Know It Inside And Out

The Daily Stoic

Daily Stoic | Backyard Ventures

Education, 694393, Daily Stoic, Society & Culture, Stoic, Stoicism, Self-improvement, Business, Stoic Philosophy, Philosophy, Ryan Holiday

4.6 • 4.7K Ratings

🗓️ 27 March 2019

⏱️ 3 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Admiral Hyman Rickover, the father of the nuclear navy in the United States and an unsung hero in the history of the world, was once asked by a Congressman if he was prepared for the upcoming hearing in which Hyman needed to speak about a number of complex, important issues. "Yes," Rickover replied, "I shaved and put on a clean shirt."

Rickover didn’t need to prepare because he was prepared. He wasn’t some figurehead who had to be briefed before answering questions. He knew his science and his department inside out. Because he lived and breathed his work—famously interviewing something like 14,000 college grads himself for various positions over the years. He also personally tested every nuclear submarine during its initial sea trial after construction.

His joke about preparing by getting dressed calls to mind an analogy by Marcus Aurelius, who said that a true philosopher is a fighter not a fencer. A fencer has to put on armor and pick up a weapon. A fighter just has to close their fist.

That should be our model too. We shouldn’t be cramming the night before a test, or frantically looking for advice once a crisis has arrived. We need to be prepared. We need to be so on top of our work—and the knowledge required—that everything we need is right there, already in our hands and in our heads. If you’re rushing, you’re already too late. If you’re looking for your weapons, you’re already beaten.

You gotta know your stuff inside and out. You have to live it and breathe it. You gotta be ready.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, prime members, you can listen to the Daily Stoke Podcast early and add free on Amazon music. Download the app today.
0:13.6	Welcome to the Daily Stoke. For each day, we read a short passage designed to help you cultivate the strength, insight, wisdom necessary for living the good life.
0:23.3	Each one of these passages is based on the 2000-year-old philosophy that has guided some of history's greatest men and women. For more, you can visit us at DailyStoic.com.
0:35.3	Know it inside and out.
0:38.3	Admiral Hyman Rikovr, the father of the nuclear navy in the United States, and an unsung hero in the history of the world, was once asked by a congressman if he was prepared for the upcoming hearing in which Hyman needed to speak about the world.
0:53.3	He had a number of complex, important issues. Yes, Rikovr replied, I shaved and put on a clean shirt. Rikovr didn't need to prepare because he was prepared. He wasn't some figurehead who had to be briefed before answering questions.
1:08.3	He knew his science and his department inside out. Because he lived and breathed his work, famously interviewing something like 14,000 college grads himself for various positions over the years.
1:22.3	He also personally tested every nuclear submarine during its initial sea trial after construction.
1:29.3	His joke about preparing by getting dressed calls to mind an analogy from Marcus Aurelius, who said that a true philosopher is a fighter not a fencer.
1:39.3	A fencer has to put on armor and pick up a weapon. A fighter just has to close their fists.
1:46.3	That should be our model too. We shouldn't be cramming the night before a test or frantically looking for advice once the crisis has arrived.
1:55.3	We need to be prepared. We need to be so on top of our work and the knowledge required that everything we need is right there. Everything already in our hands and in our heads.
2:06.3	If you are rushing, you are already too late. If you are looking for your weapons, you are already beaten.
2:13.3	You gotta know your stuff inside and out. You have to live it and breathe it. You gotta be ready.
2:20.3	If you like the podcast that we do here and you want to get it via email every morning, you can sign up at dailystoke.com slash email.
2:37.3	Hey, Prime Members. You can listen to the Daily Stoke early and add free on Amazon Music. Download the Amazon Music app today.
2:46.3	Or you can listen early and add free with Wondery Plus in Apple podcasts.

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