This Is Why We Do It

0:00I'm recording this on a Monday, and Monday is our grocery store day in our family. I usually pick my kids up from school and we go over to Whole Foods, get all our groceries for the week. Although here very shortly, we're going to go over there to get our Thanksgiving turkey because they've got a bunch of great options. Turkeys start at$149 a pound if you have Prime with organic birds at$299 a pound. And they only carry no antibiotic ever turkeys that will bring quality to your table at a great price. Whole Foods has great everyday prices on all your Thanksgiving essentials, whether you celebrate with a massive family or just a few close friends.

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1:19Welcome to the Daily Stoic Podcast, where each day we bring you a passage of ancient wisdom designed to help you find strength, insight, and wisdom in everyday life. Each one of these passages is based on the 2 ,000-year-old philosophy that has guided some of history's greatest men and women. For more, you can visit us at dailysteak.com.

1:44Thanks to Toyota Trucks for sponsoring this episode. When I bought my ranch in 2015 out here in Bastro County, I drove my car about halfway down the dirt road that we live on, thought this isn't going to work, stopped, parked it, walked the rest of the way home, borrowed my wife's car, drove in Austin and bought a truck. What I bought was a Toyota Tacoma. And this truck wasn't just transportation getting me to and from my house. It unlocked a whole different style of living for us, not just on the ranch, but in our little Texas towns. There were places I could go now that I couldn't go before, especially out here in the piney forests, through the fields, and on the unpaved roads like the one that I lived in.

2:29We got to go deep into the hill country's wild beauty. We've driven all the way out to East Texas. We've driven across the country. And by we, I mean not just my wife, but both my kids who I drove home from the hospital in that truck. Toyota trucks are built for those who understand that the best adventures happen when you're willing to veer off course, because you never know when you'll end up on a Toyota adventure detour. And of course, this is stoicism, too, because every detour, every obstacle is an opportunity. But it's helpful if you can handle the difficulty inherent in that. If you've got the resilience and the right companion to make it wherever the road takes you.

3:09Discover your uncharted territory. Learn more at toyota.com slash trucks slash adventure dash detours. It's no fun not to be recognized, to not get credit. We talked about this recently with regards to Marcus Aurelius. He was so unique, so self-disciplined, so unlike nearly every other ruler who's ever had absolute power. But at that time and since, how many people fully credit him for this? No one was throwing him a parade for not being as bad as he could have been. Still, it can sting, can it? Why don't people notice how hard we're working, what an effort it is, how much easier it would be to be worse or to do less?

3:50It's like that scene in Mad Men where Peggy is disappointed, if not justifiably angry that her contributions aren't credited. It's Don Draper, after all, who gets the Clio when their ad campaign is recognized. Here's the scene. It's worth listening to. That's the way it works. There are no credits on commercials. You got the Clio. It's your job. I give you money, you give me ideas. You never say thank you. That's what the money is for. That's what the money is for. In reality, sometimes the money isn't there either. Certainly a school teacher or stay-at-home parent isn't going to feel rightly compensated for all their sacrifice and dedication.

4:30The same goes for us, people who don't cheat to get ahead, people who try to do what's right, people who try to think about stuff that's bigger than us, where's our reward? The Stoics would say that doing the thing is the reward. When Marcus Reelus writes about not asking for the third thing, this is what he's talking about. And there's a bunch of that in the Justice book. When you've done well and another has benefited by it, he writes, why like a fool do you look for a third thing on top? Credit for the good deed or a favor in return. He's saying that the real value comes from the act, not the outcome.

5:05When we do good, we don't need to ask for more because practicing virtue is its own profound return. In every choice, in every sacrifice, we are shaping who we are through this practice. And that's the reward enough. You might have seen me, sometimes I wear a necklace that has the four virtues on the front. And on the back, it has this Latin expression, acta non verba. Translates like words, not deeds. And it's a reminder that virtue is the way to a rewarding and a fulfilling life, not talking about it and not hearing words back in routine. Marx really said that there was nothing better than courage and discipline and justice and wisdom, and that includes being recognized for those things.

5:46They are their own rewards. That's why I have the Four Virtues tattooed on my arm. It's why we made this really cool pendant for Daily Stoic, you should check it out. I'll link to it in today's show notes. You've seen different people wear them over the years. I think Patrick Dempsey was wearing one on the Daily Stoic podcast. It's one of the coolest things that we make, and you can check that out in today's show notes.

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