I. Perception or Reality
Your perception is your reality.
“The things you think about determine the quality of your mind. Your soul takes on the color of your thoughts… Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking.”
— Marcus Aurelius
Unique experiences define who you are, but it’s your interpretation that defines who you become.
I. Timescale
In the long run, good things happen to good people.
“Things gravitate toward what they were intended for.”
— Marcus Aurelius
If it’s bad now, you just need to wait longer.
Extend your time scale (backwards-looking) and be more patient (forwards-looking).
Do these, and it will be clear.
I. Fighting Types
The best skills come from within.
“The student as boxer, not fencer.
The fencer’s weapon is picked up and put down again.
The boxer’s is part of him.
All he has to do is clench his fist.”
— Marcus Aurelius
We spend time trying to control the wrong things. With limited attention, what are the weapons you care about most?
Be a boxer, not a fencer.
“We have two lives, and the second begins when we realize we only have one.”
– Confucius
An excuse I like to give myself all the time is – I’ll just do it tomorrow.
The problem with this approach is that time is finite. The phrase allows us to feel a sense of progress, but it’s not real. Instead, we’ve stopped momentum in its tracks. 2019 was the year you wanted to join a gym and get in shape, yet here we are six months later and you haven’t even started.
And this doesn’t just apply to our goals, but it also applies to our values. Our family, health, and friendships – yeah, those can wait for tomorrow too.
But what if you only had one day to live?
Are you prioritizing what’s most important?
Have you ever visited a place you haven’t been in a while? You witness a scene that has participated in so much change that it’s indistinguishable. This picture spurs a nostalgia for your memorable past and also reminds us that we exist for a period and then we’re gone.
The Stoics believed that everyone should remind themselves of their mortality on a regular basis.
“Live each day as a separate life.”
― Seneca
Realize this, and move onto your second life; one which has more meaning and is lived deliberately.
Every morning I try to remind myself of this idea, that we are all mortal.
“It is not death that a man should fear, but he should fear never beginning to live.”
― Marcus Aurelius
The sooner you start, the longer you’ll have.
Start living. Start doing.
Be the person you want to be tomorrow, today.
Inspired by: Meditations by Marcus Aurelius