Stoicism in 5 Steps: How to Apply the Timeless Wisdom of the Stoics in Modern Everyday Life to Achieve Iron Discipline, Inner Calm, Resilience & Humility | incl. a 28-Day Challenge E-Book

Konstantin Rensche

• Herausgeber: Psiana Verlag
• Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 196

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2025

Beschreibung

  Stoicism: Using the Timeless Philosophy of the Ancient Greek Stoa to Achieve Greater Composure, Balance, and Contentment in Everyday Life   "With stoic calm": That's how people describe individuals who seemingly can't be thrown off balance by anything—and perhaps you wish that for yourself more often, too? In that case, you should take a closer look at the actual Stoa, and this book will show you how easily Stoicism can be integrated into your everyday life! Reacting to events without emotion and not letting joyful occasions, annoyances, or strokes of fate affect you: this Stoa stereotype seems impossible and hardly desirable—but wouldn't a bit more control over your inner life be nice? Then a modern Stoicism approach is your royal road, because the fundamental idea of its founder Zeno is more relevant today than ever: leading a good life in which your internal and external worlds are in harmonious alignment. To achieve this, one must become master of their emotions and passions—and fortunately, with a little patience, it's quite simple to learn. In this book, you will first familiarize yourself with the theoretical foundations of Stoicism before discovering how to put them into practice. By working through a variety of exercises, tasks, and challenges, you will apply what you've learned and gradually develop the Stoa mindset. Prior knowledge or experience? Not required! Thanks to straightforward explanations and immediately applicable techniques, even newcomers can start effortlessly and achieve impressive results in no time. At a Glance: Dive into the origins, central teachings, and fundamental assumptions of Stoicism and learn the 5 steps to a Stoic mindset. Express Exercises: With simple, immediate strategies on topics such as gratitude, acceptance, or self-reflection, you will internalize the Stoa concept step by step. Train Your Virtues: Through advanced exercises on adaptability, self-control, reason, and more, you'll deepen your abilities and perfect the core Stoic virtues. The Ultimate Discipline: Find out how to apply your newly acquired skills in situations involving relationships, career development, or everyday challenges, and benefit from the Stoa in a comprehensive way. This book opens the door to a whole new level of balance and satisfaction, providing you with valuable tools for a more relaxed life. With the 28-day challenge in the bonus section, you can dive into the subject matter even faster and positively influence your mindset in no time. So, what are you waiting for? Click now on "Buy Now with 1-Click" and look forward to discovering the Stoic within you!

Leseprobe

Stoicism in 5 Steps

How to Apply the Timeless Wisdom of the Stoics in Modern Everyday Life to Achieve Iron Discipline, Inner Calm, Resilience & Humility

Konstantin Rensche

All advice in this book has been carefully considered and checked by the author and the publisher. However, no guarantee can be given. The author and publisher therefore accept no liability for any personal injury, property damage or financial loss.

Copyright © 2024 www.edition-lunerion.de

All rights reserved, in particular the right to reproduce and distribute the translation. No part of this work may be reproduced in any form (by photocopy, microfilm or any other method) or stored, processed, duplicated or distributed using electronic systems without the written permission of the publisher.

For questions and suggestions:

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Edition 2024

Contents

Foreword1

Stoicism today3

Stoicism at a glance4

History of Stoicism4

Basic assumptions of Stoicism10

Achieve the stoic mindset in 5 steps26

1. living in the here and now26

2. gain control over your emotions32

3. accept everything that comes your way34

4. take full responsibility39

5 All in good time43

Stoicism express exercises45

Gratitude for what you have45

Focus on what you can control51

Acceptance for what you cannot control52

Vigilance towards your desires61

Challenges as an opportunity to grow63

Time: use it wisely68

Practising the virtues of stoicism71

Adaptability71

Self-control75

Inner peace78

Establishing reason and autonomy81

The supreme discipline: applying stoicism85

Three examples of application85

Challenge: Become a stoic in 28 days91

A month full of exercises91

Closing words112

Foreword

Today's world is characterised by constant distractions, rapid change and great pressure. What at first sounds like a phrase is, on closer inspection, a precise description of our society:

Distraction:

It is difficult to concentrate on just one activity. Basically, we are constantly in multi-tasking situations, especially due to the use of smartphones and other technical devices in our everyday lives. We take the train to work, listen to music on our Bluetooth headphones and check work emails or private text messages on our smartphone. In addition, news, adverts and other content constantly flicker on large info screens at the train station where we are waiting for our means of transport. It is hardly surprising that the concentration span has become measurably shorter in recent years, especially among young people, but also among adults. (Spitzer, 2014).

