Stoicism And 5 Stoic Exercises To Get You Started

Stoicism Is A Way Of Thinking That Increases Pleasant Emotions, Decreases Bad Emotions, And Aids People In Developing Their Moral Qualities

Stoicism’s goal is to enable individuals to lead their most extraordinary lives.

It’s a way of living that increases pleasant feelings, decreases terrible emotions, and aids people in developing their moral qualities.

Stoicism offers a plan for living well at every time, in any circumstance, and at any stage of life. Providing valuable tips to obtain more of what is worth reminds individuals of what is vital.

Stoicism was founded to be transparent, practical, and helpful. It’s unnecessary to spend hours a day in meditation or master a completely new philosophical vocabulary to practice stoicism. Instead, it provides a quick, practical, and beneficial means of achieving peace of mind and strengthening one’s character.

Exercise 1 of the Stoics is Early Morning Reflection.

This one is simple to understand; a rocket scientist is not required. It would help if you thought things over in the morning. 

First, give thanks that you have woken up; for many individuals today, this is not an option.

Next, make a strategy for how you will practice your virtues and abstain from your vices. Consider how you can apply a specific philosophical principle or a personal quality you wish to develop to your following day.

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Thirdly, remind yourself that your thoughts and deeds are the only things under your control. Everything else is out of your control.

Stoic Activity 2: An Overview

This activity is meant to remind you how insignificant you indeed are and how unimportant most things are. To give you a feeling of the broader picture, in other words. Simple enough—you try to relate to the rest of the world and beyond by using your imagination.

There are two approaches you may take here:

Utilize a meditation guide.

Make it on your own. This approach is my favourite because it can be used anywhere without requiring special tools. If you’re lucky enough to live near the coast, I suggest visiting a park or the beach for some downtime. Feel free to begin at a far-off region of the cosmos, at an extremely great distance. Watch everything that happens, from first kisses to battles, discoveries, education, creative masterpieces, and everything else you might think of. Watch without passing judgment. Now consider how you fit into this whole picture. Be aware that many things you feel are vital are just marginally so. Recognize that you are not particularly significant.

Exercise 3 for stoics is cultivating philosophy.

Let’s start by defining philanthropy as the desire to advance the benefit of others.

Contrary to popular belief, there are other ways besides money to become a philanthropist. Anyone may actually become a philanthropist; all it takes is the appropriate attitude toward other people.

The issue is that, like a Russian doll, we frequently live as though we are encased in a succession of spheres, one within the other. Each sphere stands for a growing separation from our actual selves.

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Therefore, how can we foster philanthropy? To strive to encircle everyone more closely should be our aim. Therefore, see your family as an extension of yourself, your neighbours as family members, and finally, consider all people to be countrymen and women.

This indeed calls for a significant change in perspective and a lot of work, but it does offer some benefits:

You avoid being unduly connected to any one person, which makes you less vulnerable in the event of their loss of friendship or passing.

Having more friends implies being exposed to more cultures and points of view. This is an outstanding chance to learn.

Activity 4 Of The Stoics: The Stripping Method

This exercise is based on the notion that every situation has numerous levels, like an onion. Each layer symbolizes a component of the case we bring to it, not the circumstance itself. We can only operate by a suitable ethical framework by considering the fundamental concerns without adding the comparatively trivial layers we do. Stop weighing your reputation or any potential personal benefit into decision-making when deciding what to do in a particular circumstance. Consider the following inquiries for yourself:

What benefit does this circumstance provide for everyone? You might be shocked by how frequently “none” is chosen as the response.

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What traits are needed in this circumstance? If you already possess these traits, that’s excellent; if not, take this opportunity to learn them.

Many of us have trouble deciding what we want to accomplish with our life as we become older. Finding something worthwhile and gratifying to strive for is the primary concern if we were to boil this subject down to its bare essentials. Initially, it’s crucial to ignore issues with money or other people’s expectations of what you should do. Otherwise, you risk leading a life different from who you really are.

Exercise 5 of the Stoics is Physical Self-Control Training.

This workout involves purposely going without items one appreciates and going through physical challenges. This may be considered a practical use of negative visualization in certain aspects.

Physical self-control training has two objectives: first, it helps us prepare in case we genuinely experience physical adversity or lose part or all of our possessions.

Should discipline ourselves to not yearn for things that are not under our control. Keep in mind that we only have control over our ideas and actions.

Remember that everything in life should be held upon loosely, like sand. Sand must not be held tightly to prevent it from slipping from your hands.

Here are a few instances of physical self-control exercises:

Consuming only water for a predetermined amount of time.

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without wearing a jacket when going outside in the cold.

Consider everything temporary, in my opinion. One day, you, your possessions, and everyone you know will vanish. Imagine that everything is a loan. Say, “I have given it back,” rather than “I have lost it.”

Overall 

I sincerely hope you liked reading about these exercises and that you will utilize them wisely going forward. Remember that you don’t have to be a Stoic to gain from these exercises.

You should know that several techniques above may be used in tandem.

Regardless of your outlook on life, all these exercises have one thing in common: they force you to take a long, hard look at how you live your life, which is always a good thing.