by 3 years ago | 3 Min Read
When it comes to philosophy, there are many different schools of thought out there. One philosophy that has been particularly impactful on me is the philosophy of Stoicism. Stoicism was exemplified by seminal figures such as Marcus Aurelius, Seneca the Younger and Epictetus. I wanted to highlight 3 of the main ideas in stoicism and explain how you can implement them into your own life.
#1. Amor Fati
Amore Fati is Latin for “Love of Fate”. The Stoics never wasted their time and energy worrying about the way that life will unfold for them. There are so many things in life that are completely out of our control. To dwell on these things is futile, at best, but it can even be detrimental to you. It’s very easy to lose confidence and hope in your ability to accomplish something if you’re caught up on the things that you have no power over controlling or changing. It’s also important to love your fate, because you really won’t know where any situation, experience or interaction will lead you to, until you get there. The struggles you’re currently facing may very well be the exact path you must go down, to get to your ultimate goal. Don’t swim against the current. Just love your fate and ride the wave.
#2. Control What You Can Control
The flip side of Amor Fati is to control the things that you actually can control. You can never control other people or the circumstances around your life but you can always control your reaction to them. Doing something may be difficult but if it’s still possible to do, then you should embrace that difficulty. It won’t be easy but it will be well worth the effort. If you focus all of your energy on changing or improving the things that you can, you will experience a significant amount of self growth. Your confidence will be high and you will be making substantial progress towards accomplishing your big goals.
#3. Memento Mori
Memento Mori is Latin for “Remember Death”. It’s important to be mindful of your mortality. Our lives don’t last forever. People are lucky to live to 100 years old but most people don’t make it that far. Most people have no idea when they will die. It could be tomorrow or 10 years from now. The stoics would contemplate their mortality often. This instilled in them a strong work ethic and sense of drive. Their time on Earth was limited, so they always strived to be productive. They knew that they couldn’t waste any precious time, if they wanted to accomplish big things in life. Memento Mori also made them think about the legacy they would leave behind. Their lives would last a few decades but their works could last countless lifetimes. Your life is limited but you can find a kind of immortality through the quality work you do while you’re still alive.
The teachings of Stoic philosophers really shifted my mindset about a lot of things, for the better. I am a much happier, stronger, wiser and more focused person because of it. These 3 mantras have had a particularly significant impact on me. If you adopt them into your life, I’m confident that they will have a significant impact on you as well.
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I hope that you’ve found value in this blog post! Feel free to share it with anyone that you think will benefit from it as well.
If you’d like to hear more of my thoughts on this subject, you can check out my video here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqKLm4FOMdo
If you’d like to be even more effective as an entrepreneur, check out my blog post on How To Build And Maintain Positive Momentum.
