This Is How The Weak Beat The Strong | Ask Daily Stoic

0:05Welcome to the Daily Stoic Podcast, where each day we bring you a Stoic inspired meditation designed to help you find strength and insight and wisdom into everyday life. Each one of these episodes is based on the 2 ,000-year-old philosophy that has guided some of history's greatest men and women to help you learn from them, to follow in their example, and to start your day off with a little dose of courage and discipline and justice and wisdom. For more, visit dailystoic.com.

0:56This is how the weak beat the strong. You may not have a lot of money or powerful connections or even superior genetics. Does this mean you are at a disadvantage? That you're screwed? Maybe that you're at a disadvantage. Yes. Does it mean you're screwed? No. Because there is a great leveler out there. The famous Princeton basketball coach Pete Carroll would tell his young athletes that his father came from a province in Spain and worked for years in the open hearth at Bethlehem Steel Company. Every day before he left for work, Carroll would say he would remind my sister and I how important it was to be smart.

1:37In this life, he would say, the big strong guys are always taking from the smaller, weaker guys. But, he said, the smart take from the strong. It's simple fatherly wisdom. You've got to use your brain. It is the secret weapon of underdogs everywhere, always available and always free. Think of David deciding to use his sling in the fight against Goliath. Think of the Stoic opposition, outmatched and outgunned by the many tyrants of their time, and yet they managed to get inside the heads of these tyrants. They managed to win in the long battle. History. Think of the wealthiest and most powerful people of antiquity sitting at the feet of Epictetus, a former slave.

2:24Think of Stockdale and the Hanoi Hilton getting into long debates with his captors about Marxism and winning. Life is a thinking person's game. If you want to beat the strong, the rich, and the powerful, get smart. The greatest educational fallacy, Stockdale would say, is that you can get it without stress. The road to wisdom, to living of the philosophical life, is not an easy one. It takes work. That's my argument in the new book. Wisdom takes work. It is the work of our life. And if you want to know how to do that work better, if you want to learn from some of the smartest people who have ever lived, I would love for you to pre-order it.

3:04The book is out on October 21st, but you can pre-order signed and numbered first editions. You can actually get a special edition set of all four books in the series, Courage, Discipline, Just Wisdom. And it would mean so much to me if you could pre-order it. We only did 1 ,500 of those. They're almost sold out. You can grab those, that collector set, at dailystoic.com slash stoicvirtues. I'll link to that in today's show notes as well. And I'd really appreciate it. Enjoy and keep doing the work, folks.

3:44we just took our kids to an outdoor performance the nutcracker they had a snow cone and then uh they went insane in the car ride home and one of the things i try to remind myself when that's happening is that i don't control my kids behavior especially when they're too far gone like that but I do control how I respond, right? That's stoicism, but it's also what Dr. Becky talks about. Dr. Becky is a clinical psychologist and a bestselling author, and she founded Good Inside, which is there to give parents practical, actionable tools for handling those everyday challenges with confidence. My wife introduced me to Dr.

4:21Becky's books. I love them. I've recommended them a million times. I've had her on the podcast. And as it happens, Dr. Becky is hosting two live Q &A events for good inside members. I am one of them. She signed me up for it about a year and a half ago. I've loved it ever since. On December 1st, you can join Dr. Becky for her How Not to Raise Assholes event, which is about avoiding entitlement and raising kind, empathetic kids. And on December 15th, she's hosting her How Not to Lose It Over the Holidays event, which I'm sure we could all use. As I said, I'm a big fan of Dr. Becky. She's been a great influence for me as a parent and just as a human being.

5:03And Daily Stoic listeners can join for 15 % off with code STOIC15. You just got to head over to goodinside.com to catch the events. Human, your body has a performance superhighway. 60 ,000 miles of blood vessels that deliver oxygen and nutrients to every cell. This, of course, is your cardiovascular system. It's the foundational system that powers everything we do. Both elite athletes and longevity experts invest directly in the cardiovascular system because supporting healthy blood flow is critical for energy, recovery, mental clarity, and overall performance. That's where human comes in. That's human with two ends.

5:45They started out of research at the University of Texas, near where I live, and have 15 years of experience making award-winning supplements for nitric oxide production and healthy blood flow, now used by over 160 pro and college sports teams. Human Cardiovascular Health Daily is a plant-based and made from clinically studied ingredients like grapeseed and seed kelp extract. It supports nitric oxide production for healthy blood flow and energy while also supporting blood pressure and helping support the delicate interlining of your blood vessels. Just two capsules each morning will power energy and recovery while also playing the long game by supporting long-term vascular health and healthy aging.

6:24Human has an exclusive offer for our listeners. You can visit human.com slash stoic for an extra 15 % off your first purchase. That's enter code S-T-O-I-C stoic at checkout. That's human with two N's dot com slash stoic for an extra 15 % off with code stoic at checkout.

