The Daily Stoic – “Are You Keeping One? | Stoic Lessons That Will Change Your Life”

Hosted by Ryan Holiday
Date: December 12, 2025

Overview

In this engaging episode, Ryan Holiday delves into the practice of keeping a commonplace book and journaling—a cornerstone of Stoic philosophy—while weaving in powerful stories from Stoic history and beyond to illustrate key life lessons. Holiday uses anecdotes from figures like Marcus Aurelius, Thomas Edison, John F. Kennedy, and others to highlight how Stoic wisdom can guide us through adversity, shape our character, and teach us the value of perspective, courage, learning, and self-mastery. The episode is laced with memorable quotes and practical advice for integrating Stoic habits into daily life.

Key Themes & Discussion Points

1. The Power and Practice of Keeping a Commonplace Book (00:18 – 03:52)

• Marcus Aurelius's Unpublished Works:
  Holiday opens by discussing Marcus Aurelius’s now-lost commonplace book, which he referenced in Meditations.

  “This would have been Marcus’s version of what we would today call a commonplace book, a place where he recorded anecdotes and quotes about people he admired…contemplating and critiquing their character and insights.” (01:10)

• Historical and Modern Importance:
  Not just an elite habit—commonplace books were central to thinkers from the Stoics to Montaigne.

• Practical Encouragement:
  Start your own commonplace book or journal to regularly reflect and learn from others.

  “Start a commonplace book this year and return to it time and time again. And in doing so, you’ll keep these lessons fresh in your mind.” (03:09)

• Journaling as a Daily Practice:
  Holiday plugs the Daily Stoic Journal and Daily Dad Journal as helpful tools, underlining that starting is the hardest part.

2. Learning Through Stories: Exemplary Stoic Anecdotes (03:52 – 08:11)

• Why Stories Matter:

  “The best lessons are taught through stories. That’s how humans have learned for thousands and thousands of years.” (03:52)

• Marcus Aurelius and the Antonine Plague:

  • Rome besieged on all sides—Marcus leads by example, selling off palace valuables.
  • Demonstrates what Holiday calls “demonstrative leadership”—putting yourself on the line first.

• Thomas Edison’s Factory Fire:

  “Go get your mother and all her friends. They’ll never see a fire like this again.” (04:55)
  Edison’s resilience demonstrates amor fati—loving one’s fate and turning setbacks into opportunity.

3. Wisdom from the Long Dead: Learning Through Reading (06:42 – 07:37)

• Zeno’s Oracle at Delphi:
  Zeno becomes wise after realizing reading is “conversations with the dead”—a metaphor for learning from history.

4. Leadership and Moral Courage (07:38 – 10:02; 13:18 – 14:47)

• John F. Kennedy and the Cuban Missile Crisis:
  Holiday praises Kennedy for his disciplined, de-escalatory leadership during the Cuban Missile Crisis, invoking the Roman concept of the “golden road”—paving a retreat for your opponent.

• JFK, Nixon, and Coretta Scott King:

  • Kennedy’s small act of moral courage—calling the judge to secure MLK Jr.’s release—what won him the 1960 election.

  • “It’s really just a few seconds of courage that win Kennedy the election and lose Nixon the election.” (13:47)

• Marcus Aurelius’s Lifelong Learning:
  Even as emperor, he remains a humble student, always seeking new knowledge.

5. Perception is Everything: Stoic Mindset in Practice (15:35 – 19:45)

• George Clooney on Auditions:
  Clooney succeeds when he realizes, “I am the solution to their problem”—illustrating the Stoic lesson of controlling perception.

• Knowing “Enough”:

  • Joseph Heller is content because “I know what enough is,” a critical Stoic principle.

• Robert F. Kennedy’s Speech and Greek Tragedy:

  • RFK’s impromptu speech quoting Aeschylus after MLK’s assassination illustrates turning suffering into truth.

• Dealing with Plague and Crisis:

  • Marcus Aurelius’s two types of plagues: “the one that destroys your life and the one that destroys your character.” (19:10)

6. Freedom, Self-Mastery, and Resilience (10:02 – 12:57; 20:33 – 21:37)

• Epictetus’s Inner Freedom:
  Although a slave, Epictetus observed that those supposedly free were enslaved by ambition and desires.

  “People can bind us up in chains…they can’t remove our power of choice.” (10:38)

• Edith Eger’s Holocaust Story:

  • Eger’s mother told her, “Edith, nobody can ever take from you the contents that you put inside your own mind.” (21:08)
  • In Auschwitz, Eger survived by mentally transporting herself beyond her horrific circumstances.

