To Write Better, Internalize Your Goals
Focus on doing your job with the best ability you can
I’ve been an ardent reader of the Stoic philosophy for a long time. I’ve read everything there is, from Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations (which I highly recommend), Seneca’s letters, to modern non-fiction books, such as A Guide To The Good Life.
Among all the lessons that stoicism taught me, the most important one was: internalize your goals. And I found that it’s essential for writing — and most creative endeavors.
What ‘Internalizing Your Goals’ Means
The key to becoming a stoic is not — as many people assume — to become emotionless. It’s to become tranquil and to live a good life. Ancient philosophy (and stoicism in particular) was to people of the past what self-help and motivational books are to us.
We all live in a world that changes every day. Stoics have found a way to restore tranquility despite our involvement in the world that continually changes, and often breaks our plans.
The key was to internalize goals.
When you internalize goals, you:
1. Forget about the outcome.
2. Focus only on what you can control — your effort.
