Study The Real Secret of Greatness

When we think of greatness, we think of success. We think of strength. We think of influence. We think of the man or woman exerting their will over the universe, or dominating on the athletic field, or dazzling us with their creative brilliance. We think of the trappings of this greatness: ornate mansions, peak physical conditioning, confidently strolling the halls of power. Is this really greatness, though? What if the person who has it is actually miserable? If every minute they’re awake they’re driven by demons or insecurities or the need to control and beat other people? How great is greatness if it is constantly on the edge of destroying itself through overreaching or over-doing? Seneca said that “nothing is great unless it’s also at peace.” What he meant was that stillness and greatness—true greatness, that is—are impossible to separate. It’s stillness that allows us to be great, on the court or in the public sphere or on the page. No one is able to push the bounds of accomplishment if they are distracted or disorganized. At the same time, it’s stillness that allows us to enjoy our accomplishments. What good is becoming a billionaire if all you can think about is how much more there is left to earn? If you’re just comparing yourself to richer people? Stillness is the key to greatness and the key to happiness (and it’s the title of Ryan Holiday’s new book!). There is little hope and little point to life without it. Stillness is what Stoicism seeks to instill in us—so that we can be better at our jobs, at our responsibilities, and in our quiet moments alone. Without stillness, we have no greatness. We have only franticness and insatiableness. See 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.

• 0:28Ryan Holiday?

  Study this secret of greatness. When we think of greatness, we think of success, we think of strength, we think of influence, we think of the man or woman exerting their will over the universe, or dominating on the athletic field, or dazzling us with their creative brilliance. We think of the trappings of this greatness: ornate mansions, peak physical conditioning, confidently strolling the halls of power. Is this really greatness, though? What if the person who has it is actually miserable? If every minute they're awake, they're driven by demons or insecurities, or the need to control or beat other people? How great is greatness if it is constantly

• 1:10Ryan Holiday?

  on the edge of destroying itself through overreaching or overdoing? Seneca said that "nothing is great unless it is also at peace." What he meant was that stillness and greatness, true greatness, that is, are impossible to separate. It's stillness that allows us to be great on the court, or in the public square, or on the page. No one is able to push the bound of accomplishment if they are distracted or disorganized. At the same time, it's stillness that allows us to enjoy our accomplishments. What good is becoming a billionaire if all you can think about is how much there is left to earn, if you're just comparing yourself to richer people? Stillness is the key to greatness and the key to happiness, and it's

• 1:55Ryan Holiday?

  also the title of my next book. There is little hope and little point to life without it. Stillness is what Stoicism seeks to instill in us, so that we can be better at our jobs, at our responsibilities, and in our quiet moments alone. Without stillness, we have no greatness. We have only franticness and insatiableness.

• 2:18Ryan Holiday?

  If you want to check out my new book, you can preorder it now. It comes out October 1st everywhere books are sold, on Audible, on Amazon, as an ebook, any form. I hope you check it out. I think it's the best thing I've ever written. It's a sequel to Ego is the Enemy and Obstacle is the Way. Please check it out. If you've gotten anything out of this podcast, or anything out of my writing over the years, I would love for you to support me in the book. Stillness is the Key, out October 1. Thank you.