Philosophy talks about big ideas. The good life. Virtue. Happiness. But talking about aspirations isn’t enough. You need mechanisms—concrete practices that actually change behavior.
Caleb examines why serious thinkers focus on mechanisms over aspirations. Discussions about mechanisms force action and generate information. Discussions about aspirations turn into complaints about the world.
The Stoics were good at this. They didn’t just discuss anger. Seneca and Marcus Aurelius gave specific advice about becoming less angry. They broke virtue down into smaller parts: self-control becomes orderliness, propriety, modesty, self-mastery. Each breakdown gets more specific and decision-relevant.
But you can’t ignore aspiration entirely. You need both the effective cause (what brings about change) and the final cause (where you’re going). Training and performance. The concrete and the universal. The Stoic sage sees and acts with both the whole and the part in mind.
Philosophy is tricky because the problems are abstract. But that’s exactly why you need to speak at the right level of detail. Mechanisms for a purpose. Aspirations to set the target. Concrete practice to get there.
I ranked 10 Stoic exercises after 10 Years of practice—Here's what actually works.
I first started taking Stoicism seriously in 2015, when I read Epictetus for the first time and it blew me away. This was philosophy made useful and practical. Something with direct implications for how you live. Something that challenged what I believed, and pushed me to be better.
Stoic Courage (Episode 133)
The Stoics promoted the four cardinal virtues: courage, moderation, justice, and wisdom. In this episode, we talk about Stoic courage. Caleb and Michael discuss what it is and how the Stoics broke it down into different subdisciplines.
Stoic Practical Wisdom and Prudence (Episode 140)
The ancient Stoic, Arius Didymus, provided a framework for practical wisdom and prudence. It’s still applicable today.
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Thanks to Michael Levy for graciously letting us use his music in the conversations:
