The Three Hardest Things To Do In Life

The Daily Stoic

Daily Stoic | Backyard Ventures

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

4.6 • 4.7K Ratings

🗓️ 26 February 2019

⏱️ 3 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

According to the great Jesuit Monk, Anthony De Mello, there are three intellectual feats that we struggle with on a regular basis, that are harder than just about any physical activity on the planet. Just three. They are, he said, in this order:

-Returning love for hate.

-Including the excluded.

-Admitting you are wrong.

This is not a modern affliction. De Mello, while certainly observing the world he was trying serve, was also tapping into an ancient idea with which the Stoics would have wholly agreed:

- “If you must be affected by other people’s misfortunes, show them pity instead of contempt. Drop this readiness to hate.” — Epictetus

- “No school has more goodness and gentleness; none has more love for human beings, nor more attention to the common good. The goal which it assigns to us is to be useful, to help others, and to take care, not only of ourselves, but of everyone in general and of each one in particular.” — Seneca

"If anyone can refute me—show me I’m making a mistake or looking at things from the wrong perspective—I’ll gladly change. It’s the truth I’m after, and the truth never harmed anyone. What harms us is to persist in self-deceit and ignorance." — Marcus Aurelius

If you were weak and looking to get stronger physically, you’d go to the gym. You’d hire a trainer. You’d watch videos to learn new exercises. You’d work at it. That’s how muscles are built.

If you were ignorant and looking to get smarter or sharper mentally, you’d read books. You’d hire a tutor. You’d play brain games and solve puzzles. You’d work at it. That’s how knowledge is accumulated and intellect is built.

Today, think about how you might strengthen your soul. Search for ways to be kinder, more inclusive, and more open-minded. Build your spirit, like you would sculpt your body or fill your mind. You can be the light that you, yourself, sometimes need.

There are fewer of those than any other type, which makes it way more important.

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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.
0:36.3	The three hardest things to do in life. According to the great Jesuit monk, Anthony Demail, there are three intellectual feats that we struggle with on a regular basis that are harder than just about any physical activity on the planet.
0:51.3	Just three, they are, he said, in this order, returning love for hate, including the excluded, admitting you are wrong.
1:01.3	This is not a modern affliction. Demail, while certainly observing the world he was trying to serve, was also tapping in to an ancient idea with which the Stoics would have wholly agreed.
1:13.3	Three more quotes. If you must be affected by other people's misfortunes, show them pity instead of contempt. Drop this readiness to hate. That's epic Titus.
1:24.3	No school has more goodness and gentleness. None has more love for human beings. No more attention to the common good. The goal, which it assigns to us, is to be useful to help others.
1:35.3	And to take care not only of ourselves, but of everyone in general, and of each one in particular. That's Seneca.
1:42.3	If anyone can refute me, show me I'm making a mistake or looking at things from the wrong perspective, I'll gladly change. It's the truth I'm after, and the truth never harmed anyone.
1:55.3	What harms us is to persist in self-deseed and ignorance. That's Marcus Aurelius. Remember returning love for hate, including the excluded, admitting you are wrong.
2:06.3	If you were weak in looking to get stronger physically, you'd go to the gym. You'd hire a trainer, you'd watch videos to learn new exercises. You'd work at it. That's how muscles are built.
2:17.3	If you were ignorant and looking to get smarter or sharper mentally, you'd read books. You'd hire a tutor. You'd play brain games and solve puzzles. You'd work at it. That's how knowledge is accumulated and intellect is built.
2:30.3	Today, think about how you might strengthen your soul. Search for ways to be kinder, more inclusive, and more open-minded. Build your spirit like you would scope your body or fill your mind. You can be the light that you yourself sometimes need.
2:45.3	There are fewer of those than any other type, which makes it more important. So work on that today. Returning love for hate, including the excluded, admitting you are wrong.
2:58.3	Don't forget to subscribe to this podcast on iTunes or your favorite podcast app. And if you don't get the Daily Stoke email, go to dailystoke.com slash email.
3:15.3	Hey, Prime Members. You can listen to the Daily Stoke early and add free on Amazon Music. Download the Amazon Music app today. Or you can listen early and add free with Wondering Plus in Apple podcasts.

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