Your Saturday Stoic Review — Week of October 17 - 23

​ ​ PASSAGE OF THE WEEK: What about you? Are you such an athlete? Can you ball? Or do you make excuses? Do you prefer to sit in the stands and judge the people who can play? Win or lose, what matters, the Stoics believed, was that we tried. That we did our best. That we dove for the ball, that we risked it all but played fair. That we held our head up high, that we didn't get intimidated or make excuses. Life is going to throw you curveballs. Are you ready? — Can You Play Ball? (Listen) YOUTUBE TAKEAWAY OF THE WEEK: In one of the most watched videos on the Daily Stoic YouTube Channel this week, Ryan Holiday shared 60 Stoic lessons in 1 minute or less. Here's just one: "The best way to beat anxiety, the Stoics say, is to think about the things that you have been through before. Marcus Aurelius says, how will you meet the problems of tomorrow? With the same weapons that you have today. The same way that you've gotten through adversity before…Seneca says you know what you're capable of, you don't need to be anxious, you've been through crazy shit…You don't have to be anxious because you're more capable than you know. And you should know how capable you are by looking at the things you have been through before. Look at your track record. You have evidence." Watch the full video: 60 Stoic Lessons In 1 Minute Or Less​ PODCAST TAKEAWAY OF THE WEEK: ​ In one of the most listened to episodes of the Daily Stoic podcast this week, Ryan Holiday talked to World Series of Poker champion Annie Duke about her new book Quit: The Power of Knowing When to Walk Away, the creative benefits of time and space, the many types of quitting, knowing when to persevere and when to walk away, and the associative costs of not walking away: If you're sticking with a job, even though it's making you miserable, because you think that grit is the same thing as character and that it is weak-willed to walk away from something—the problem is you forget that you'll be walking towards something. And the thing that you would be walking towards could actually be a lot better. And so sticking has the associative cost of not just the misery you're currently feeling in that horrible job but also all the happiness you could be gaining from the other things you could be doing. Listen to the full episode: Annie Duke on Knowing When To Quit​ WHAT RYAN HOLIDAY IS READING: "There are not more than five musical notes, yet the combinations of these five give rise to more melodies than can ever be heard. There are not more than five primary colors (blue, yellow, red, white, and black), yet in combination they produce more hues than can ever been seen. There are not more than five cardinal tastes (sour, acrid, salt, sweet, bitter), yet combinations of them yield more flavors than can ever be tasted. In battle, there are not more than two methods of attack—the direct and the indirect; yet these two in combination give rise to an endless series of maneuvers." — The Art of War & Other Classics of Eastern Philosophy​ YOUR STOIC WEEKEND REMINDER: Laughter is the best medicine. The Stoics were of the mind that a sense of humor was necessary in a world often marked by stress and anxiety. As Seneca observes, "All things are cause for either laughter or weeping." And since that is the case, "Heraclitus would shed tears whenever he went out in public—Democritus laughed. One saw the whole as a parade of miseries, the other of follies. And so, we should take a lighter view of things and bear them with an easy spirit, for it is more human to laugh at life than to lament it." (For more Stoic strategies for dealing with stress, watch this video!) THIS WEEK'S BEST SOCIAL MEDIA POST: ​ EMAIL OF THE WEEK: ​This Will Sustain You (Listen) ​ Today's email is sponsored by LMNT, the maker of electrolyte drink mixes that help you stay active at home, work, the gym, or anywhere else. Everyone needs electrolytes, whether it's athletes, for a diabetic or ketogenic diet, or just people trying to stay healthy. LMNT's electrolytes are key for relieving hunger, cramps, headaches, tiredness, and dizziness. We really like the combination of effective nutrition with tasty flavors (the mango chili is great!). LMNT is offering Daily Stoic subscribers a FREE LMNT Sample Pack with any purchase. Your Sample Pack includes 8 packets of LMNT (2 citrus, 2 raspberry, 2 orange and 2 raw unflavored). To claim this exclusive deal you must go to drinkLMNT.com/dailystoic. Give LMNT a try today.​ ​Unsubscribe | Update your profile | 906 Main Street #274, Bastrop, Texas 78602 ​info@dailystoic.com is not a monitored email