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Get your reps in…because none of us have any idea what life has in store for us in the future.SPECIAL OFFER exclusively for podcast listeners
It's been a long winter. But now? Now you can feel something is in the air.
What do you do when someone says something you completely disagree with or something that sounds totally detached from reality? Jordan Klepper, correspondent and host at The Daily Show, is known for walking into political rallies and calmly interviewing the most passionate people in the crowd. In this episode, he sits down with Ryan to explain why arguing almost never works, how silence can be more powerful than a comeback, and what most of us misunderstand about why people believe what they believe.Jordan Klepper is a comedian, writer, and correspondent on The Daily Show. You can follow him on Instagram @JordanKlepper and check out his upcoming live show dates on his website https://www.officialjordanklepper.com/
We plan to do it. We mean to do it. We just tell ourselves that we'll do it tomorrow. The problem, as the Stoics remind us, is that we don't control tomorrow.
Haven't you been wrong before? Haven't you done stuff that in retrospect seems dumb or weird? Of course you have.
Meditating on death isn't depressing, it's clarifying. In this episode, Ryan explains how the Stoic practice of Memento Mori will sharpen your priorities, push you to stop wasting time, and remind you to live with character now, not later.
The greatness of Antoninus and Marcus Aurelius was not perfection but progress. They were imperfect men committed to self-discipline and self-correction. Today's episode explores how Antoninus shaped Marcus through steady example and daily discipline, and what their lives reveal about the kind of character a person chooses to build.
Power doesn't wait for the perfect person to raise their hand. Someone will wield it. Someone always does.
What if it only took five minutes each morning to feel more in control of your life? In this conversation, Dr. Rangan Chatterjee shares the three daily questions he uses to stay grounded in alignment, contentment, and control.
Is this what we're here for? To be the passions' slave? To be the plaything of emotions and impulses? It can't be!
People are the way they are. They will always be this way. We don't control that.
How do you hold a country together when it's tearing itself apart? In this episode, Ryan sits down with Pulitzer Prize–winning historian Doris Kearns Goodwin to talk about Abraham Lincoln's self-education, his emotional discipline, and how he managed anger, ego, and public pressure without losing himself.Doris Kearns Goodwin is a Pulitzer Prize–winning presidential historian and bestselling author. Her latest #1 New York Times bestseller, An Unfinished Love Story: A Personal History of the 1960s, is being adapted into a feature film, while her earlier works, Team of Rivals, The Bully Pulpit, and No Ordinary Time, have won some of the nation's highest literary honors and inspired leaders worldwide. She has served as a White House Fellow to President Lyndon Johnson, produced acclaimed docuseries for the HISTORY Channel, and earned countless awards for her contributions to history and leadership.Doris has a new book out called The Leadership Journey: How Four Kids Became Presidents in which she shares the different childhood experiences of Abraham Lincoln. Theodore Roosevelt. Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Lyndon B. Johnson, and how they each found their way to the presidency.
The past is gone, and no amount of calculation will bring it back or make it fair. What we do have is agency right now.
We have a duty. Our nature—justice—demands something from us. It demands that we get up, get after it, and wear ourselves down doing it.
Life is a lot. It moves fast. It's easy to feel overwhelmed by what to do, what not to do, and whether you're even focusing on the right things. In today's episode, Ryan shares simple Stoic rules to live by that can help you live with more clarity, purpose, and steadiness right now.
If you think history is boring, irrelevant, or just not your "thing", this episode is for you. In today's episode, Ryan sits down with Kenny Curtis, host of the new podcast History Snacks, to make the case for history. They discuss why history isn't about memorizing dates or dusty textbooks, but a superpower that gives you perspective, clarity, and calm.
It's our job as parents to remind our kids that they're not powerless, that no matter what's happening around them, they can create change in themselves and in their communities. In this episode, Sharon McMahon, author of The Small and the Mighty, joins Ryan to talk about how we instill real, grounded hope in our kids and help them see that making a difference isn't reserved for someone else. It's within their reach.Sharon is known as “America's Government Teacher,” and after years as a high school government teacher, Sharon now runs the non-partisan, fact-based Instagram account @sharonsaysso. Sharon just released her book, The Small and the Mighty, where she proves that the most remarkable Americans are often ordinary people who didn't make it into the textbooks.
It's discouraging. It's distracting. All the stuff that's happening in the world. But you know what you can't do? You can't give up your work, your freedom of thought, your freedom of choice pre-emptively.
