What Is Stoicism? A Definition and 9 Stoic Exercises to Get You Started
You have power over your mind- not outside events. Realise this, and you will find strength.
“Our life is what our thoughts make it.” — Marcus Aurelius, also Vybz Kartel
“You have power over your mind – not outside events. Realise this, and you will find strength.” — Marcus Aurelius
The first time Stoicism clicked for me, I was stuck in traffic late for a meeting, with four percent battery left on my phone.
I had already blamed the traffic, the driver who had cut across lanes without warning, and myself for leaving late. None of this improved the situation. It only gave me something to get anxious and mad at while the cars barely moved.
Then I remembered a question I’d read many times- what, in this situation, is up to me?
The traffic wasn’t. The time I had lost was gone. My phone battery was unlikely to improve. I could still call ahead, apologize without making excuses, and decide whether I wanted to arrive angry as well as late.
That was all. The traffic didn’t suddenly move. I still missed the beginning of the meeting. The exercise simply stopped me from making an unpleasant situation worse.
That ordinary experience explains Stoicism better than most definitions do. It’s a philosophy concerned with judgment, conduct, and the use we make of events. It asks us to take responsibility for our choices while accepting that much of life will remain outside our control.
This essay explains what Stoicism teaches, where it came from, and nine exercises you can begin practicing without having read Marcus Aurelius, Seneca, or Epictetus.
What Stoicism Is
The word ‘stoic’ usually describes someone who…