Stoicism (ft. Ryan Holiday), Solved

SOLVED with Mark Manson

Mark Manson

Self-improvement, Education

4.9 • 4.1K Ratings

🗓️ 15 October 2025

⏱️ 173 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

What does it actually mean to live like a Stoic? In this wide-ranging conversation with bestselling author and modern Stoicism evangelist Ryan Holiday, we unpack the origins of Stoic philosophy, why it exploded during turbulent times in ancient Greece and Rome, and how its principles—like courage, temperance, justice, and wisdom—still apply in a world filled with chaos, anxiety, and uncertainty. From shipwrecked merchants to emperors journaling their fears, this episode explores why some of the most powerful figures in history turned to Stoicism not just for answers—but for survival. We also dig into how Stoicism overlaps with modern psychology, why it’s gaining traction among young men, and whether its rising popularity is being misunderstood or misused. If you’ve ever wondered whether Stoicism means being emotionless, if it’s compatible with ambition, or if it actually makes you a better person, this episode is your one-stop masterclass. Order Ryan Holiday’s new book, Wisdom Takes Work: https://www.amazon.com/Wisdom-Takes-Work-Repeat-Virtues/dp/0593191730 We also put together a free companion guide for this episode with all the takeaways, references, and tools to help you get your sh*t together once and for all. Download it here: https://solvedpodcast.com/stoicism Sign up for my newsletter, Your Next Breakthrough. It will help make you a less awful person: ⁠⁠https://markmanson.net/breakthrough⁠⁠ Get clarity on what actually matters. Try Purpose, Mark's AI mentor app that learns your patterns, challenges your blind spots, and helps you take action. Get 7 days free at ⁠⁠⁠purpose.app/solved⁠⁠⁠⁠ Chapters: 02:49 CHAPTER 1: Setting the Scene: Ancient Greece After Alexander 13:58 CHAPTER 2: The Four Stoic Virtues 1:25:51 CHAPTER 3: Roman Conquest and the Spread of Stoicism 1:39:06 CHAPTER 4: Seneca: The Conflicted Philosopher 1:55:50 CHAPTER 5: Epictetus: The Slave Philosopher 2:07:28 CHAPTER 6: Marcus Aurelius: The Philosopher Emperor 2:20:18 CHAPTER 7: Stoicism Through History 2:32:45 CHAPTER 8: Stoicism and Modern Psychology 2:41:09 CHAPTER 9: The Modern Stoicism Revival Follow Mark Mark’s IG: https://www.instagram.com/markmanson Solved IG: https://www.instagram.com/solvedpodcast/ Twitter: https://x.com/markmanson LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markmanson/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@IAmMarkManson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome back, everybody, to the Solve podcast.
0:02.7	I am your host, Mark Manson, number one New York Times bestselling author.
0:06.1	I'm here with my producer, lead researcher, intrepid, failed acrobat, Drew Bernie.
0:13.4	Intellectual, a failed intellectual acrobat.
0:15.5	I don't even know what that means.
0:17.5	And we are recording a very special episode this week.
0:22.2	It's the first time that we've brought in a guest expert to tolerate this madness.
0:28.2	I'm here with my friend, Ryan Holliday, stoicism expert.
0:32.5	I know you are a big endurance athlete.
0:37.3	You do a lot of long distance running. Have you ever done long
0:40.4	distance podcasting? Well, you know, when, I don't know about you, but like when I started doing
0:45.9	books, they'd be like, can you come on this show and do a five minute interview or can you
0:49.7	come to this 15 minute radio spot? And then it was like, no, no, there's this thing called
0:53.1	podcasting. And then those were an hour. And then then those became two hours and now there's whatever this is well now you're
0:59.4	stuck yeah it just like it just became bigger and bigger yeah yeah exactly you were known for
1:06.7	many things but i think the thing you're best known for.
1:14.0	Yes.
1:18.3	For those of you who are listening and can't see, I just, I put a stack of books on the table that are threatening to collapse the table.
1:21.2	Ryan is the author of, by my count, 11 stoicism book, nine stoicism, but I don't even know.
1:28.3	Do you know?
1:29.3	I don't.
1:30.1	I guess you could include the journal, which has like 20,000 words in it too.
	...

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