Change:

The time periods in which social structures change as a result of new inventions and innovations are becoming ever shorter. If a person had skipped a period of 100 years in the 17th century, for example, they might not have missed much. Although there may have been a wave of disease, a storm or political unrest in the nearest principality in the meantime, they would still have recognised the world - or more precisely, society - as their own even after a hundred-year hiatus. This would be absolutely unthinkable today. We don't have to go back in time 20 years, to a time before the aforementioned smartphone, and we realise that society has changed radically. Certainties and habits are eroding faster in the 21st century than ever before in human history.

Print:

Mental stress disorders and depressive illnesses have become widespread diseases (Federal Ministry of Health, 2023). More and more people are feeling the pressure that comes with the fast pace of life described above, as well as the expectations of our capitalist society. The performance principle and the expectation for individuals to optimise themselves and become the best version of themselves already put schoolchildren in a pressure situation: if I don't get good grades, I won't find a good job, won't earn any money and will face an uncertain future. This feeling of insecurity does not diminish in adulthood. The pressure is therefore produced by social expectations and reproduced by our own expectations.

In a society such as this, in which the three factors just described have a significant impact on people's lives, the need for a philosophy of serenity and dealing well with challenging situations is more than understandable. It is therefore worth taking a trip into the world of Stoicism. This ancient philosophy, which originated in ancient Greece, teaches us to distinguish between the essential and the non-essential and to deal with our problems and supposed problems in everyday life with a certain calmness and composure.

So let's delve into the world of Stoicism together and find out why a centuries-old philosophical tradition can provide us with inspiration and valuable advice for the 21st century.

Stoicism today

Some ancient philosophies seem dusty and impossible to apply to our postmodern age. But other ideas are surprisingly topical. Thinking about existence, death or the good in life, as well as the question of the organisation of states and societies, has been a constant concern for people since ancient times. The answers may have changed, but the questions remain the same: How can I live well? How should I behave towards others and how can I harmonise my inner and outer worlds? These are some of the essential questions addressed by the Stoa.

Stoicism therefore raises questions that we ask ourselves in the 21st century just as much as people did in ancient times. After all, questions about work-life balance are ultimately about the question of "How do we want to live?", discussions about ethical climate policy are about the question of harmony with nature, and so on. The Stoa is therefore highly topical, perhaps even more so than ever. In this book, we will therefore take an in-depth look at this school of thought in five chapters. Firstly, you will learn about the basic ideas of the Stoa and Stoicism. This will require a brief historical excursion, but at no point in the book will we become too theoretical. The practical relevance and the learning of techniques for applying Stoicism in everyday life are clearly at the forefront of this guide. Therefore, in the next step you will learn how to adopt the mindset, i.e. the way of thinking and thus the way of acting, of the ancient Stoics. You will be given instructions to help you learn how to help yourself, because serenity, inner peace and the stoic way of thinking and acting can only come from within yourself. Even if you receive all the important information in this book, you will only become a true stoic if you have internalised the corresponding techniques.

You will be supported in your endeavours by numerous practical examples, which are cited in this book to illustrate this, including examples from the world of work and relationships, because it is crucial that you maintain your stoic attitude, especially in social contexts that are particularly prone to conflict.

As challenges in the form of challenges are currently very popular, there is also a challenge at the end of this book to help you become a stoic within 28 days; say goodbye to everyday stress, hectic and excessive demands and go through your life with stoic composure. You will find out how this works in this book!

Stoicism at a glance

"The path to happiness lies in this,

not to worry about anything that is beyond our control."

(Epictetus)

Firstly, we should talk about the foundations and history of Stoicism before going into detail about its forms of application.

History of Stoicism

Stoicism, or simply Stoa (sometimes also Stoic philosophy), is a school of thought in ancient Western philosophy. The Greek philosopher Zeno of Cition is considered the founder of this school of thought.

