which it can be carried, and one by which it can't. If your brother does you wrong, don't grab it by his wronging, because this is the handle incapable of lifting it. Instead, use the other—that he is your brother, that you were raised together, and then you will have hold of the handle that carries." Don't grab things by the rough or the weak handle. Don't grab them by the easy one. Grab them by the smooth and study one, the one that will bear weight. Think of the good in people. Think about where you are to blame. Think about when you have committed a similar wrong yourself. Think of it as a challenge. Think of it as an opportunity to help someone. Think about how connected we all are to each other. That is the smoothest and sturdiest handle of them all. And it is the better one to grab, now and always. (For more on this idea, watch this video!) THIS WEEK'S BEST SOCIAL MEDIA POST: ​ EMAIL OF THE WEEK: ​The Best Leaders Are the Reluctant Ones (Listen) At InsideTracker, we understand that in order to live your longest and healthiest life possible, your body needs to be periodically tested and recalibrated. Blood biomarkers—objective measures of health status—change over time. And certain blood biomarkers are more closely associated with aging than others. InsideTracker has identified five main blood biomarkers related to healthy aging. All five of these biomarkers are measured as part of their Ultimate Plan.For a limited time, InsideTracker is offering The Gist Subscribers a FREE ebook: The Top 5 Biomarkers for Longevity. Discover which ones to start monitoring by downloading InsideTracker's FREE ebook, The Top 5 Biomarkers for Longevity, today. In addition to the free ebook, InsideTracker is offering subscribers Daily Stoic 20% off the entire InsideTracker store! Head over to insidetracker.com/STOIC to get started.​ ​ ​ ​Unsubscribe | Update your profile | 906 Main Street #274, Bastrop, Texas 78602 ​info@dailystoic.com is not a monitored email