We should pride ourselves on our ability to put up with these people, to be able to be nice to people who are not nice, to be able to turn the other cheek and not be made bitter and cynical.
Day to day, it's only our individual actions that are up to us: How we treat people, how we run our businesses, what we think about.
The Stoics knew that wanting less increases gratitude, just as wanting more obliterates it. "Freedom isn't secured by filling up on your heart's desire but by removing your desire." - Epictetus
It's not that you should never speak up. It's not that you should never speak truth to power. It's just that you should never do it while you're angry. Do it after you've calmed down. Do it after you've had time to think about it. Do it after you've slept on it.
All that we see must be illuminated by the calm light of mild philosophy. So we can see what it really is. So we don't do anything we regret.
Most people don't read that many books, maybe a few a year at most. So if you're only going to read a couple books this year, the decision of which ones you choose becomes really important.In today's episode, Ryan shares a handful of books he's confident are worth your time. They've changed him, made him better, and he believes they'll make you better too in a lot of different areas of your life.
Love isn't just an emotion. It's not just a feeling that hits you out of nowhere. It's an action, something you can practice and something you can get better at. And while philosophy might not seem like a guide to a great love life, especially Stoicism, it actually has a lot to teach us.
Marcus Aurelius said that if you ever found anything better in life than courage, discipline, justice, and wisdom—the four virtues—it must be an extraordinary thing indeed. Which raises the question: is there anything better?
Life has a way of stripping all our reasons bare, of humbling our plans and assumptions. We must live, as Marcus Aurelius said, as if death hangs over us. Because it does.
How to become the wisest version of yourself. Ryan Holiday is one of the world's bestselling living philosophers. His books, including The Daily Stoic, The Obstacle Is the Way, Ego Is the Enemy, Stillness Is the Key and his #1 New York Times bestselling series on the Stoic Virtues, appear in more than forty languages and have sold over 10 million copies. In this episode we talk about: The value of asking pertinent questions How to create a second brain Finding a teacher for yourself How not to be a know it all Achieving focus through a morning routine How to seek out criticism Learning how to die And much more Related Episodes: Ancient Strategies For Managing Stress And Anxiety Get the 10% with Dan Harris app here Sign up for Dan's free newsletter here Follow Dan on social: Instagram, TikTok Subscribe to our YouTube Channel Additional Resources: Wisdom Takes Work The Stoic Virtue Series The Daily Stoic Dailystoic.com Glorious Exploits To advertise on the show, contact sales@advertisecast.com or visit https://advertising.libsyn.com/10HappierwithDanHarris Thanks to our sponsors: LinkedIn: Spend $250 on your first campaign on LinkedIn ads and get a $250 credit for the next one. Just go to linkedin.com/happier. Wix: Ready to create your website? Go to wix.com. Rosetta Stone: Visit https://www.rosettastone.com/happier to get started and claim your 50% off today. Quo: No missed calls, no missed customers. Visit www.Quo.com/happier to get started.
Why do the same patterns keep showing up in completely different centuries? In this episode, Pulitzer Prize–winning historian Stephen Greenblatt joins Ryan to discuss how power, fear, ego, and insecurity keep producing the same patterns. They talk about why dangerous leaders do not look dangerous at first, how great thinkers learned to survive unstable rulers, and why some of the most important ideas in history had to be hidden inside art, literature, and fiction just to stay alive. Stephen Greenblatt is Cogan University Professor of the Humanities at Harvard University. He has written extensively on English Renaissance literature and acts as general editor of The Norton Anthology of English Literature and The Norton Shakespeare. He is the author of fourteen books, including The Swerve, winner of the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award, and Will in the World, a Pulitzer Prize finalist.
It can feel like everything is falling to pieces. It can feel like you're lost. It can feel like there's no hope, no way forward, nothing to do. But that's just because you've gotten rattled.
It would be wonderful if the world was naturally just, if people were automatically good, always doing the right thing. But of course, they don't.
At the core of Stoicism is the idea that our emotions are our responsibility. No one can make us frustrated. No one can offend us either, Epictetus said, not without us being complicit in the taking of offense.