Zeno of Kition

Zenon was probably born in 333 or 332 BC in Kition on the island of Cyprus, the son of a wealthy merchant. Around the year 312 BC, Kition left his homeland to go to Athens. There he listened to lectures by various philosophers from different schools of thought, all of whom were to influence him in his philosophical thinking.

After eleven years of study, Zeno finally began to teach himself. He gathered his students in a painted columned hall (Stoa poikile) in Athens. Over time, the initially loose association of interested listeners developed into a philosophical school, the Stoa. His doctrine of a virtuous life in greater serenity spread quickly and has endured to this day, even though no writings by Zeno himself have survived. Our knowledge of him and his teachings is based on the notes of his students.

Zeno finally died in 261 or 262 BC. The circumstances are not known, although there was frequent speculation that the philosopher hanged himself or starved to death. He was given a magnificent funeral, as Zeno's contemporaries had already recognised his positive influence on youth and philosophy in general (Bees, 2011).

Fun Fact:

Stoa literally means hall of columns. Zeno is said to have taught in a portico on the market square in Athens, which is why the philosophy he postulated was given this name.

The historical context in which the Stoic doctrine emerged was characterised above all by political crises. After a phase of stability for the polis, the Hellenistic structure of a city-state, the ancient Greek multi-ethnic state was now threatened by Alexander the Great and his expansionist policies. The Macedonian ruler's campaigns of conquest and annexation also brought down the construct of Attic democracy, which had previously determined the social and political order in the polis. In the midst of structural change, new approaches suddenly became relevant, after the schools of Plato and Aristotle had previously determined the coordinate system of philosophical thought.

Polis

In ancient Greek, the term polis means both state and city. However, the term does not simply describe the territory of a city, but rather its political organisation. Particularly during the Hellenistic period, the political and cultural heyday of ancient Greece, many of these city-states were founded, including Athens. The administration of the polis was based on the free citizens of the city, so there were already political institutions such as a citizens' council and a judicial system. Central squares (the so-called agora) were also created where citizens could come together. In many respects, the polis therefore resembles our modern cities and states (Funke, 2009).

Particularly in times of political crisis, and thus also for the everyday life of many citizens, which was characterised by uncertainty, the Stoa's focus on achieving salvation and thus increasingly on an individual level was an interesting alternative to the philosophy of Socrates or Aristotle, which tended to be holistically oriented.

Through the various followers that Zeno was able to win with his teachings, the Stoa also spread beyond the borders of Athens in the ancient world and thus rose to become one of the most important schools of thought in antiquity. Although the Stoa changed constantly over the years, the core of the doctrine remained the same.

The Stoa also had an impact beyond antiquity, which is partly due to the writings of the disciples of the freed Roman slave Epictetus. Known as the Handbook of Morals, these writings summarise the lectures and thinking of Epictetus, who can be considered the most important representative of modern Stoicism. In the course of the history of philosophy, several important thinkers were to follow on from this handbook. Epictetus' ideas inspired early Islamic scholars, among others, but some Stoic ideas also found their way into Christianity, even if the Christianisation of Rome and thus of the entire West can be seen as the end of the heyday of Stoicism, as from then on Christian moral teaching was considered the measure of all things and no longer the Stoic one.

Epictetus

Epictetus, also known as Epictetus in Latin, was born around the year 50 AD in the Phrygian city of Hierapolis (in what is now Turkey).

There is little reliable information about the life of today's most famous Stoic. What is certain is that Epictetus was brought as a young man from Phrygia in Asia Minor to Rome as a slave, where he served his master, Epaphroditus. The latter allowed Epictetus to study, and so he was taught by the Stoic Gaius Musonius Rufus while still a slave.

After he was released, Epictetus himself began teaching philosophy in Rome and later moved to Nicopolis in ancient Greece. There he gathered a number of students around him, many of whom came from wealthy and educated families in Rome and Greece. Epictetus' meeting with the Roman Emperor Hadrian, whom he is said to have introduced to the Stoic doctrine, has not been proven with certainty, but is considered credible by most historians.

He did not write anything himself, but his oral lectures were already considered extremely influential during his lifetime. Some of his students, including Arrian, who is best known today for his writings on Alexander the Great, wrote transcripts of Epictetus' teachings. These transcripts are still widely read today and contain fundamental ideas on the Stoa.

