Here’s How To Get Out Of A Rut

The busier we get, the more we work, even the more that we learn and read, the further we tend to drift from our center. We get in a rhythm. We’re making money, being creative, we’re stimulated and busy. It seems like everything is going well. But if we’re not careful, those other things grow and grow until they take over completely; and what once felt like a rhythm now feels like a rut. It’s true for us now just as it was true for Marcus Aurelius. He had an awful lot to keep him busy, to distract him, to push him further and further, which in turn afforded him less and less time for that which really mattered to him: philosophy. We get a good sense of how he thought about his priorities with this analogy in Book 6 of Meditations:“If you had a stepmother and a real mother, you would pay your respects to your step mother, yes…but it’s your real mother you’d go home to. The court…and philosophy: Keep returning to it, to rest in its embrace. It’s all that makes the court — and you — endurable.”✉️ 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.

• 0:29Ryan Holiday?

  The busier we get, the more we work and learn and read, the further we drift. We get into a rhythm. We're making money, we're being creative, we're being stimulated, and we're busy. It seems like everything is going well. But if we're not careful, those other things can grow and grow till they take over completely. It's as true for us now, just as it was for Marcus Aurelius. He had an awful lot to keep him busy, to distract him, to push him further and further, to make less and less time for that which really mattered to him: philosophy. And we can get a good sense about what he thought about his priorities with an analogy he makes in Book Six of Meditations. "If you had a stepmother and a real mother,

• 1:12Ryan Holiday?

  you would pay your respects to your stepmother, yes, but it's your real mother you'd go home to. The court and philosophy keep returning to it, to rest in its embrace. It's all that makes the court and you endurable." His point was that you should return to what nourishes you. Sure, you have to earn a living and contribute to society or deal with the court or the demands of office, in Marcus's case. You may have hobbies and other obligations, too. That's perfectly fine. Just remember that those are your stepparents. Important, but they don't change who made you. Philosophy is the essential pursuit. It challenges us.

• 1:55Ryan Holiday?

  It requires work and reflection and self-criticism. It requires we hold ourselves to certain standards and own up when we fail to. It's real work, not busy work. Philosophy is what birthed you, raised you, and makes you, not once, but remakes you as life goes on. Don't let some momentum in your other pursuits fool you into thinking you no longer need it. It's home. Make sure you're paying the proper respect. Make sure you're going back often.