So, I swore in a Facebook post that I would be Vlogging the whole Year of Stoic Living thing. Well, I did record a couple videos, only to really be dissatisfied with the resulting videos. So, I’ve decided to write instead, just because I feel I can give my updates more justice and thought.

So, I have a lot to catch up on…

I skipped Week 1, as I was late in the week starting this challenge.

Week 2: Negative Visualization

In Week 2 the challenge was the practice of Negative Visualization. Over the last year (I’ve been a practicing Stoic for about a year) I’ve noticed a trend in my practice: getting bored. I contemplate very common things usually, things that come to my mind quickly, such as loosing a loved one, my job, my money, and even my Stoicism. But, with this practice, and thinking about the same things over and over again can get boring, jaded, and complacent. During Week 2 I challenged myself to come up with a new things every day, and practice I hope to keep up in my evening reflection.

By coming up with something new each day you’ll add something to your plate, making practice more fulfilling, less boring, and more challenging. For instance, there are a lot of things I think we take for granted. One thing I added to my list of things to visualize loosing is my love for Tennis. I had never thought, for instance, that I could get ill and loose my ability to play, etc. Thoughts like these have helped lead me to improve my fitness, enjoy playing (even loosing) more.

Routines

I also challenged myself to modify my routine. You see, I’m not the most avid morning person. I wake up about 30 minutes before work (I work at home), get coffee, eat breakfast, and by that time I don’t really have a lot of time to do a proper morning practice.

I actually do most of my practice in the evening now. I reflect on my day with a simple system, one recognizing what, in my day, was within my control, and what was not. Then, what did I do rationally vs irrationally. By recognizing these I feel I train my mind to recognize these things more quickly; I become more biased to my understanding of the situation, than the quick judgements of my mind.

Then, I move on to what I would normally do in my morning practice. I negatively visualize the things in my life that could possibly happen to me. Of the really important ones, I end by, again, recognizing, of these things, the things I can control and what things I cannot. For instance, if I pondered loosing my job: I would first recognize that I cannot control the opinions of my coworkers or the choices they make, or the fact that, due to budget constraints, they may have to lay me off, or that the company may go under, etc. I then recognize, that I can always do my best work each day, learn more to stay on the cutting edge, volunteer to do tasks others do not, etc. In this, I recognize what I can do to, of course, keep my job, but I focus more on how improving myself helps me more than it helps the outcome of keeping a job. In doing this regularly it prepares me for the task of something negative happening to me as a Stoic. All of this usually takes about an hour or so.

I’ve replaced my morning practice with a brief review of my evening notes and a simple recitation of:

1. Nature is as it is, good and evil do not exist outside my own opinions
2. That which is of true value are the mastery of my thinking, opinions, and actions; the outcome being of no concern
3. Do I command Nature? Then I should not be perplexed when it does this or that, it is best to move along in harmony
4. Today, I will meet irrational and troublesome people. It is because they do not know the right path, that they don’t follow it. I can not be harmed by them, for the harm is only done in my own opinions about them
5. There is no guarantee that I will not loose a child today, a wife, or possession that benefits me greatly; that terrible sufferings will not come to myself or those I love. Today may even unfold to be my last day! Therefore, I remain grateful for that which has been lent me today, ready to give it all back at any moments notice
6. And so, I go about today against rampant thinking and vice, favoring the rational mind, and being a benefit to those around me, should they receive me so

I call it my Morning Creed.

This only takes about ten minutes. The modifications to my routine turned out to be the greatest result to come out of my second week of this challenge.

Week 3: Create a Motto

In Week 3 we were challenged to create a motto. The motto I came up with was this:

This distress is caused by the one who’s opinions make it so.

Being a Stoic doesn’t mean that you will not have a negative feeling come up. In fact, feeling negative emotions should be no stranger to a Stoic, they probably anticipated it using Negative Visualization. The mind is very quick to judge (the irrational mind) and so if, for instance, someone is annoying you, and you feel annoyed, the mind has too quickly come to the conclusion, “this person is annoying!” Anytime I feel my mind make a judgement before my rational faculty does, and I feel distressed, I usually bring to mind something similar to the motto I’ve chosen above.

It simply reminds me that the weight at which the distress is bothering me is, ultimately, up to me. I have to use my rational mind to take a step back and remember that, even though I had just suffered something, the suffering itself is all up to me and how much I build it up in my mind; basically, it’s my own damn fault! Having this brief moment, usually causes a present calm and a reset. It’s quick and effective.

Well, that’s it! Checkout what we’re doing this week: Endurance.