Keep Your Head Out Of The Clouds

The image of the philosopher is typically that of an academic, one preoccupied with big, theoretical ideas. You know, the kind of brilliant but absent minded professor. The one so hard at work on the mysteries of the universe…that they put on mismatching socks. The one that can’t remember where they put their car keys, the one who doesn’t have time for the pesky issues of life or human affairs because they’re on the verge of some breakthrough. But what’s so refreshing and relatable about the Stoics is that although they too were brilliant, they’re heads weren’t stuck in the clouds. No, they were down here on Earth, doing the people’s business—running for office, fighting in wars, raising children, cultivating a farm. In Meditations, Marcus Aurelius reminds himself to not let his mind wander too much. In another passage, he says to put his books aside and get busy with life. Seneca said that, unlike the Epicureans, a Stoic would only not be involved in politics and current affairs if something prevented them from doing so.✉️ 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. Keep your head out of the clouds. The image of the philosopher is typically that of an academic, one preoccupied with big, theoretical ideas. You know, the kind of brilliant but absent-minded professor, the one so hard at work on the mysteries of the universe that they put on mismatching socks. The one that can't remember where they put their car keys, the one who doesn't have time for pesky issues of life or human affairs, because they're on the verge

• 0:48Ryan Holiday?

  of some breakthrough. What's so refreshing and relatable about the Stoics is that although they too were different, their heads weren't stuck in the clouds. No, they were down here on earth, doing the people's business, running for office, fighting in wars, raising children, cultivating a farm. In meditations, Marcus Aurelius reminds himself not to let his mind wander too much. In another passage, he says to put his books aside and get busy with life. Seneca said that, unlike the Epicureans, a Stoic would only not be involved in politics and current affairs. Something prevented them from doing so. As you see in Lives of the Stoics, which I biasly recommend, only a small minority of the Stoics even taught philosophy at all.

• 1:32Ryan Holiday?

  The rest had jobs that kept them busy and honest, ranging from king to gardener, jobs they had to apply their philosophy to. Of course, the Stoics also considered big ideas. They loved to study and read, but they kept their heads out of the clouds and their feet on the ground, because people depended on them. Running the empire depended on them. And the same goes for you. Forget professional philosophy. Do whatever it is that you do as a philosopher. Anyways, that's why I wrote Lies of the Stoics. And you get a sense of who the Stoics were, what they did professionally, how they contributed to the world around them. And I was very heartened to see that. And I think they'll like the book, so check it out.