3 Stoic Steps That Stand Between You And Your Best Life
Without being emotionally unavailable
It’s funny.
When we talk about heaven and hell, we often refer to places we reach after dying. What most miss is that heaven and hell start here on earth.
Why?
Because often, we’re the creators of our miserable lives.
Ouch. The good thing? We don’t have to be.
How? By being more stoic.
Here are three Stoic steps to take to live your best life.
Step 1: Embrace reality with a rational mindset
Life’s life.
But do you let it be? Often, we’re rebels trying to fight it.
The Stoics knew the magic lies in changing what we can and embracing what we can’t.
The dichotomy of control.
“How can we embrace what we can’t control?” you might ask.
By changing our perspective on it.
Last year, my writing business declined, and because I feared ending up without anything, I applied for corporate jobs. I got nada.
Back then, this was horrible for me.
Now, I call myself lucky.
Not because I got a corporate job now but because I changed my perspective, took responsibility, and improved my business.
It is how it is (now, let’s make the best of it.)
Step 2: Find contentment through acceptance
The best skill you can ever learn is acceptance.
Not to have an excuse to do nothing with your life but to find contentment in the present. Acceptance can give you peace.
It doesn’t have to mean you give up.
Sure, you can buy your “Just do nothing”-shirt and become a couch potato while calling what you do acceptance.
But it’s not. That’s giving up.
Stoic acceptance is embracing what we can’t change, managing our emotions instead of suppressing them, and finding contentment in the here and now.
Not to never change but to lay the foundation to change.
When I think of my second break-up, I remember being sad and miserable up until the point where I just told myself:
“Fine, it is like it is. Let’s make the best out of it.”
Yeah, obvious, I know. But what most people don’t realize is this can be trained.
Acceptance is a skill, nothing that comes only with time.
Step 3: Practice daily mindfulness and reflection
When acceptance is a skill, how can you train it?
Through daily mindfulness and reflection practice. They foster your self-awareness and help you to understand what’s going on within yourself.
The Stoics knew that personal growth was a daily obligation.
Sure, sometimes life hits you in the face to make you grow. But growth should be a subtle daily task to live your best life.
How?
By practicing daily mindfulness and reflection.
Meditation and journaling can be two huge factors. With that, you learn to focus, delay gratification, reflect, and get a good understanding of how you’re navigating life.
These are the best ways to fix your inner compass.
And with that fixed, you can set sail to achieve bigger things.
Your best life is right around the corner if you consistently:
- embrace reality
- find contentment through acceptance and
- practice daily mindfulness and reflection
Thank you for reading!
Like, comment, leave a message, and if you want to read more:
The Happiest People In The World Have Realized These 3 Simple Truths
Here’s What I Learned After Publishing 100k Words On The Internet
