A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy

by William B. Irvine

your life is the medium on which you practice the art of living.

IT IS ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT, I think, for us to internalize our goals if we are in a profession in which “external failure” is commonplace.

A person who periodically experiences minor discomforts will grow confident that he can withstand major discomforts as well, so the prospect of experiencing such discomforts at some future time will not, at present, be a source of anxiety for him.

Musonius would argue, to the contrary, that someone who tries to avoid all discomfort is less likely to be comfortable than someone who periodically embraces discomfort. The latter individual is likely to have a much wider “comfort zone” than the former and will therefore feel comfortable under circumstances that would cause the former individual considerable distress.