6:46Hey, it's Ryan. Welcome to another episode of the Daily Stoic Podcast. So my sort of routine when I do talks is I usually end up getting there the night before, go for a run in the morning before the talk, and then I go down and I do my thing. It's not always that way. Back in June, it was the same day talk. So I flew to Virginia Beach, had maybe like an hour and a half to run, grab something to eat, change, go down and do the talk. So I ran along the boardwalk there in Virginia Beach, somewhere I'd never been. And then I gave a talk to a group you wouldn't think would be an audience for an obscure school of ancient philosophy, but it was.

7:25It was the International Right-of-Way Association's annual conference. I guess running along a boardwalk is fitting. It was a beautiful, you know, sort of public work that the kinds of engineers and architects and administrators at something like the International Right-of-Ways Association would be involved in. So I did a big talked to the group. There was about a thousand people. Then afterwards, we did sort of a 30-minute meet and greet Q &A session. Sometimes at these talks, it's kind of like a little, it's like a post-game conference. So anyways, I did that. And that's what I wanted to bring you today.

8:01This is the folks at the International Right-of-Way Association asking me some questions afterwards. And hopefully these are matched with some of your questions. And I thought it was really interesting. So thanks to them for having me out. And then I'm going to go give a talk now in a few minutes downstairs in my hotel. Let's get into it.

8:26Somebody did ask me like, oh, you're going to meet Brian Holiday. You're like, what are you going to ask him? And I will tell you that my one question is, can you come live with me for six years or I can ask you a thousand questions? Because there is no one question. Okay. So if somebody else doesn't want, have at it. But thank you again, and thank you, Rodney. Sure. Thank you. Awesome. So ask the question. I don't know what to say. I'm like, we've read a bunch of your books. And I'll say that we say to each other all the time when something happens, that's pretty good. Hey, obstacles away. We remind each other constantly of that.

8:57Sure. And you're in Austin? Yes. Okay, I live in Fort Worth. Oh, okay. Cool. Yeah, I saw the vast drop stuff. I'm like, oh, I know all this stuff. Yeah, yeah, yeah. My question is, I started with obstacles away and went through the list, and then you came out with conspiracy. Where did you get that idea from? Yeah, I mean, kind of similar to the idea on The Oscars Way. Someone was sort of telling me about this crazy story. It's about this billionaire who was trying to destroy a media outlet. And it was very different than all my other books. And so it seemed like it would be a challenge to do, which it was.

9:34I mean, it would be like 20 ,000 people. A lot of research. Yeah. And so it's like, I'd love to just try something very different. and even if it didn't work, I would just be better for having tried to do it in a different way. In fact, it's actually funny, there's a line in Meditations Remarks to us that's talking about trying to hold the reins of his horse with his non-dominant hand. Like, he's just trying to do it in a way that he doesn't normally do it. And that was kind of how that came about, is just I loved reading those kind of books. Yeah. And I wanted to see if I could write one. And so, I mean, the books - Thank you.

10:10I'm very proud of it for the reasons that I know I got better for having done it. And then, yeah. So I don't know if I'll do another one. It's kind of like when Malcolm Gladwell came out with the Bomber Mafia. It's like, this isn't really the same what he normally does. And I think he's really messed with the line between book and audio book and radio. He's kind of messing with the medium, which I think because at some point you should be kind of pushing the boundaries of what you do, otherwise you're just doing the same thing over and over again. Conspiracy is very different, I don't know if y 'all have read it, that the obstacle is the way still this is the key and ego is the enemy.

10:51It's about Hulk Hogan, right? Yeah. And how this billionaire decided to bring Gawker to its knees, and it involved Hulk Hogan and things we won't talk about in mixed company. It was fascinating. It was. It was very well written. How did you get in the conversation with it? Yeah, I mean, I think, so someone recommended that I read the Stoics, and I did. And I think what was so striking, which I think is what happens whenever you read something great, is you're like, I didn't know this was out there, you know? And I think when you're reading, you know, books from 2 ,000 years ago, but it feels like it could be written about, like, the moment you're in right now, that's, like, a really magical thing.

11:34And I think what's always been striking to me about this is, yeah, sometimes they mention certain things. We go, OK, that's very much a product of a time and a place. But the rest of it feels like it could be just as much about the digital age. And that just sort of the timelessness of, yeah, I think that's what really struck me. Yeah, it's, you know, they call philosophy the great conversation. And I think that's what it is. It's these ideas from thousands of years ago plus our perspective now. and even though those texts stay the same, what we're looking for in them or the problems we're dealing with now, we find new ways of interpreting and reinterpreting.

