A Way of Life: An Address to Yale Students, Sunday Evening, April 20,1913

by William Osler

By William Osler. With a Foreword by John P. McGovern. "Ours is a world that has multiplied in complexity beyond anything dreamed in Osler's day. Tension and anxiety, uncertainty and stress are the inevitable result of our civilizations' rapid advance, mental and emotional ills its hallmarks . . . contemporary man desperately needs to learn the lesson of 'sufficient unto the day.' A Way of Life offers an antidote, in the form of a life style. But is the goal attainable? Osler's own life, marked by brilliant achievement in many spheres, testifies to the efficacy of sound habits of work and discipline, established early and followed strictly within 'daytight compartments’."—From the Foreword by John P. McGovern.

Genres: Philosophy, Medicine, Nonfiction, Self Help

54 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1921

About the author

Sir William Osler, 1st Baronet, was a Canadian physician and one of the four founding professors of Johns Hopkins Hospital.

Reviews

[Kevin Keating · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this little book off my mom's bookcase a long time ago. Full of lots of advice on how to live one day at a time, and to mind your health. Relax and chill. Be good. That sort of stuff. It was an uplifting read which I will probably give to my eldest so she can guiltily keep it on her shelf for years and eventually read.

[John Stinebaugh · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good brief reminder on the steps to excellence.

[Evie · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are some bits of advice and wording that are antiquated, such as references to a mystic East and an exclusive concentration on men's roles in academia and the larger world, but all in all, this speech contains very sound advice. My favorite section addressed the college student's need for constant hurry, something which only breeds anxiety. Now we see this as almost asinine: our world requires the ability to provide instant satisfaction and to hurry. But, especially in these modern times, Osler's call for moderation and thoroughness ring true.

I picked this up at a book sale, all faded and scuffed. I would have loved to have been there myself.

[Douglass Morrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sir William Osler, titular Father of modern medicine, proposed that everyone has a philosophy of Life, whether they consider it, or choose to enunciate it through oral or written means. Osler offered the Yale Class of 1913 his philosophy in 'A Way of Life An Address to Yale Students'. He expressed the hope that ‘it might be of help’.
Dr. Osler told students to ‘Live in day-tight compartments’, and develop this approach as a Habit. It was his view that persistence and effort triumph over gifts of genetics and chance, in the long run.
• Osler proposed to alter the Biblical injunction, ‘Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof’, to ‘Sufficient unto the day is the goodness therein’ - modifying his ‘day-tight compartments’ from half-empty (negative and remorseful) to half-full (positive and optimistic).
• He advised graduates of another daily habit – ‘Every night undress yourself of your sins or failings (and forgive yourself and plan to do better) so that you can awake a free (of guilt) man’.
• Avoid hurry and tension (that Osler called the cause of ‘waste of energy, mental distress, and nervous worries’) by spending less time in a more concentrated fashion. His second pearl (besides concentration or focus) was persistence over time, in the pursuit of any goal.
• The good doctor advised a healthy lifestyle (diet, sleep, and exercise) including warnings against alcohol consumption (Bacchus) and smoking (Lady Nicotine).
Osler’s presentation was succinct and filled with quotes from poets, authors, and inspiring figures such as Aristotle, John Bunyan’s 'Pilgrim’s Progress', Walt Whitman’s 'Leaves of Grass', Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s 'A Psalm of Life', and Oliver Wendell Homes’ 'The Chambered Nautilus'.
'A Way of Life' is terse, witty, and helpful – so long as it is taken in the spirit Osler prescribed.

[Yufei Ge · Rating 4 out of 5]

A gift from a beloved mentor - Dr.Arati Karnik

This is a speech so it's pretty short - 30 pages or so.

Osler's a figurehead in medicine and this is my first time really reading anything from him outside of a few famous quotes.

Not quite the message I was expecting, but somehow I feel that adds to the profundity even more.

I won't spoil it but it's a very humble message coming from someone who is so great.

[Richard Wardrop · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everyone should read this. It’s amazing. This is the first time to have actually read this but have been aquatinted with many quotes from this for some time. I will ready and study this many more times I am sure.

[Ryan Bry · Rating 5 out of 5]

An appreciated vision on how to become more careful. With a focus that shouldn't be lost in the world as we live it today. I will always be thankful I read this in the ward with you, Ken. Thanks for letting me borrow it.

[Sheri Elsasser · Rating 5 out of 5]

William Osler delivered this address to Yale students in 1913. It was republished in 1937. It’s about living well and how to live for today. Leave the past in the past. Relevant even today. Definitely recommend.

[Meg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Life shall be lived every moment, every hour of the day.
3-4 hours of devoted focus will make students thrive.

[Robert A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found the information in this book still relevant in 2019

[Maha Saliba · Rating 3 out of 5]

chemical links,,an all of emotions ,,biorythmic curves,,biological time,,deep souls,,one in all and all in one ,,ill without desease,, medicines without diagnosis,,that` s me that`s what medical research is still look to solve it...

[Erika · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best commencement speech, and one to which I actually paid attention!

[David Weller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Live life on a day-to-day basis. Osler uses the Christian principle of living in the now, and not in the past or the future. Concentrate for today.

[Ida Aasebøstøl · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 point something. Day tight compartments, sir yes sir.

[Nick Yee · Rating 5 out of 5]

A straight forward address that transcends medicine.