Caison Britt’s Reviews > The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living > Status Update

“The raw material for the work of a good and excellent person is their own guiding reason, the body is that of the doctor and the physical trainer, and the farm the farmer’s.” —EPICTETUS, DISCOURSES, 3.3.1

“How much better is it to be known for doing well by many than for living extravagantly? How much more worthy than spending on sticks and stones is it to spend on people?” —MUSONIUS RUFUS, LECTURES, 19.91.26–28

As Musonius Rufus put it, the justification for philosophy is when “one brings together sound teaching with sound conduct.”

Would I be better saying words or letting my actions and choices illustrate that knowledge for me? —Holiday

“Character is a powerful defense in a world that would love to be able to seduce you, buy you, tempt you, and change you.” —Holiday

“By seeing each day and each situation as a kind of training exercise, the stakes suddenly become a lot lower. The way you interpret your own mistakes and the mistakes of others is suddenly a lot more generous. It’s certainly a more resilient attitude than going around acting like the stakes of every encounter put the championship on the line.” —Holiday

No one should be ashamed at changing his mind—that’s what the mind is for. “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds,” Emerson said, “adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines.”

“Einstein didn’t invent the theory of relativity while he was multitasking at the Swiss patent office.” It came after, when he really had time to focus and study. —Gallagher

When you hear or see something, which interpretation do you jump to? What is your default interpretation of someone else’s intentions? If being upset or hurt is something you’d like to experience less often, then make sure your interpretations of others’ words make that possible. —Holiday

“..become an observer of your own thoughts and the actions those thoughts provoke.” —Holiday