“Difficulty shows what men are. Therefore when a difficulty falls upon you, remember that God, like a trainer of wrestlers, has matched you with a rough young man. Why? So that you may become an Olympic conqueror; but it is not accomplished without sweat.”

― Epictetus, Discourses, Books 1-2

The incredible power of perception. It defines everything. How you see life, will determine how you live it.

If you see life through the eyes of the warrior, everything you’ll see will be missions and objectives, if you see life through the eyes of an artist, you’ll see art and beauty even in the darkest feelings and places.

In terms of practicality, life is a conglomeration of problems to be solved. There are easy problems and there are hard problems. With practice, you can get better and capable of resolving life’s most complex and difficult problems.

Not just career-wise, but also personal wise. Like losing someone you love, this is a personal problem, and a really hard one indeed. In this type of circumstances the problem must be defined and solved by yourself, and you must find the lesson in it. Death reminds us of the truly important things in life.

Like a fire, problems and challenges work as wood. The bigger the logs, when thrown to the fire, the harder they are to begin burning, but after they start to burn, the fire becomes even mightier.

There is a core decision you need to make to ignite the fire ever stronger.

The decision

“For Fate/ The willing leads, the unwilling drags along.”― Seneca, Letters from a Stoic

The difference between being able to use problems and challenges as fuel for your excellence or fuel for failure is your willingness to do so.

Perception determines everything. The man who willingly chooses to address every situation in his life will see opportunities and new ideas where other men are blind. Men are willfully blind or capable.

If you choose to face life head on, you will discover that it is not so much “facing life” but rather “working” with life. Fate leads the willing and drags the unwilling.

It’s your choice.

Choose wisely.

Subscribe here

Become our Patreon and enjoy the patron only benefits! You can find more on our Patreon page. Thanks a lot for reading and I hope stoicism makes your life better, I’m sure it will.

Want to further your knowledge? Complement your reading with Miserably happy.