The Horror of Words Not Turned Into Deeds

"It’s always been tempting to talk a good game. People have been doing it for thousands of years. But today, it’s never been easier to talk and virtue-signal. There are whole social networks designed to enable you to do this. They reward you for what you say, for the image you project. They don’t much care for what you do."Ryan talks about the importance of backing up your words with actions in 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: DailyStoic.com/signupFollow @DailyStoic:Twitter: https://twitter.com/ryanholidayInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/ryanholiday/Facebook: http://facebook.com/ryanholidayYouTube: 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. The horror of words not turned into deeds. It's always been tempting to talk a good game. People have been doing it for thousands of years, but today, it's never been easier to talk and virtue signal. There are whole social networks designed to enable you to do this. They reward you for what you say,

• 0:49Ryan Holiday?

  for the image you project. They don't much care for what you do. It's like technology intersected with our worst impulses and our weakest tendencies. "I have a horror of words that are not translated into deeds," Theodore Roosevelt once said, "of speech that does not result in action." Marcus Aurelius reminded himself that he should not waste one more minute talking about what a good man was like, that his job was to be one. Epictetus put it better than both of them. "Don't talk about your philosophy," he said. "Embody it." Well, here we are in a moment where it's time to put up or shut up. People are suffering and need help. Events are rippling through the world. It would scare or intimidate any

• 1:33Ryan Holiday?

  person. All the reading and writing and discussions we've had over the years about what heroes look like, about what our duties as citizens are, about how to respond to and triumph over adversity. Well, this is not a drill. That bill is now due. That opportunity is here. What will you do? It's time to step up, as Marcus Aurelius did during the plague, as Cato did during the collapse of the Republic, as Washington did in 1776, as Stockdale did in that prison camp. As Stoics have done all throughout history, now is not the time to talk. It's the time to help, to do good, to prove your ideals, to turn your words into actions, to show the deeds of a philosopher. Today, tomorrow, always.

• 2:20Ryan Holiday?

  Hey, it's Ryan. If you're trying to stay safe, trying to continue social distancing, remember our sponsor this week is Thrive Market. They've got 6,000 home food and beauty products that you can get sent direct to consumer. The average Thrive Market member saves almost $400 a year. If you want to check that out, you can go to ThriveMarket.com/stoic.