It’s OK to Get Mad, Just Don’t Be Angry

"How does a Stoic feel about this global pandemic in which innocent people have been utterly failed by their governments? Leaders who denied that the threat was real and failed to prepare. Whose negligence and incompetence were downright criminal. This should make a Stoic mad. But what a Stoic must do is prevent themselves from getting angry."Ryan explains the distinction between being mad and being angry, and what you can do to respect that difference, on today's Daily Stoic Podcast. Sign up for Daily Stoic's 11-day Taming Your Temper online challenge: http://dailystoic.com/anger***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 @DailyStoic: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.

• 0:06Ryan Holiday?

  Welcome to The Daily Stoic, where each day we read a short passage designed to help you cultivate the strength, insight, wisdom necessary for living the good 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.

• 0:29Ryan Holiday?

  It's okay to get mad. Just don't be angry. We've talked about how the Stoics respond to the terrifying and alarming events of life. Yes, they might get scared. That's what happens when you're surprised or thrown back by a blow from fate. But what a Stoic doesn't do is become afraid. No, they gather themselves up and keep going. They push away the fear and do their duty. The distinction between being scared and afraid is important and can be applied elsewhere, especially right now. How does a Stoic feel about this global pandemic in which innocent people have been utterly failed by their governments? Leaders who denied that the threat was real and failed to prepare, whose negligence and

• 1:12Ryan Holiday?

  incompetence were downright criminal? This should make a Stoic mad, but what a Stoic must do is prevent themselves from getting angry. Because as Seneca wrote repeatedly, "The effects of anger are almost always worse than the harm of the violation." As Athenodorus advised, "We have to count the letters of the alphabet and gather ourselves before we do or say something we regret." We have to focus our energy productively, on keeping ourselves and our families safe, on keeping our business going, on looking for opportunities that come from market downturns, and of course, for coming up with a plan to throw these bums out of office when the time comes. Being mad is a reaction. Anger is a state of mind.

• 1:54Ryan Holiday?

  One is outside our control. The other is something we choose, a weakness we give into and accept. This moment, just like a scary moment, requires all our resources. We cannot afford to give in to anger, just as we cannot afford to give in to fear. We need to be alert, aware, rational, in control of ourselves, so we can survive, so we can learn, so we can enjoy happiness in the present moment, so we can make sure this never happens again.

• 2:26Ryan Holiday?

  Anger is a problem that faces us all. We don't all have anger problems, but anger is a problem for everyone. You can learn how to control your temper with Daily Stoic's course, "Taming Your Temper: The 10-Day Stoic Guide to Controlling Your Anger." Stoics recognized anger as a weakness to be mastered. They knew that anger left unchecked would consume you and take over your life. We can help you. I hope you check it out. Go to dailystoic.com/anger.