Things Are Won at the Beginning

“Here we are at the beginning of a new year. On the one hand, today is just a day, no different than any other. Yet there is also something special about today because we are starting the year 2021. And as the expression goes, well begun is half done. In fact, the Stoics would express it a little differently, because to them, the beginning was the only thing that was up to us. As the philosopher Democritus said, ‘Boldness is the beginning of action. But fortune controls how it ends.’”Ryan kickstarts the new year, and explains that we control how we start but not where fate takes us, on today’s Daily Stoic Podcast. The Daily Stoic is a $1.99 ebook right now (also Amazon UK). Plus, The Daily Stoic in our limited edition leatherbound is available in the Daily Stoic store (you can also order a personalized edition as well!).***If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for you to leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps with our visibility, and the more people listen to the podcast, the more we can invest into it and make it even better. Sign up for the Daily Stoic email: http://DailyStoic.com/signupFollow Daily Stoic:Twitter: https://twitter.com/dailystoicInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/dailystoic/Facebook: http://facebook.com/dailystoicYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/dailystoicSee 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.

• 0:04Ryan 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 at DailyStoic.com.

• 0:27Ryan Holiday?

  Things are won at the beginning. Here we are at the beginning of a new year. On the one hand, today is just a day, no different than any other. Yet, there is also something special about today, because we are starting the year 2021. And as the expression goes, "well begun" is "half done." In fact, the Stoics would express it a little differently, because to them, the beginning was the only thing that was up to us. It was the only thing that counted. As the philosopher Democritus said, "Boldness is the beginning of action, but fortune controls how it ends." So, much of what will happen in 2021 is not going to be up to us, just as how much of 2020 was out of our control. Nobody was expecting a pandemic.

• 1:12Ryan Holiday?

  Nobody was expecting wildfires, or so much of what happened. But the people who had a solid January and February were in a better position than those who had delayed and procrastinated, who had not taken the beginning of the year seriously. What is put off until next week is more vulnerable to what may happen today or tomorrow. Remember that. A Stoic believes it is in their power to say, "begin writing a book," but it is not in their power to determine how quickly it will come together, or what the market will be like when it is released, whether people will like it or buy a lot of copies of it. A Stoic will fight bravely in battle, but know that the outcome is determined by so many other things. They will run for office. They will start a business. They will compete in an athletic event.

• 1:57Ryan Holiday?

  But whether they will win, that is not up to them. Whether they give it their best, their boldest, and their hardest effort, whether they start right now, that is up to them. And that's the message for today. In fact, the per- Perfect message for today as we begin a new year and sit at the beginning of a new decade. All we control are the beginning of things. All we control is how we start. We control our first move, whether we say hello to a pretty stranger, but not whether they reciprocate. We can make the pitch or the apology, but fortune controls whether it is accepted. We can plan the trip, but not when or if we arrive. We control this first minute of the long year ahead. That's not a lot, but it's enough. So let's do it right.

• 2:40Ryan Holiday?

  Let's do 2021 boldly while we can. And also some exciting news here at the beginning of the year. The Daily Stoic is $1.99 as an ebook right now. The UK edition is also discounted. Plus, the Daily Stoic Leatherbound Edition, our limited edition premium leather edition, is for sale in the Daily Stoic store and you can order a personalized edition as well. Just go to store.dailystoic.com and of course, check out the $1.99 ebook on Amazon. Love to have you check it out. Happy New Year, everyone. Let's make this a great one.