"In short, know this: Human lives are brief and trivial."
– Marcus Aurelius

Stoicism is all the rage these days. I know this because while having coffee with a self-admitted non-reader colleague, he brings up his new favorite book, "The Daily Stoic," by Ryan Holiday. If you're not familiar with the author you might question the involuntary eye roll I give my friend.
My coffee date catches my eye-roll and jumps on it. "What's wrong with the book?" he asks, leaning in with every halting answer I give. I explain that I don't trust either Stoicism or Ryan Holiday as great guides for living. Holiday will do anything for a buck and the Stoics didn't have much use for others. This doesn't mean, nothing good comes out of Holiday's mouth, or that my friend can't be inspired by Aurelius. My friend defends himself with examples of how the book is changing his life for the better. I suggest he pick up the original "Meditations."
As he presses and gets more heated I say something about for a Stoic his emotions don't seem to be in check and we both have a little release. I apologize for insulting his new favorite book, and he accepts. We move on.
This exchange serves as a reminder that one way to lose momentum is to not have control of our emotions. In the extreme it can limit our ability to get or stay employed, but day to day it can knock us back too. Each time we get frustrated and start asking ourselves When, Who, Why questions pointed at others, the problem-solving part of our brain shuts down a bit. Momentum is slowed.
Emotions aren't bad. They are at the root of what makes things happen. A world driven by logic alone won't move a mountain or shake the trees. You need emotion to stimulate action. However, too much emotion, like too much of anything, isn't useful, and does the opposite, even bringing us to a stop.
So, be Stoic and keep your emotions in check, but not too in check. And if you're picking up a new belief system, get your hands on the source material. It has less to sell.
Good stuff.
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