Daily Stoic(s)

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

Yesterday - The Strong Accept Responsibility

I control two things. My thoughts and choices. When something happens in my life that has a negative impact, I often think about how I could have been better. It’s a gut check and hard to do. Doing it makes me a better person because I can only control so much.

Today - Never Complain, Never Explain

When I’m late or need to apologize for something I try not to qualify it with a reason. To me that defeats the purpose of an apology. If there’s a caveat is it a true apology. If I’m late I apologize for it because I ultimately made a choice to be late. From the above stoic what could I have done to get out of this situation or that. Sometimes we are just late. It happens. Other times I’m late because we made poor decisions or decisions for the right reasons and I’m still late.

Complaining is something I’m working on. I’m doing it for people. I try not to complain about people. I still do and it’s a tough habit to break. I’m trying more and more to give people the benefit of the doubt. Complaining is a waste of energy.

It's Not The Thing, It's What We Make Of It

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

There’s a great story from a podcast I listen to, Manager Tools. One of the guys talks about being poked in the chest on an elevator by a guy holding an umbrella under his arm. After the guy with the umbrella gets off he tells his buddy that the guy made him so mad. His buddy responds that it wasn’t the guy that made him mad, it was his decision to get mad.

Studying Buddhism I’ve found the same philosophy. We can choose to get upset or angry or excited. It’s our choice. Driving on the highway has become a much more enjoyable experience for me because I no longer get upset at the other drivers on the road. I sleep better because I don’t let things bother me as much anymore at work. It does take effort to rewrite our responses to things. It can be done though.

Always The Same

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

A lot of people complain about millennials. I find it a bit interesting because those same people were complained about by the older generation. I was just watching my son on YouTube watching someone react to something they were watching on YouTube. I don’t get it. Then again my parents probably didn’t get why I was into this thing or that. It’s a cycle.

All Is Fluid

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

Things are ever changing. Look at seasons which go through life, sunshine, fall, and darkness. We grow from child into young adult into adult into senior and finally death. Expecting things to stay the same is folly. I moved every two to three years growing up. I think it prepared me for a life of change.

Actors In Play

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

We’re all given a role. The stoic says I need to play the role or handle dealt to me and to do it well. I don’t know what’s ahead. I can plan. I have planned and life hasn’t turned out anywhere near those plans. The idea is to be the best person I can be with what fate, destiny, cards are dealt to me.