I am blogging everyday (or nearly everyday) on The Daily Stoic.
This is another stoic I am working on this year. Paying attention to what I’m saying. I can get ranty. That’s not always in the best situations or at the right time. I’m trying to take a step back and think about what I’m saying and how it will impact or come across to others.
I am blogging everyday (or nearly everyday) on The Daily Stoic.
There’s not many things I wish for, even on my birthday. I think this has caused me to lose some direction. At some level I think I need a wish or a want that can motivate me. They can be noble wishes or wants. More financially security. Striving for good work. Improving myself. These are all wishes and wants. Those provide me direction.
I am blogging everyday (or nearly everyday) on The Daily Stoic.
The thing that provoked my isn’t real; my reaction is real. I have entered that calm state again where I feel like things don’t upset me as much. I’ve been here before and unfortunately I know things will progress to a point that I’m not in this current state. Hopefully, I can maintain it as long as possible and make the non-state a short period.
This was evident recently when some interesting news broke on Twitter in the infosec community. I have a small tie-in to it that some know but many don’t. I’ve thought a lot about it recently. I’m still in a what and see mindset because there’s a lot of emotions involved and people with sharp axes striking. I could be upset at any number of things but I have a peaceful mind about it.
This stoic talks about work and essentially doing what your boss says. This is something that I’ve written about a lot. I have had moments where I realized what I was gripping about was dumb. I’ve learned from those moments. There are certain things though where I know things can be done better and voice my concern. I have to strike that balance or maybe I’m just making things harder on myself. I can be at peace with that because I’m willing to push the boundaries on things and that will make for conflict.
One subtle change I’ve seen since studying stoicism is this stoic. I don’t look forward to events the same way. I don’t get excited about an upcoming trip or event. Instead I try to live in the moment and find the wonderful things about that moment. There are times where that’s tougher. I’m happy though that I’ve made this change because it makes life more enjoyable overall.
This tells me I need to better prepare for bad times. I’ve never had a plan. Or at least not that I’m aware of. I’ve noticed walking can be very therapeutic for me. It gives me time to think and some exercise. I’ve used working out the same way. My plan in the future when I’m in a stormy state will be to make time to walk.
A lot of frustrations at work can be tied to this stoic. I’ve been told to be patient. To the point that they’ve said, “I know I’ve told you this before.” I feel like I can be a patient person. I can also be inpatient. My personality has a lot to do with efficiency and that means getting things done quickly. If I have a good idea I want it to be spread quickly. That’s not how these things happen though.
One of my favorite topics at work is hiring because I’ve had success with it and I’ve made it something opposite of what I’ve had to experience. I wish the world would take the approach. I wish my company would take it. It’s largely mocked at work. I have started to gain some ground though within the circle of people I work with. I helped someone a year ago who after making a bad hire took some of my suggestions and made a great hire. Others have started to reach out. It’s not the company but it is a start.
Craving things can be harmful because they can make things worse. I’m still working on my vices. I’ve made progress over the last year. I’m sleeping more which is good for my rest but also it’s less time spent on those vices.
I am blogging everyday (or nearly everyday) on The Daily Stoic.
Emotions can takeover very easily. It’s practice that will reduce the chances of it but I don’t think it will ever entirely eliminate it. I’m trying to take steps back whenever I’m emotional.
I am blogging everyday (or nearly everyday) on The Daily Stoic.
This is the stoic for me for this year. Not having an opinion about things that upset me. I’m noticing little things triggering me and I need to learn to have no opinion about it. I’ve done this before and life is much better for it. Now I need to take it to the next level and practice it and apply it.
I’ll have to keep this month’s stoics in mind when I feel anger raising later in the year. I do seem to remember the first part of 2020 being better than the last. Anger doesn’t solve anything and often will make things worse.
Over indulged is the key word for me in this stoic. I certainly over-indulge in things and that usually ends up being a bad thing later. I don’t have a great feeling afterwards and that is something I am continuing to work on.
Don’t be afraid to make a change. This is interesting because that’s what I’m trying to figure out. Am I not being stoic enough or have things devolved to the point that stoicism is less effective. I believe both can be true. I can do better as a stoic and I could be in a better place.
This is something I’m always working on. I’ve been able to improve myself over the last year. I’m no longer staying up later than I should. Over the last 30 days I’ve slept an average of 8:27 hours. That’s a huge jump over last year when I was getting on average about an hour less of sleep. I’ve actually found that because I sleep more it’s harder to operate on less sleep or alcohol. That could also just be me getting old.
