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The Daily Stoic
You Either Are Or You Aren’t | Your Actual Needs Are Small
Ep. 1849
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It’s impossible not to read Marcus Aurelius or Seneca and sense that they were always working. Not that they were literally always at the office–as we said, they believed in a kind of work life balance–but on themselves.
They were studying. They were reflecting. They were asking questions. Late at night after his wife went to sleep, Seneca would pull out his journals and evaluate the day, going over what he’d done well, where he didn’t live up to his standards. Marcus, most famously, was seen as an old man, picking up his tablets and heading off to attend a lecture by Sextus, a wise teacher.
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And in today's excerpt from The Daily Stoic, Ryan explains why it feels so beneficial accepting what you think is normal, the importance on understanding why your actual needs are small, and living by stoics like Seneca who believe that nothing can satisfy greed.
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