Stoicism for Leaders and Entrepreneurs

Stoic Philosophy and Psychology in Business

Every day, it seems, more entrepreneurs and leaders in the business community are becoming interested in Stoic philosophy. Stoicism offers a whole philosophy of life, which promises to help us attain not only greater emotional resilience in the face of adversity, but also a deeper sense of purpose and meaning in life, and in our work.

The Wall Street Journal published a review of my book How to Think Like a Roman Emperor: The Stoic Philosophy of Marcus Aurelius, which perhaps sums up Stoicism’s contemporary appeal.

Marcus is remembered not merely for his long reign but for his practice of Stoicism — a school of philosophy founded in Athens by Zeno of Citium around 300 B.C. Stoicism counsels its adherents not to place too much importance on things outside their control. Rather than fret about the frustrations of our daily lives, the Stoics advise, it is better to bring one’s will in accord with nature and approach the present moment with composure. […] Marcus’ worldview was not an idle intellectual exercise […] but a form of wisdom forged by real-world experiences of friendship, loss and crisis. — The Wall Street Journal

The transcript of an interview about Stoicism that I did recently for Wharton business school’s radio station…