7. Possessions, Detachment, and Practical Philosophy (21:37 – 24:56)

• Epictetus and the Stolen Lamp:

  • After losing a valuable lamp, Epictetus responds, “You can only lose what you have. Tomorrow I will go and buy an earthenware lamp.” (21:50)

• Agrippinus’s “Hell Yes or Hell No” Rule:
  Live true to your principles; don’t hesitate when something violates your values.

• Ulysses S. Grant and Humility:
  Grant’s response to hardship: “I’m solving the problem of poverty.” (23:51) demonstrating equanimity in low and high circumstances.

8. Forgiveness, Practice of Poverty, and Embracing Adversity (24:56 – 27:14)

• Marcus Aurelius’s Clemency:

  • Refused to execute traitors, even when betrayed—valued mercy over vengeance.

• Seneca Practicing Poverty:

  • Regularly chose discomfort to minimize fear and attachment, echoing the Zen maxim: “The cup is already broken.”

• Zeno’s Shipwreck as Fortune:

  • Zeno thanks fate for shipwreck, becoming founder of Stoicism:

    “I made a great fortune when I suffered shipwreck.” (26:32)

9. Extreme Resilience and Nonviolence (27:14 – 29:30)

• Martin Luther King, Jr. Under Attack:
  • MLK drops his guard and forgives his attacker, showing nonviolence in action:

    “Don’t hurt him, don’t hurt him.” (29:30)

  • Illustrates that training yourself for virtue matters most when it’s hardest.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Start a commonplace book this year and return to it time and time again…and you’ll have something far better than impulse or guesswork or instinct to guide you.” – Ryan Holiday (03:09)
• "Go get your mother and all her friends. They'll never see a fire like this again." – Thomas Edison (quoted by Ryan Holiday, 04:55)
• "We will become wise when we begin to have conversations with the dead, when we read and listen to the voices of the past." – Ryan Holiday paraphrasing the Oracle at Delphi (07:10)
• "It's really just a few seconds of courage that win Kennedy the election and lose Nixon the election." – Ryan Holiday (13:47)
• "People can bind us up in chains…they can't remove our power of choice." – Ryan Holiday on Epictetus (10:38)
• “Edith, nobody can ever take from you the contents that you put inside your own mind.” – Edith Eger’s mother (21:08)
• "You can only lose what you have. Tomorrow, I will go and buy an earthenware lamp." – Epictetus (21:50)
• “I’m solving the problem of poverty.” – Ulysses S. Grant (23:51)
• "The cup is already broken." – Zen maxim via Seneca (25:58)
• "I made a great fortune when I suffered shipwreck." – Zeno (26:32)
• “Don’t hurt him, don’t hurt him.” – Martin Luther King, Jr. (29:30)

Timestamps for Major Segments

• 00:18 — Introduction and the lost commonplace book of Marcus Aurelius
• 03:52 — The value of stories and demonstrative Stoic leadership
• 04:55 — Edison’s amor fati in the factory fire
• 06:42 — Zeno at Delphi: “conversations with the dead”
• 07:38 — JFK and the Cuban Missile Crisis
• 13:18 — Kennedy’s moral courage and the MLK call
• 14:47 — Marcus Aurelius as a perpetual student; Clooney’s attitude shift
• 19:10 — The two plagues (life vs. character) and COVID/Pandemic parallels
• 21:08 — Edith Eger’s Auschwitz survival and mental freedom
• 21:50 — Epictetus and detachment from possessions
• 23:51 — Ulysses S. Grant’s poverty and humility
• 24:56 — Marcus’s forgiveness, Seneca’s practice of poverty, Zeno’s shipwreck
• 29:30 — Martin Luther King Jr.’s nonviolence under assault

Takeaways and Action Points

• Begin a Journal or Commonplace Book:
  Capture ideas, quotes, and lessons—make learning a daily, lifelong habit.
• Learn Through Exemplars:
  Stories are powerful teaching tools; find models from history to guide your behavior.
• Practice Perception and Acceptance:
  Control how you interpret events and setbacks—practice amor fati.
• Develop Inner Freedom:
  Guard your mind against external circumstances; only you determine your mental state.
• Be Courageous in Small Moments:
  Moral courage often comes down to brief decisions—lean into them.
• Cultivate Detachment:
  Regularly imagine or practice living with less—to overcome fear of loss.
• Stay a Student:
  Remain humble and open to learning, no matter your position or age.

This episode is steeped in engaging storytelling and actionable Stoic advice—serving as both inspiration and a practical guide to integrating ancient wisdom into modern life.