Name: Carlos Becker's review of The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday
Item: The Daily Stoic
Rating: 5
Author: Carlos Becker

Ryan Holiday

Stephen Hanselman

From the team that brought you The Obstacle Is the Way and Ego Is the Enemy, a beautiful daily devotional of Stoic meditations—an instant Wall Street Journal and USA Today Bestseller. Why have history's greatest minds—from George Washington to Frederick the Great to Ralph Waldo Emerson, along with today's top performers from Super Bowl-winning football coaches to CEOs and celebrities—embraced the wisdom of the ancient Stoics? Because they realize that the most valuable wisdom is timeless and that philosophy is for living a better life, not a classroom exercise. The Daily Stoic offers 366 days of Stoic insights and exercises, featuring all-new translations from the Emperor Marcus Aurelius, the playwright Seneca, or slave-turned-philosopher Epictetus, as well as lesser-known luminaries like Zeno, Cleanthes, and Musonius Rufus. Every day of the year you'll find one of their pithy, powerful quotations, as well as historical anecdotes, provocative commentary, and a helpful glossary of Greek terms. By following these teachings over the course of a year (and, indeed, for years to come) you'll find the serenity, self-knowledge, and resilience you need to live well.

366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living

The Daily Stoic

Alexander Sandberg

Carlos Becker

Where can you find joy? What's the true measure of success? How should we manage anger? Find meaning? Conquer grief? The answers to these questions and more lie at the heart of Stoic philosophy. The Daily Stoic is a compelling, accessible guide to living a good life, offering daily doses of this classic wisdom. Long the secret weapon of history's great figures, from emperors to artists and activists to fighter pilots, the principles of Stoicism have shone brightly through the centuries as a philosophy for doers. Tested in the laboratory of human experience over the last two thousand years, this timeless knowledge is essential to navigating the complexities of modern life. The Daily Stoic offers a daily devotional of Stoic insights and exercises, featuring all-new translations from the Emperor Marcus Aurelius, the playwright Seneca, and the slave-turned-philosopher Epictetus, as well as diamonds like Zeno, Cleanthes and Musonius Rufus. On each page, one for every day of the year, you'll find one of their pithy, powerful quotations, as well as historical anecdotes and provocative commentary to help you tackle any problem or approach any goal. By following these teachings over the course of a year (and, indeed, for years to come) you'll find the serenity, self-knowledge, and resilience you need to live well.

366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living: Featuring new translations of Seneca, Epictetus, and Marcus Aurelius

Heiki Riesenkampf

The content is good, the structure is horrible. It's a quick and digestible summary of most Stoic concepts, but it's too all over the place and repetitive at times. Potentially a biased extra star because I like Ryan's writing a lot.

Nenad Nikolic

Started as ambitious book, as author's attempt to bring Stoic philosophy to contemporary audience. He somewhat suceeded - Stoic concepts were explained using modern analogies. I give it only three stars because I do not believe that author added any real value to existing Stoic texts and he also failed to criticize obviously outdated stuff. He should have make real difference there.

Suat ATAN

I think a reader needs to follow the recommended scheme (1 page a day, spanning a full year, with written reflection after each chapter) to get the full value out of this book. I read it over 8 months instead of 12 and feel it was a lot of material to consciously absorb.

matej yangwao

Important part books learns you is to become philosophical, i.e. question your existence, beliefs, emotions, &c
Stoicism is clear thinking which stems from self-examination. 
To learn manage focus and attention through stoicism, is to have in control your mind. Other things are out of your control. You don't have any control over the circumstances that come your way in life.

Many of us share this affliction — being driven by something we can’t control. We’re afraid of being still, so we seek out strife and action as a distraction. We choose to be at war — in some cases, literally — when peace is, in fact, the more honorable and fitting choice
Learning to control your emotions will impact your life positively and always give you an edge in every situation you find yourself.
You have to learn how to put your emotions in check and avoid letting them cloud your judgment.

You should become an observer of your own thoughts and the actions those thoughts inspire.


>The samurai swordsman Musashi made a distinction between our “perceiving eye” and our “observing eye.”
>It isn’t events themselves that disturb people, but only their judgments about them.

Obstacle is the path. Have mental reverse clause or a backup option.

>The stoics have a flexible outlook on life. Instead of looking for instruction, they cultivate skills like creativity, self-sufficiency, self-confidence, ingenuity, and the ability to solve problems. In this way, they are resilient instead of rigid and are mentally prepared to see the opportunity in every challenge they face.

>“Every noble deed is voluntary.”

>“art of acquiescence” — to accept rather than fight every little thing.

>When you are distressed by an external thing, it’s not the thing itself that troubles you, but only your judgment of it. And you can wipe this out at a moment’s notice.

>time is our most irreplaceable asset — we cannot buy more of it. We can only strive to waste as little as possible.

Matija

This book was a game-changer for me.

Ryan's short and modern explanations make Aurelius, Seneca and Epictetus passages really easy to understand. It's a perfect introduction to Stoicism as jumping straight to Meditations could be overwhelming and possibly discouraging.

Type of book you can (and should) re-read many times.

Félix

Charming collection of Quotes from very different authors. Ryan Holiday does a surprisingly good job of interpreting them and puts them in understandable, meaningful context.

Wojciech Waśniewski

Can't say I finished it, as not a full year has passed since publication, but I doubt that my review will change.
Fantastic book that's become part of my morning routine giving me daily food for thought and often a journalling inspiration.
Highly recommended for anyone who finds Stoicism fascinating

Ugis

Wonderful collection of stoic wisdom. Marcus Aurelius, Seneca and others. Human condition seems to be similar yet many do not look deep enough for right answers. Philosophy is something one should practice regularly and timeless wisdom in stoic ideas just proves that. Made a ton of notes.

[reading time: 9h22m]

Pavlos Nicolaou

Daily Stoic is a book that is meant to be read in the morning or in the afternoon daily and give you a dose of stoicism. In my opinion, if you can put that as your daily habit there is an instant improvement in many aspects of life 

Why have history's greatest minds embraced the wisdom of the ancient Stoics? Because they realize that the most valuable wisdom is timeless and that philosophy is for living a better life, not a classroom exercise. Holiday and Hanselman offer 366 days of Stoic insights and exercises, to help you find the serenity, self-knowledge, and resilience you need to live well

Lucas Coelho

Great selection of quotes from the stoics and reflections. Recommended for daily meditation. You will never really finish this book.

Luca Conti

Hugo Ahlberg

Great daily little read

Lots of wisdom here for sure.. One of the things I liked the most is the daily ritual. For a year I read a chapter which is usually a page long at most, every morning. It’s has now become a habit which I definitely tend to continue.

agi ☻

Nick Boyer

Dani Pesayco

Benjamin

Robin van der Vleuten

Samuel Linde

Where can you find joy? What's the true measure of success? How should we manage anger? Find meaning? Conquer grief? The answers to these questions and more lie at the heart of Stoic philosophy. The Daily Stoic is a compelling, accessible guide to living a good life, offering daily doses of this classic wisdom.

Carlos Becker &
The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday

Reviews

Highlights

Join the club

Carlos Becker &The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday

Reviews

Highlights

Join the club

Carlos Becker &
The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday