Don’t Make It Someone Else’s Problem

“If it is not right, do not do it,” Marcus Aurelius wrote in Meditations, “if it is not true, do not say it.” But it’s worth pointing out that as a philosophy, Stoicism demands more of us than just this negative. As Marcus would also point out, “Often injustice lies in what you aren’t doing, not only in what you are doing.”📙 For a limited time, you can purchase The Daily Stoic ebook for only $1.99 on Kindle✉️ Sign up for the Daily Stoic email: https://dailystoic.com/dailyemail🏛 Check out the Daily Stoic Store for Stoic inspired products, signed books, and more.📱 Follow us: Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, FacebookSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info. 📢 Share | ⚙️ Manage Subscription

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:03Ryan Holiday?

  Welcome to the Daily Stoic Podcast, where each day we bring you a passage of ancient wisdom designed to help you find strength, insight, and wisdom in everyday life. Each one of these passages is based on the 2,000-year-old philosophy that has guided some of history's greatest men and women. For more, you can visit us, dailystoic.com.

• 0:27Ryan Holiday?

  "If it's not right, do not do it." Marcus Aurelius wrote, "If it's not true, do not say it." But it's worth pointing out that as a philosophy, Stoicism demands more of us than just this negative. As Marcus also points out, "Often justice in lies in what you aren't doing, not only in what you are doing." So first, do not lie. But second, sitting by and allowing a lie to stand? These can both be injustices. No Stoic would argue that fraud is permissible. But what if you witness fraud? What if you suspect a fraud is occurring at your work, or in your industry, or in the government? Nassim Taleb bridges these two quotes from Marcus Aurelius perfectly,

• 1:10Ryan Holiday?

  when he says, "If you see fraud, do not say fraud. You are a fraud." Be the person that stands up. Be the person that lends a hand. Be the person that actively does good, that is courageous and generous. It's not enough to simply not do wrong. We are called to do more than that. We are held to a higher standard. "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere," is the line, and it's true. Don't turn a blind eye. Don't make it someone else's problem. Do the right thing. The rest doesn't matter.

• 1:53Ryan Holiday?

  Thanks for listening to the Daily Stoic Podcast. Just a reminder, we've got signed copies of all my books in the Daily Stoic store. You can get them personalized, you can get them sent to a friend. The Obstacle is the Way, He Goes the Enemy, Stillness is the Key, the leather-bound edition of the Daily Stoic. We have them all in the Daily Stoic store, which you can check out at store.dailystoic.com.