{"id":339,"date":"2020-04-27T22:59:27","date_gmt":"2020-04-28T02:59:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stephentully.com\/?p=339"},"modified":"2020-04-27T22:59:28","modified_gmt":"2020-04-28T02:59:28","slug":"stillness-is-they-key-by-ryan-holiday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stephentully.com\/?p=339","title":{"rendered":"“Stillness Is They Key”, by Ryan Holiday"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

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“To be steady while the world spins around you. To act\nwithout frenzy. To hear only what needs to be heard. To possess quietude –\nexterior and interior – on command.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I finished this book in late February and the irony of its\ntiming was not lost on me. It provides a clear insight into the unharnessed\npower of being still<\/em><\/strong>. Not something I am very good at, so caught\nmy interest from the beginning. How can being still enhance our individual\neffort and help me get the most out of my life and work? In today’s confusing\ntime of semi-isolation from our routines and daily systems, the message was\nwell appreciated. I have already introduced several of these ideas into my new\nquarantine routine and hope they will become permanent habits. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Below are a few of my favorite passages, highlights and\nnotes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAll of humanity\u2019s problems,\u201d Blaise Pascal said in 1654,\n\u201cstem from man\u2019s inability to sit quietly in a room lone.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

BECOME PRESENT<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

“People don’t understand that the hardest thing is\nactually doing something that is close to nothing.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Remember, there’s no greatness in the future. Or\nclarity. Or insight. Or happiness. Or peace. There is only this moment.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Make what you can of what you have been given. Live\nwhat can be lived. That’s what excellence is.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

LIMIT YOUR INPUTS<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

“A wealth of information creates a poverty of\nattention” – Herbert Simon<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his mediations, Marcus Aurelius says, “Ask yourself\nat every moment, ‘Is this necessary?”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

EMPTY THE MIND<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Epictetus, Marcus\u2019s\nphilosophical predecessor, was in fact speaking about sports when he said, \u201cIf\nwe\u2019re anxious or nervous when we make the catch or throw, what will become of\nthe game, and how can one maintain one\u2019s composure; how can one see what is\ncoming next?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ve all experienced\nthat\u2014Don\u2019t mess up. Don\u2019t mess up. Don\u2019t forget, we say to ourselves\u2014and what\nhappens? We do exactly what we were trying not to do!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

SEEK WISDOM<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wisdom is a sense of\nthe big picture, the accumulation of experience and the ability to rise above\nthe biases, the traps that catch lazier thinkers.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Put yourself in tough\nsituations. Accept challenges. Familiarize yourself with the unfamiliar.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

FIND CONFIDENCE,\nAVOID EGO<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Confident people know\nwhat matters. They know when to ignore other people\u2019s opinions. They don\u2019t\nboast or lie to get ahead (and then struggle to deliver).<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Confidence is the\nfreedom to set your own standards and unshackle yourself from the need to prove\nyourself.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Don\u2019t feed\ninsecurity. Don\u2019t feed delusions of grandeur. Both are obstacles to stillness.\nBe confident. You\u2019ve earned it.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

LET GO<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Set thy heart upon\nthy work, but never on its reward. Work not for the reward; but never cease to\ndo thy work.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What we need in life,\nin the arts, in sports, is to loosen up, to become flexible, to get to a place\nwhere there is nothing in our way\u2014including our own obsession with certain\noutcomes.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ll get the\nstillness we need if we focus on the individual steps, if we embrace the\nprocess, and give up chasing.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ll think better if\nwe aren\u2019t thinking so hard.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

CHOOSE VIRTUE<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The essence of\ngreatness is the perception that virtue is enough.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Virtue, the Stoics\nbelieved, was the highest good\u2014the summum bonum\u2014and should be the principle\nbehind all our actions.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Virtue is not\nholiness, but rather moral and civic excellence in the course of daily life.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When we\u2019re going into\na tough assignment, we can say to ourselves over and over again, \u201cStrength and\ncourage.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Virtue, on the other\nhand, as crazy as it might seem, is a far more attainable and sustainable way\nto succeed.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Give more. Give what you didn\u2019t get. Love more. Drop the\nold story. Try it, if you can.<\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

