Tony Otoa is an international lawyer from Uganda and a consultant in the extractives sector. I connected with Tony some time ago on Twitter, where he shares his wisdom on leadership and philosophy, among other topics. He is also a long-time student of Stoicism and applies it intentionally as a philosophy of life. It was…
This short explainer will provide you with a straightforward understanding of what the dichotomy of control is and how you can use it in your Stoic practice. Definition Of The Dichotomy Of Control The dichotomy of control as a Stoic concept comes to us from Epictetus. He describes it as follows at the beginning of…
We all submit to distraction once a while (or perhaps more frequently), that much is obvious. It’s rarely the lovely distraction of a gaze out the window at a vivid sunset, but more likely an altogether less engaged gawp at the glass of a glowing screen. Even without an external prompt, buzz, or beep, we…
This short explainer will provide you with a straightforward understanding of what Stoic philosophy considers to be good, what it considers to be bad, and what it considers to be indifferent. Definitions of Good and Bad The Stoic view is that the only true good in life is virtue. Virtue comes in four forms: Wisdom,…
Modern Stoics will be aware of the work of the "big three" Stoic philosophers: Marcus Aurelius, Seneca, and Epictetus. They'll know, too, that Zeno of Citium founded the Stoic school and may even have heard of other prominent figures like Cleanthes, Chrysippus, and Musonius Rufus. What most aren't aware of, however, is all the other…
This short explainer will provide you with a straightforward understanding of what negative visualisation is. You will also learn how you can use it in your Stoic practice. Definition Of Negative Visualisation Negative visualisation is a technique by which we regularly spend a short amount of time imagining the negative events that could befall us.…
How often do you say yes when you really want to say no? Yes to invites. Yes to work proposals. Yes to favour requests. Whatever the “ask” is, agreeing when we’d rather not is a common thing. There can be many reasons for doing it but most of them come down to some kind of…
This short explainer will provide you with a straightforward understanding of what Amor Fati is and how you can use it in your Stoic practice. Definition Of Amor Fati The phrase “amor fati” is Latin for “love of one’s fate.” It describes the attitude whereby one not only accepts everything that happens in life, including…
Daniel Vargas is the creator and host of the Stoic Sage podcast, where he focuses on using past knowledge to empower people of today. The podcast series discusses modern challenges using Stoic wisdom from nearly 2,000 years ago. The goal is to help guide people on "how to think" rather than telling them "what to…
This short explainer will provide you with a straightforward understanding of what Memento Mori is and how you can use it in your Stoic practice. Definition Of Memento Mori The phrase “memento mori” is Latin for “remember you must die.” It is a reflection on the impermanence of life and a constant reminder not to…