The Daily Stoic Podcast

Episode Title: If You Want to Make the World Better, Do This | Give Thanks
Date: December 29, 2025
Host: Ryan Holiday

Episode Overview

In this episode, Ryan Holiday explores two interconnected Stoic principles: the power of self-improvement as a catalyst for broader societal change and the transformative potential of gratitude—even amid adversity. Drawing on the writings of Marcus Aurelius, Seneca, and Epictetus, Holiday challenges listeners to begin the new year by focusing inward, making themselves the light in a sometimes dark world, and practicing gratitude for all aspects of their experience. The episode also briefly introduces the "Daily Stoic New Year New You Challenge" for those seeking structured guidance in applying these principles.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Stoic Approach to Improving the World

Timestamp: 00:00 – 04:36

• Facing a Troubled World:
  Ryan opens by acknowledging the negativity, dysfunction, and cruelty that feel pervasive in society, pointing out that no one believes "this is how society should work."

  "No one thinks this is how things should be. No one thinks this is how society should work. There's cruelty, there's stupidity, people being left behind. We're failing to address basic problems, we're failing at basic functions." (Ryan Holiday, 00:29)

• Start With Yourself:
  Drawing on Epictetus, Ryan explains that Stoics believe the best way to change the world is to start by improving oneself:

  • Epictetus "preferred to cultivate his own improvement day to day" rather than be consumed by external matters, even when living in the harsh environment of Nero's Rome.
  • Self-Improvement is contagious: "Stoicism is the art of getting active in your own rescue. And in so doing, you end up rescuing others."

  “By reforming and improving ourselves, we are reforming and improving the world because we are a part of the world.” (Ryan Holiday, 01:47)

• Collective Good Through Individual Goodness:
  Paraphrasing Marcus Aurelius, Ryan notes that "What improves the bee, improves the hive," emphasizing that personal growth contributes to the greater good.

  “What improves the bee, improves the hive.” (Ryan Holiday, 02:10)

• Actionable Resolutions for the New Year:
  Rather than waiting for society or others to change, Ryan urges listeners to:

  • Break bad habits
  • Resist divisiveness
  • Tackle long-delayed self-improvement tasks
  • Strive to become the person that virtue and philosophy aim to cultivate

• Immediate Action:

  "Let's fight to be the person that philosophy tried to make us, as Marcus Aurelius said, not later, not only if everyone else does too, but right now, on our own." (Ryan Holiday, 03:25)

• Invitation:
  Ryan introduces the "Daily Stoic New Year New You Challenge," a 21-day program beginning January 1st, aimed at fostering these improvements in a community setting.

2. The Practice and Power of Gratitude

Timestamp: 06:43 – 09:54

• Gratitude as a Stoic Practice:
  Reading Seneca’s meditations on gratitude (Moral Letters 81), the episode highlights that gratitude is personally rewarding and self-reinforcing.

  “In all things, we should try to make ourselves as grateful as possible, Seneca says in moral letters 81, for gratitude is a good thing for ourselves… Gratitude pays itself back in large measure.” (Daily Stoic Narrator, 06:45)

• Gratitude as Perspective:
  Ryan encourages gratitude for both obvious and overlooked blessings—from major privileges to minor daily joys.

  • Examples include being alive, living in a time of peace, enjoying small kindnesses, pleasant weather, or a favorite song.

  "The person who smiled at you? The woman who held the door open? The song you liked on the radio? The pleasant weather? Gratitude is infectious. Its positivity is radiant." (Daily Stoic Narrator, 07:31)

• Gratitude as Resilience in Adversity:
  Advocates purposely practicing gratitude not only for positive circumstances but even for pain, disagreement, and adversity:

  "I try on a really consistent basis to take the time to express gratitude for things that maybe on the surface, I'm not grateful for... political polarization, Trump critics, pain that I feel, an argument that I just had, that I'm sick." (Ryan Holiday, 08:12)

• Active Practice:
  Ryan references his daily gratitude journal—a gift from Mona Kattan—and his method of writing down not only what he’s thankful for, but also finding the silver lining in negative experiences. He invokes Pete Holmes’s forgiveness exercise as an analogy for gratitude: feeling gratitude even when it’s not automatic, until it becomes real.

• Stoic Perspective:
  Marcus Aurelius is quoted on reframing every occurrence as a “gift from the gods,” reinforcing the habit of grateful acceptance.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Self-Reliance for the Greater Good:

  “Stoicism is the art of getting active in your own rescue. And in so doing, you end up rescuing others.” (Ryan Holiday, 01:39)

• Personal Accountability:

  "I don't control what they do. I don't control what the norm is. I don't control what the trends are. But I control whether I get serious. I control whether I get better." (Ryan Holiday, 03:54)

• On Practicing Gratitude During Adversity:

  “I try to express explicitly there on those pages, gratitude for things that, again, I'm not feeling grateful for. But in taking a moment to write why I am grateful for them, I become grateful for them.” (Ryan Holiday, 08:19)

• Transforming Perspective:

  “Convince yourself that everything is a gift from the gods, that it's all a gift, that you're grateful for all of it, that it's great, even though it doesn't always feel that way.” (Ryan Holiday paraphrasing Marcus Aurelius, 09:39)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Introduction + Problem Statement           00:00 – 01:10
• Stoic Solutions: Start With Yourself          01:11 – 02:20
• Collective Good Through Personal Growth       02:21 – 03:25
• New Year New You Challenge Invitation        03:26 – 04:36
• Gratitude Reading & Commentary            06:43 – 09:54
• Journaling and Practicing Challenging Gratitude    07:57 – 09:44

Conclusion

This episode underscores the timeless Stoic message: true societal change starts within. By committing to personal improvement and actively practicing gratitude—especially when it's challenging—we contribute to both our own fulfillment and the betterment of those around us. “What improves the bee, improves the hive,” and this new year, the invitation is clear: be the change, and give thanks for the opportunity.

[To participate in the 21-day challenge or learn more, visit daily stoic.com/challenge]