ENOUGH<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen you realize\nthere is nothing lacking,\u201d Lao Tzu says, \u201cthe whole world belongs to you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you believe there\nis ever some point where you will feel like you\u2019ve \u201cmade it,\u201d when you\u2019ll finally\nbe good, you are in for an unpleasant surprise.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

You will never feel\nokay by way of external accomplishments. Enough comes from the inside.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

ACCEPT A HIGHER POWER<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because Step 2 isn\u2019t\nreally about God. It\u2019s about surrender. It\u2019s about faith.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

You have to believe\nin something. You just have to. Or else everything is empty and cold.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s not that we need\nto believe that God is great, only that God is greater than us.<\/em><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

ENTER RELATIONSHIPS<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Being close to and\nconnecting with other people challenges every facet of our soul.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We have to be active\nfor the stillness to have any meaning.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

THE DOMAIN OF THE\nBODY<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Churchill\u2019s best\nbiographers, would write, \u201cThe balance he maintained between flat-out work and\ncreative and restorative leisure is worth study by anyone holding a top\nposition.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEvery night,\u201d he\nsaid, \u201cI try myself by court martial to see if I have done anything effective\nduring the day. I don\u2019t mean just pawing the ground\u2014anyone can go through the\nmotions\u2014but something really effective.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Epicurus once said\nthat the wise will accomplish three things in their life: leave written works\nbehind them, be financially prudent and provide for the future, and cherish\ncountry living.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

SAY NO<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe advantages of\nnonaction. Few in the world attain these.\u201d \u2014THE DAODEJING<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNo, because if I\nsaid yes to you, I\u2019d have to say yes to everyone.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When we know what to\nsay no to, we can say yes to the things that matter.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

TAKE A WALK<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Life is a path, he\nliked to say, we have to walk it. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Get lost. Be\nunreachable. Go slowly. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

BUILD A ROUTINE<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The greats know that\ncomplete freedom is a nightmare. They know that order is a prerequisite of\nexcellence and that in an unpredictable world, good habits are a safe haven of\ncertainty. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Discipline, then, is\nhow we maintain that freedom. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

GET RID OF YOUR STUFF<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor property is\npoverty and fear; only to have possessed something and to have let go of it\nmeans carefree ownership.\u201d \u2013 Rainer Maria Rilke<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf a man can reduce\nhis needs to zero,\u201d he said, \u201che is truly free: there is nothing that can be\ntaken from him and nothing anyone can do to hurt him\u201d (Seneca)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

SEEK SOLITUDE<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s difficult to\nunderstand yourself if you are never by yourself.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

BE A HUMAN BEING<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Good decisions are\nnot made by those who are running on empty. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

GO TO SLEEP<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

FIND A HOBBY<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leisure is not the\nabsence of activity, it is activity. What is absent is external justification \u2013\nyou can\u2019t do leisure for pay, you can\u2019t do it to impress people. You have to do\nit for you. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leisure can be\nanything. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When we take\nsomething relaxing and turn it into a compulsion, it\u2019s not leisure, because we\u2019re\nno longer choosing it. There is no stillness in that. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We must be\ndisciplined about our discipline and moderate in our moderation.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

BEWARE ESCAPISM<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

ACT BRAVELY<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTo see people who\nwill notice a need in the world and do something about it\u2026Those are my heroes.\u201d\n\u2013 Fred Rogers<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Action is what\nmatters.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

ON TO THE FINAL ACT<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The prognosis is\nterminal for each and every person and has been from the moment we were born.\nOur heart beats without fail for an uncertain amount of time, and then one day,\nsuddenly, it is still. <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“To be steady while the world spins around you. To act without frenzy. To hear only what needs to be heard. To possess quietude – exterior and interior – on command.” I finished this book in late February and the irony of its timing was not lost on me. It provides a clear insight into […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":340,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stephentully.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/339"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stephentully.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stephentully.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stephentully.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stephentully.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=339"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/stephentully.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/339\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":343,"href":"https:\/\/stephentully.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/339\/revisions\/343"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stephentully.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/340"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stephentully.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=339"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stephentully.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=339"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stephentully.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=339"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}