Be Ruthless To The Things That Don't Matter

 "be ruthless to the things that don't matter" - an old adage from the Stoics yet so powerful and timely at these modern times.

There are books supporting, and maxing-out explanations in detail (ie) Don't Sweat The Small Stuff, or How To Not Give A F*ck - or in lay man's term if you like... "I don't care".

One of the hardest things to do in life is to say “No.” To invitations, to requests, to obligations, to the stuff that everyone else is doing. Even harder is saying no to certain time-consuming emotions: anger, excitement, distraction, obsession, lust. None of these impulses feels like a big deal by itself, but run amok, they become a commitment like anything else.”

Excerpt From: Holiday, Ryan. “The Daily Stoic.” Apple Books. 

So what can you do? Filter, filter, filter... go back to # 1 - Choice and Control, then apply.

 

“Start by learning the power of “No!”—as in “No, thank you,” and “No, I’m not going to get caught up in that,” and “No, I just can’t right now.” It may hurt some feelings. It may turn people off. It may take some hard work.But the more you say no to the things that don’t matter, the more you can say yes to the things that do. This will let you live and enjoy your life—the life that you want.”

Excerpt From: Holiday, Ryan. “The Daily Stoic.” Apple Books. 

~ billymacdeus 

Education Is Freedom

 

Day two of my journey in reading #TheDailyStoic book, we are looking at purpose here. In everything you do - what and why are you "doing" it?

“No, you picked up this book because you are learning how to live. Because you want to be freer, fear less, and achieve a state of peace. Education—reading and meditating on the wisdom of great minds—is not to be done for its own sake. It has a purpose.”

Excerpt From: Holiday, Ryan. “The Daily Stoic.” Apple Books. 

With the overall emphasis on education - what truly matters when learning is knowledge - self knowledge in particular is - is freedom (quoted from Ryan Holiday)

 

Education as Holiday reiterated... is the reading and meditating on the wisdom of great minds.

~billymacdeus

Control and Choice

 

As per Ryan Holiday, “most important practice in Stoic philosophy is differentiating between what we can change and what we can’t."

What we have influence over and what we do not.

 

A flight is delayed because of weather—no amount of yelling at an airline representative will end a storm.

 

No amount of wishing will make you taller or shorter or born in a different country.

 

No matter how hard you try, you can’t make someone like you.”

 

Excerpt From: Holiday, Ryan. “The Daily Stoic.” Apple Books. 

The above, are eye-openers, jaw-dropping realities that one must really really consider as you journey this life. To echo what the legendary Stoic, Epictetus - mentioned...

Lesson: Identify, separate and choose - what you can control and not.

~billymacdeus

The Daily Stoic

 
I'm excited. I started reading books again - the extended holidays (Thanksgiving and the Friday after that) gave me the inspiration to go back to where my roots at - learning, and constantly seeking wisdom.

And to inculcate or simply put - provide an imprint to my heart and mind what i am reading, i decided to blog it in pieces (along with FB and Insta post). It's true - the more you recreate what you read - the more it would leave a mark in your memory; the actionable items will also be easily taken into reality.

I am glad to share the book's title -  The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday.

Reading the introduction of the book, these were the matters of my decision making why i have to finish and digest this book.

1. Knowledge ~ self-knowledge in particular is freedom
2. The emphasis of cultivating resilience, purpose and joy
3. It's an ideal personal operating system
4. Applying and learning philosophy at the same time.

Please be with me in this journey - mostly, if not, the main purpose of me blogging this is to share and let the underdogs (hidden gems) of the internet share what truly matters - beneficial for mankind, this precious knowledge that everyone must seek and master.

~billymacdeus

Lovefool By Two Colors

Nyahahaha! 'tis sums it all up. The grunge-like sound effects, like it gets real if you put your "spatial sounds" on with your airPods Pro.

The groovey yuey kinda sound - makes you feel like dancing like no one is watching. Had that episode earlier while doing my jogs in public earlier, lotsa onlookers / motorists were turning shoulders - or was it just part of the magic, listening to this.

Welp, since the rendition of The Cardigans back in the hip MTV-days, and back when Romeo & Juliet's soundtrack came into fruition through this LoveFool song, it has always been tagged with a special place in my heart, loving this song.

Now, that it got revived, it's quite a homage to more than a decade of unreleased euphoria it brought back then from The Cardigans- whilst Two Colors seem to create a more seducing effect just by singing out loud or singing it in the head while your headphones ON.

Enjoy!

~billymacdeus