12:13I've always loved writing. So you gave me this talk about being true to your word and that story about somebody becoming taken captive. Oh yeah, Regulus? Yes, yeah, and I love that story. So you were just like, can you tell me? There's a Roman general who's caught prisoner and then he's sent back to negotiate peace on a diplomatic mission. But they make him promise that if it fails, he'll come back. And so he goes and he says, like, hey, I don't think you should make peace. I think they're losing. And so the Romans thank you for the advice, whatever. He goes back because he's like, I gave my word that I would come back.

12:53And they torture him to death. And his point, it doesn't matter. You give your word when you want to follow through. You've got to follow through even when you don't want to. And so it's sort of a famous story about, like, that the Romans keep their word. I just thought, and that was why I thought he would be good for our industry, like how important that is for us. Promise something you can't deliver or go back on your word? Well, yeah, there's also this lie, like, you know, is it, he's not legally obligated to come back. You know, it's like a negotiation with the enemy. But he's like, no, I said I would do it, so I'm going to do it.

13:29I mean, I think it's a fascinating sort of ethical quandary too. Like, what do you owe? What does he actually need to? But his point was, you've got to be able to trust. If a Roman says something in a negotiation, can they trust it? And you just realize the whole even like the international system is set up on these different precedents and norms. And then it's easy in one individual instance to be like, well, it's bad for me, so I'm not going to follow it. But then that creates sort of a wicked feedback loop. So yeah, that's what that story is about. Well, thank you again. Of course. I'm just going to add something like a journal.

14:06That is definitely one thing that a lot of people do that I don't do. So how do you use that? What do you find is your inhibits you from doing it? Just too busy or you don't like it or you don't know? Not a priority or yeah, just don't know, I guess, maybe what to. Well, I think sometimes people overthink it. They're like, do I have to write everything I did today or do I have to like do your diary and spill your you know it's like I tend to think it's like whatever works for you is what you should do I like to there's a bunch of different journals that have prompts that are a nice way to get sort of build a habit because there's like a question you're answering and then you're like oh that's all I'm doing like I have one journal that I like that's it's called the one line a day journal and it has one line and five spots and you keep it for five years so you write one One thing, I usually write something about the day that just happened.

15:00But like, so the first year is cool, second year is cool, third year is really cool, fourth and fifth years. You're like, oh, here's where I was on June 1st, 2024, 23, 22, 21. And so I would, yeah. Oh, OK. So you get one sentence. One sentence, but all on one page for that date. Yeah. So I would just, at this point, they're no longer just like, oh, here's a blank journal. Fill it up. There's lots of different kinds. That's sort of technology that's been developed, if you think about it that way. But journaling is one of those things, I think, that at some future point, you're going to wish you had done.

15:38And so I would just find some way to do it. And I think if you're like, I've got to do it every day for this long, then you're making it a chore. It should just be like, when I feel like it, I'd spend some time putting some thoughts down on paper. not so much for me right now, but for future me, or for who I am after I do it. Like, to me, I don't usually go back through my journals other than, like, the one line a day, because you're looking, you're seeing it each day for five years. But it's more like when I get it down on the page, then it's not in here. Yeah, that is why. That's the biggest benefit I find from it.

16:12And a lot of times, I would get in bed and not, and then, like, I got to get up. I got to get it out. It calms you down. And you're like, you put it down and you're like, that feels pretty ridiculous now that I've written it. Right. You know what I mean? Or like I'm, by writing it down, I don't have to say it to this person.

16:35Hey, it's Ryan. Thank you for listening to the Daily Stoic podcast. I just wanted to say we so appreciate it. We love serving you. It's amazing to us that over 30 million people have downloaded these episodes in the couple of years we've been doing it. It's an honor. Please spread the word, tell people about it. And this isn't to sell anything. I just wanted to say thank you.

17:05Look, ads are annoying. They are to be avoided, if at all possible. I understand as a content creator, why they need to exist. That's why I don't begrudge them when they appear on the shows that I listen to. But again, as a person who has to pay a podcast producer and has to pay for equipment and for the studio and the building that the studio is in, it's a lot to keep something like The Daily Stoic going. So if you want to support a show but not listen to ads, well, We have partnered with Supercast to bring you a ad-free version of Daily Stoic. We're calling it Daily Stoic Premium. And with Premium, you can listen to every episode of the Daily Stoic podcast completely ad-free.

17:52No interruptions, just the ideas, just the messages, just the conversations you came here for. And you can also get early access to episodes before they're available to the public. And we're going to have a bunch of exclusive bonus content and extended interviews in there. just for Daily Stoic Premium members as well. If you want to remove distractions, go deeper into stoicism and support the work we do here. Well, it takes less than a minute to sign up for Daily Stoic Premium, and we are offering a limited time discount of 20 % off your first year. Just go to dailystoic.com slash premium to sign up right now or click the link in the show descriptions to make those ads go away.