Epictetus remained unmarried and childless, but is said to have adopted a child shortly before his death and raised it with the help of a wet nurse. He died in Nicopolis around the year 138 AD. (Hershbell, 1996)

The fact that the Stoa has not been forgotten is not only due to Epictetus himself, but also to a famous emperor of the Roman Empire who is probably still familiar to many today - Marcus Aurelius. As a philosopher among the emperors, he wrote down the Self-reflections based on the thinking of Zeno and later Epictetus, which are now part of the canon of world literature and are probably the most important written record of the new Stoicism. Philosophers such as René Descartes ("I think, therefore I am"), Baruch Spinoza (one of the pioneers of rationalism) and Immanuel Kant (Categorical Imperative) read Marcus Aurelius and were influenced by him. His famous saying "I am the first servant of my state" echoes Marcus Aurelius' views on political leadership.

Marcus Aurelius

Marcus Aurelius, also known as Marcus Aurelius in Latin, was emperor of the Roman Empire from 161 to 180 AD. He is not only regarded as the last emperor under whom ancient Rome enjoyed domestic political stability and prosperity, but also as one of the last relevant representatives of the Stoic movement. His self-reflections, which are still widely printed and read today, earned him a reputation as a philosopher-emperor.

Marcus Aurelius was born in Rome on 26 April 121 A.D. His father and grandfather already held important political offices in the Roman Empire. It is therefore not surprising that Marcus Aurelius also embarked on a career in office at the age of 18 and became a consul, i.e. an official of the Roman Republic. Even as a teenager, he is said to have been extremely thoughtful and cultivated a modest lifestyle. His philosophical and thoughtful streak was further emphasised by the philosophy lessons he received. During these lessons, Aurelius learnt about the Stoa and its principles, with which he could identify.

In 161, Marcus Aurelius, who had experienced a steep rise in his political offices in the preceding years, finally succeeded his mentor Antoninus Pius on the Roman imperial throne. The image of the philosopher on the imperial throne was established early on, as Aurelius always appeared level-headed and thoughtful, even as the supreme ruler of the empire. For example, the emperor wrote his famous introspections during a campaign in which he himself was present to repel a Germanic attack in the north of the empire.

While he was confronted with attacks and disputes in foreign policy, he had a decisive influence on the late phase of the Roman Empire through his domestic policy. Based on his ideas of equality and freedom, he made significant changes to the law in favour of previously disadvantaged social groups, particularly women and slaves.

The philosopher-emperor died on a military campaign, where he was most likely carried off by the Antonine Plague (a variant of smallpox), which was rampant throughout the Roman Empire at the time. To this day, Marcus Aurelius enjoys a high level of recognition, not only in philosophical circles, and his self-reflections are read by philosophy students and managers alike and interpreted as a practical guide to life (Demandt, 2018).

Even in the modern age, there are numerous courses, lectures and literature on Stoicism and the Stoa, whose teachings date back to the third century BC, but are just as relevant today as they were then. We are still living in a time characterised by crises and even today, reflecting on our own salvation can help us to gain / maintain an inner distance from the worrying events around us.

Don't worry, in the following we will focus more on practical examples and application tasks, but when considering the Stoa, we should never forget how old its teachings are and yet how up-to-date they remain.

Basic assumptions of Stoicism

Now that we know the history of the origins of Stoicism, let us turn to the content of the doctrine. As the Stoics did not form a homogeneous unit over the centuries, but rather differed in their approaches, it is not easy to summarise the basic ideas of the Stoics in general terms. However, there are three basic pillars that characterise Stoic thought:

ethics

,

the

logic

and

physics

.

Stoic ethics

Ethics plays an extremely important role in the teachings of the Stoics; many Stoics even described it as a human instinct, i.e. not just an intellectual conviction, but something deeply rooted in people. According to Zeno, an ethical life means being in harmony with oneself.

The idea of inner harmony can be found in many different philosophical and religious schools of thought today. Buddhism, for example, talks about harmony with oneself as a prerequisite for harmony with the universe; Christianity says that you should love your enemies as yourself, but this also implies that you should love yourself, and you will also come across the idea of inner harmony in modern meditation or yoga courses.

