Stoic Mind: Lessons from Stoicism to Become Mentally Tough

by Nicholas Wright

Setting the Stage

At its heart, Stoicism has one thing to say: in pursuit of the good life, virtue is sufficient. No matter how impairing the obstacle, how potent the suffering, how complete the loss, we can be completely content with nothing but virtue. As Seneca once said, “It is not what you endure that matters, but how you endure it.” And that’s just what virtue is, enduring what life throws at you—properly. So important was virtue to the Stoics that they elevated it above everything else. For them, nothing else was necessary to living well—not possessions, education, friendship, love, luxuries, or even life. Everything was expendable in the name of virtue, and it was the sole goal of the Stoic life to cultivate and maintain it the best they could.
Maybe that sounds a bit extreme, but it seems right at home when we consider how the classic Stoics understood nature. All of their principles were derived from their conception of nature—even the core tenet “virtue is sufficient” is a practical offshoot of a more abstract belief that the universe is overruled by reason and organized in a web of cause and effect. The reason “virtue is sufficient” is because to be virtuous is to endure what life throws at you properly—that is, to endure it in “accordance to nature.” By living the “right way” you’re not just doing something good—you’re living as nature intended, placing yourself in harmony with life, and facing it with the strength and resilience that only a Stoic can.
That’s no walk in the park. The sheer strength and mental fortitude required to live up to the Stoic ideal is intimidating, to put it lightly, and even the Stoics themselves wondered if anyone could really pull it off. But they didn’t see that as a reason to give up. No, they saw a great deal of utility in simply giving it a shot. Sure, it takes unspeakable strength, as we’ll see, to cultivate a Stoic mind—mastering your thoughts, remaining calm in the face of adversity, and conditioning yourself to think and act virtuously. But it’s possible. And while you’ve got nothing to lose, you have a great deal to gain.

Stoicism is tailored for the “good life.” It doesn’t emphasize (at least not too heavily) abstract, philosophical musings, like many other philosophies that might seem irrelevant to day-to-day life. It doesn’t require an education, a stellar IQ, or wealth to begin following its principles. One of its major thinkers was actually a slave, and another was an emperor. Clearly it’s a philosophy as applicable to those at top as to those at the bottom, to those who’ve known the best of life as to those who’ve known the worst, to the rich as to the poor, to the healthy as to the sick—because there are no true obstacles to bettering ourselves. All of its ideas are accessible and practical, giving us advice on how to become virtuous and strong.
It’s tough, but it’s worth it. Stoicism won’t tolerate weakness, immobility, defensiveness, ignorance, laziness, self-victimization, or denying responsibility. It tolerates nothing but your best. And it doesn’t care about who you are, only about who you could be, which is just what we’ll be covering here—how you can become more by cultivating a Stoic mind and strengthening your mental resilience.

32 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 20, 2018

About the author

Nicholas Verney Wright (1940, Cape Town, South Africa) is a British dramatist. He was born in Cape Town, attended Rondebosch Boys' School and from the age of six was a child actor on radio and on the stage. He came to London in 1958 to train as an actor at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) and subsequently worked as a floor-assistant in BBC Television and as a runner in film, notably John Schlesinger's "Far From the Madding Crowd." He started work at the Royal Court in 1965 as Casting Director and became, first, an Assistant Director there and then the first Director of the Royal Court's Theatre Upstairs, where for several years he presented an innovatory programme of new writing. From 1975 - 1977 he was joint artistic director of the Royal Court and he was subsequently a member of the Royal Court Theatre's Board. He is former literary manager and associate director of the Royal National Theatre, and a former member of the National Theatre Board. In 2014 and 2015 he will be the judge of the Yale Drama Series competition for playwrights. His publications include 99 Plays, a survey of drama from Aeschylus to the present day, and Changing Stages, co-written with Richard Eyre.

Reviews

[Kair Käsper · Rating 2 out of 5]

Started listening to this as an accident, but since it was short, talked about stoicism and I didn’t have anything else loaded into Audible I went through the entire thing.

I guess it gives a good overview of the stoic principles, but not in a very memorable way. I also struggled to understand where the author is just describing the philosophy and where it turns into a self-help book. I think it’s pretty dubious to pursue virtue in the same way it was done in ancient times, but this seems to be what the book promotes.

If you’re interested in stoicism, skip this and go straight for something from Marcus Aurelius or Epictetus.