Not Just To Read, But To Read Critically | Stop Monkeying Around

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

🗓️ 8 July 2021

⏱️ ? minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

“An illiterate world is not a good one, but a world where people unthinkingly believe and accept everything they read is not that much better. So it’s great that you’re reading—but are you reading critically?”

Ryan explains the importance of honing your reading practice, and reads The Daily Stoic’s entry of the day, on today’s Daily Stoic Podcast.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, prime members, you can listen to the Daily Stoic Podcast early and add free on Amazon music. Download the app today.
0:12.4	Welcome to another episode of the Daily Stoic Podcast. On Thursdays, we do double duty, not just reading our daily meditation,
0:21.0	but also reading a passage from the book, The Daily Stoic,
0:24.5	365 meditations on wisdom, perseverance, and the art of living, which I wrote my wonderful co-author and collaborator, Steven Hanselman.
0:33.5	And so today we'll give you a quick meditation from one of the Stoics, from Epititus Markis Relius,
0:39.5	Seneca, then some analysis for me, and then we send you out into the world to do your best to turn these words into works.
0:47.5	Not just to read, but to read critically. And a literate world is not a good one,
0:54.5	but a world where people unthinkingly believe and accept everything they read is not much better.
0:59.5	So it's great that you're teaching your kids to read. It's great that you are reading, but are you reading critically?
1:06.5	You need to know authors can be wrong, authors can be questioned. A book is not a one-way conversation.
1:12.5	It's a dialogue between the reader and the writer. You have to take notes. You have to disagree.
1:17.5	You have to question what you see on the page. Everyone needs to know, no book is definitive.
1:23.5	No one's school or system has all the answers. You have to read books by opposing thinkers.
1:28.5	Read one book after another, then read something that presents a different point of view.
1:32.5	You have to realize the importance of debate. You have to understand how to compare and contrast.
1:37.5	We've talked about the dangerous world of ideas. You're going to have to look at things you disagree with.
1:42.5	You're going to have to have tastes. You're going to have to talk and learn from people who have different opinions than you.
1:47.5	It's going to mean going down rabbit holes you never thought of before.
1:51.5	Remember what Epictetus said just because someone spends time reading doesn't mean they're smart.
1:56.5	It matters how and what you read. So start this practice today. Start it now.
2:02.5	Be a real reader, a wide-ranging, critical reader, a questioner, a reviewer, a thinker.
2:09.5	Stop monkeying around.
	...

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