What Have You Done?

Ryan asks you to question what kind of an impact you’re having on the world, on today’s Daily Stoic Podcast. Sign up for the Daily Stoic email: http://DailyStoic.com/emailFollow us: Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, and 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.

• 0:05Ryan 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 at dailystoic.com.

• 0:26Ryan Holiday?

  What have you done? It's not hard to notice when we study the lives of the Stoics, which you should, how often the Stoics were in the room when it happened. Cato was there, fighting against Julius Caesar when Rome came out of its second civil war. Athenodorus and Arius Didymus were there tutoring the new emperor. Thrasse led the resistance against Nero. Rusticus is the one who introduced Marcus Aurelius to the writings of Epictetus. The Stoics were there for history being made. They were active. They were in the game. The last year and a half has also been a series of events

• 1:09Ryan Holiday?

  of historic proportions, without a doubt. Just as you asked your grandparents about the war or the Great Depression, your grandchildren will ask you about this pandemic. What was it like? Was it scary? Did you know anyone that died? And they will want to know something else, too. They will want to know what you did. Just as you wanted to hear about your grandfather landing at Normandy or your grandmother working as a nurse or in a munitions factory, just as you wanted to know where your parents were during the Civil Rights Movement, if they stood against apartheid, or what part they played in whatever events visited their lives. Maybe you're a frontline worker or a scientific researcher, or you work for a local food bank.

• 1:54Ryan Holiday?

  Maybe you're in the Army Reserves and you got called up to active duty, in which case, you have a good answer, and we thank you for your service. But if not, this question should sting a little bit. This has been the crisis of your lifetime. Hundreds of thousands of people have died, millions globally. What have you done? How have you helped? The pandemic is not your fault, but it is our responsibility. A stoic gets involved because it's their duty to get involved. They lend a hand, they use their platforms, they apply their expertise, they provide clarity. They're not always famous heroes like Cato or Thrasse or Marcus Aurelius,

• 2:36Ryan Holiday?

  who led during the Antonine Plague, but they always try to make a difference. The future, indeed, maybe even your future self, is going to look back on this moment and evaluate. Will it find that you were part of the problem or part of the solution? Did you step up or shrink back? Did you do anything at all? Did you do your duty? Were you in the game? And seriously, you can help in so many ways, whether it's something as minor as social media, or helpful as giving money, or volunteering at a vaccine clinic or a food bank. There's something you can do, and you should try to get involved.