Never Do Anything Out Of Habit

I am blogging everyday (or nearly everyday) on The Daily Stoic.

I thought I was going to hate this one, because I’m trying to create some new habits to get rid of old ones. This is essentially what the stoic of today is. Break out of bad habits that make us mindless and uninspiring. The example used is, “Because that’s the way we’ve always done things.” Which if you work in security, I’m sure you’ve heard. My response is usually that it’s not the way forward.

That’s not to say that we become inspired monks. Rather we should know why we’re doing what we’re doing and for the right reasons. For me, I seem to be in a rut that started yesterday. I’m trying to figure it out. A glass of whiskey and some Letterkenny sounds good right now to try and distract myself and relax a bit. Is that a good enough reason? I don’t know. I’ll find out.

Daily Stoic(s)

I am blogging everyday (or nearly everyday) on The Daily Stoic.

Cut The Strings That Pull Your Mind - Yesterday

“Understand at last that you have something in you more powerful and divine than what causes the bodily passion and pulls you like a mere puppet.” - Marcus Aurelius

That is such a powerful mind to me. Bodily passion is a good description of the indulgences we “choose” to take part in. I’m using air quotes because a lot of our passions are engineered to be passions. Games are built to be addictive. Food is built to indulge over and over again. The reason why some TV shows run longer than others is entirely based on viewership. We have to binge watch that series that just came out on Netflix.

It’s comforting to know that I can be more than a mere puppet.

Peace Is In Staying The Course - Today

This is a path stoic. We’re all on a journey in life. To have tranquility means to know that you are generally heading in the right direction. We may veer off here and there and that’s okay. No is expected to have it all figured out immediately. We veer and make a correcting adjustment that puts us back heading in the direction.

This is comforting in that I’m not expected to get it right all the time and that when I do veer I can get back on the path.

Circle Of Control

I am blogging everyday (or nearly everyday) on The Daily Stoic.

There is a running theme at this point. Control.

We control only one thing, our mind. Our thoughts, our choices, and our will. I think this concept is a very important one for me in reducing stress and anxiety. I’ve told myself these things before and this time it seems to resonate more because it’s coming from a place of wisdom.

I’ve been on this path already. A week or so ago I broke two of my favorite whiskey glasses. Instead of getting upset I realized there was nothing I could do. I can’t change the past, because I have no control over it. All I can do is go buy another whiskey glass when I break my last one.

I was able to execute on this last night when I was watching some TV late. I was hungry. I decided that it was too late though and didn’t allow what was outside of my control, my body, to control how I approached the hunger. This is something I’m working on throughout the day. Eating when I need to and when I don’t need to. My body can try to influence that. Ultimately, it’s my choice.

The One Path To Serenity

I am blogging everyday (or nearly everyday) on The Daily Stoic.

This one is about control and recognizing what’s in your control and what’s out of control. Then reminding myself that I control what I can control and can’t control what I can’t. I feel like I did this a bit today. On the ride home I reminded myself multiple times about this. I can’t control the other drivers I can control how I drive and how I feel about driving. I think some of the previous stoics have really helped me better understand what is in my control and what is out of my control.

One of the things I’m being more mindful of is my appetite. I’m not hungry, but I want to eat. This has been a theme throughout the day. I think most of this is habit or avoidance of the daily work. I can’t control the actual hunger. I can control the act of actually eating. I think I’m fighting some of the habit of just eating.

If You Want To Be Unsteady

I am blogging everyday (or nearly everyday) on The Daily Stoic.

This is another daily stoic about our own judgements and choices. We choose how we react to things. That’s the key to stoicism. To not avoid the disruptions of other people. We can’t control those. We can control how we choose to react to those. Driving is a good example.

Other drivers annoy the crap out of me (as I probably annoy them). They’re either driving to fast in and out of traffic or driving too slow in the left lanes. They’ll cut you off or decide at the last minute they have to get off at this exit or make a turn they’ve already passed. I often grumble in these scenarios. I use my grandfather’s favorite word, “Dunderhead!” It used to be much worse with screaming and yelling and rage. When I get that way I am unsteady. I think the drive to and from work are a great place to practice avoid my own harmful and disruptive judgements.