After recording their episode, Ryan and Bert Kreischer stopped by The Painted Porch, where Ryan shared some must-read books with Bert.Watch this episode on Ryan Holiday's YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6VH7tzlzRwY
The most fearless philosopher in the ancient world didn't rule an empire or write books. He lived on the street and begged for food. And yet, he was bold enough to challenge Alexander the Great to his face. In today's episode, we're talking about Diogenes, the philosopher who rejected status, comfort, and approval and may have understood freedom better than anyone who came after him.
You're tough. You're firm. You don't get bothered by things. You keep yourself under control. Good. But you're missing something else just as important and perhaps more impressive.
From corruption to tyranny, the Stoics refused to sit on the sidelines. They tried to change things.
If your New Year motivation didn't make it to February, this episode is for you. Ryan and his business partner and longtime friend, Brent Underwood, talk about how waiting for permission, perfect conditions, or external validation quietly turns into procrastination, even for high performers. They discuss why open-ended ambitions are harder than deadlines, how success can actually make starting new things scarier, and the trap of telling yourself, “I'll get to it later.”Let's not write the year off just yet. The Daily Stoic New Year New You challenge is opening back up for a limited time. Learn more and sign up today at dailystoic.com/challenge.
Few writers understand American culture like Chuck Klosterman, which is why he joins Ryan ahead of the Super Bowl to talk about how football reshaped American culture.In this episode, Chuck and Ryan discuss what football really reveals about American culture, power, and the stories we tell ourselves about expertise and control. Chuck shares his observations, strange historical parallels, and personal stories that connect sports to technology, identity, and how monocultures form and eventually fade.
It's always been a dilemma: Why should I be honest when no one else seems to be? Why should I play by the rules when others are so visibly breaking them? Why should I be respectful or kind or fair when nobody else is?
Obstacles, adversaries, pitfalls, and bad luck. It's going to be there. It's going to happen.
We have to stay at it. We have to accept the losses that come…without accepting the status quo. We should not give up.
When jarred by circumstances, Marcus Aurelius writes, we have to revert back to ourselves. We have to come back to the rhythm. We have to intervene. We can't let the challenges win.Let's not write the year off just yet. The Daily Stoic New Year New You challenge is opening back up for a limited time. Learn more and sign up today at dailystoic.com/challenge.
Immigration is a complicated issue. Crime is complicated. But this is not complicated.
Bert Kreischer and Ryan continue their conversation about the tension between discipline and indulgence, why Bert sometimes feels better hungover than sober, and the pull of routines built around punishment and excess. Bert talks about quitting drinking, the daily “witching hour,” and why good news can be just as unsettling as bad.Bert Kreischer is a stand up comedian, actor, and podcast host of 2 Bears, 1 Cave. You can watch both his movie The Machine and now his latest show, Free Bert, on Netflix! Follow Bert on Instagram, TikTok, X, and YouTube Bert's new series Free Bert is officially out on Netflix! Watch Here: https://www.netflix.com/title/81696123
It always feels like the traditional values are slipping away…Maybe they are. Maybe they aren't.
Sometimes life happens, but here's your second chance. Now is the best time to start being the person you want to be. Let's not write the year off just yet. The Daily Stoic New Year New You challenge is opening back up for a limited time. Learn more and sign up today at dailystoic.com/challenge.
Bert Kreischer wants to be Stoic. It just doesn't come naturally. In this episode, he talks with Ryan about why Stoicism feels almost impossible for him, why criticism still gets under his skin, his hot take on why Nero may have been a good emperor, and some truly insane stories from his life.Bert Kreischer is a stand up comedian, actor, and podcast host of 2 Bears, 1 Cave. You can watch both his comedy special The Machine and now his latest show, Free Bert, on Netflix! Follow Bert on Instagram, TikTok, X, and YouTube Bert's new series Free Bert is officially out on Netflix! Watch Here: https://www.netflix.com/title/81696123
This is what philosophy is about, what discipline is as a virtue: Doing things you don't want to do.Let's not write the year off just yet. The Daily Stoic New Year New You challenge is opening back up for a limited time. Learn more and sign up today at dailystoic.com/challenge.
Forget party, forget class, forget any perceived differences: We must speak loudly and with one voice against those who intimidate, those who violate, those who abuse and discriminate. If we're not going to fight for the little guy, for the other, and do what we can for them, who will?
You're tired. You're busy. It would be easier to stay home...It's the perfect excuse. Unless, of course, you are disciplined.Let's not write the year off just yet. The Daily Stoic New Year New You challenge is opening back up for a limited time. Learn more and sign up today at dailystoic.com/challenge.