You Are Blessed

“It’s easy not to feel blessed. We look readily for what we don’t have rather than what we do. We see people who are taller, who look better, who have more and feel deprived. Why couldn’t I have been born rich? Why couldn’t my company have gotten that contract? Why can’t I play in the NFL?”Ryan discusses why your perception of your life defines your true wealth, on today’s Daily Stoic Podcast.***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, DailyStoic.com.

• 0:27Ryan Holiday?

  You are blessed. It's not easy to feel blessed. We look readily for what we don't have, rather than what we do. We see people who are taller, who look better, who have more, and we feel deprived. Why couldn't I have been born rich? Why couldn't my company have gotten that contract? Why can't I play in the NFL? But of course, as we are feeling sorry for ourselves, we are not noticing that people who were born rich, who did get the contract, who are in the NFL, are focusing too on what they do not have. Why is Dad never around? Why couldn't I get paid more? Why didn't I make the Pro Bowl? Seneca knew these feelings firsthand, seeing as how he was born to a wealthy family, achieved great things, and yet also struggled

• 1:11Ryan Holiday?

  with debilitating illnesses, with exile, with comparing himself to other, more successful people. For all his literary fame, for all his influence in Nero's Court, for the beautiful estate he owned, tended by slaves, we can imagine him feeling frustrated, just as we are, fantasizing about a life where things were even easier, even more rewarding. "Whoever does not regard what he has as most ample wealth," he said, quoting Epicurus, "is unhappy, though he may be the master of the whole world." What a miserable way to live, and how unnecessary. "Today, you need to stop and look at what you have, not at what you lack. Count where you have been lucky. Look at what has gone your way. Consider how many people would kill to be where you are,

• 1:56Ryan Holiday?

  to have the life you have been given." "Unblessed is he who thinks himself un-blessed," Seneca reminded Lucilius. It's a line from some unknown poet, but it's true. You are blessed. Think it, and it will become more so. You are blessed. Don't forget it. Don't be unhappy.

• 2:14Ryan Holiday?

  Hey, it's Ryan. Thank you for listening to the Daily Stoic Podcast. I just wanted to say we so appreciate it. We love serving you. It's amazing to us that over 30 million people have downloaded these episodes in the couple of years we've been doing it. It's an honor. Please, spread the word. Tell people about it. And this isn't to sell anything. I just wanted to say thank you.