The later Stoics expanded this idea to include harmony with the environment, meaning both living nature and the cosmos, the great and whole. This idea can be found in Buddhism and ancient Indian philosophy and was only taken up again in the Occident, i.e. the West, by Baruch Spinoza after the Stoics. To live in harmony with oneself means to live abstinently and virtuously, because harmony with oneself is only possible if one lives according to the principles of virtue. For the Stoics, pleasure stands in contrast to this, but it does not necessarily have to be satisfied in order to lead a blissful life - virtue alone is sufficient for this. Those who live virtuously and frugally are sufficient unto themselves. Self-sufficiency, in turn, is described by a term that is still in use today: self-sufficiency.

Self-sufficiency is a Stoic ideal and describes the absence of passions. Lust, desire and even grief are regarded as unvirtuous, which means that the truly virtuous person must detach themselves from these emotions. Today, of course, we know that suppressing all emotions and instincts is harmful to people in the long term. Sigmund Freud and psychoanalysis have shown that repressed drives seek their way outwards in the form of drive rejection. Humans suppress their instincts, such as the sex drive or the death drive, in order to conform to social conventions. An uninhibited fulfilment of the sexual drive, for example, would not be socially acceptable. However, if it cannot be acted out even in a private setting and is thus permanently repressed, it will, according to Freud, sooner or later seek a way out, for example in the form of a sexual crime or again in the form of substitute acts, for example in abusive behaviour towards other people that can be directly attributed to the repressed sexual drive. Permanent repression of human urges is therefore not conducive to mental health.

Therefore, in a modern interpretation, the suppression of instincts should not take centre stage. However, the control of emotions remains a crucial point. Those who learn to deal with their emotions and process them positively (not repress them) are well on the way to being in harmony with themselves, which - as we have learnt - is the prerequisite for all virtue. Healthy reflection and a healthy approach to one's own feelings can therefore be regarded as the basis of stoic ethics.

Tips and exercises:

In everyday life, it is often not easy to deal with complex negative emotions, as we perceive them as an additional burden to our already often stressful lives. However, the way we deal with emotions is not biologically determined. Although there are certain genetic predispositions and imprints that influence the way we deal with emotions, it is possible to learn how to deal with negative emotions.

Allow feelings

An important aspect of this is admitting your own feelings and, once again, reflecting on which emotions are bothering you. Admit to yourself when you are overwhelmed by emotional feelings and, if necessary, admit to being a little sensitive. Sensitive people are more susceptible to being burdened by negative emotions, but on the other hand they are also more empathetic and sensitive and therefore also have very positive sides.

Breathing exercises

One exercise borrowed from classical meditation is breath control. Concentrate on each breath when your thoughts wander (especially if they do so in a negative direction) and bring them back through your breathing. Stay focussed and calm, breathing helps both your body (lowering blood pressure and heart rate) and your mind. You can also train your compassion and empathy with a mental technique. Think of a loved one and, like a mantra, say over and over again: "May they be free from suffering / anger / sadness." Repeat this sentence over and over again and then extend your thoughts to other people.

Cognitive restructuring

Classical behavioural therapy also uses cognitive restructuring. This involves re-evaluating facts and labelling them with positive emotions. The focus here is on realising that you are basically okay and negative perceptions are fundamentally questioned and turned into positives.

Incidentally, the Stoics themselves were also aware that one hundred per cent virtue cannot always be realised in practice. Inconsistencies were therefore tolerated as long as they served the good cause, i.e. virtue, on the whole. The state, the judicial system and systems such as marriage were also accepted by the Stoics as long as the individual was not prevented from acting ethically within these systems. Even then, harmony with the environment was linked to acceptance of the given circumstances. Accepting the circumstances in turn means accepting the environment, as well as one's own limitations, because what one cannot change oneself should not be the subject of (negative) thoughts. We will discuss this crucial aspect of Stoicism in more detail at a later date.

Despite the weakness that the ideals of Stoic ethics cannot be achieved in full, it is the first to formulate the idea of virtue and duty ethics, as Immanuel Kant later aptly put it. Renunciation, abstinence and the associated self-efficacy are placed at the centre and can still provide us with moral guidance today. When we are virtuous and abstinent, we are in harmony with ourselves and others.

To summarise:

A good life is only possible if you are in harmony with yourself and in harmony with the environment that surrounds you.