#011 - Focus on what you can control

As mentioned before, my favorite and perhaps most applicable form of philosophy is Stoicism. Every day, I begin with reading The Daily Stoic, a book by Ryan Holiday. Each day, a passage from a Stoic author is provided along with some insight in more modern terms from Holiday. I have really enjoyed adding a nugget of new Stoic knowledge to my routine.

Whether it be success or failure, a lot of life is not up to you or your fault. Several events, moments, people, and opportunities had to line up for certain successes or failures to come your way. While it's often stressed that you should only focus on what you can control, I think we have the ability at different levels of society to make an impact. On an individual level, we have a lot of free will but are often burdened by both artificial and real boundaries. At any point, you can quit your job and move to Fiji to farm coconuts. At a family or community level, you can set up an HOA (don't do that) and create a structure where those within the organization adhere to certain bylaws. At a societal level (countries or groups of countries), we can wage war. All these begin with the individual. If you work enough on bettering yourself in every aspect of your life, the more likely your impact on larger groups will be positive.

Trusting my instincts has been difficult. It's not always easy to trust oneself; sometimes we are really wrong. Usually, we know the truth but like to bend it or even lie because we think it is easier. That is almost never the case.

If it sounds like I don't know what I'm talking about, trust your instincts.