how to stop overcomplicating life - practical stoicism 101

Summary

In this video, the speaker explores the transformative power of Stoicism, an ancient Greek philosophy emphasizing inner strength and virtue. By sharing personal experiences and insights, the speaker encourages viewers to embrace simplicity, accept life's challenges as lessons, and find peace in self-improvement. The talk also touches on the importance of being present, controlling one's thoughts, and the value of solitude in fostering personal growth.

Takeaways

• 🌟 Stoicism is a philosophy that can simplify life and build inner strength, leading to peace and happiness.
• 📚 The concept of stoicism dates back to ancient Greek times and is not just a trend but a profound way of life.
• 💪 The core of stoicism is mastering oneself, focusing on personal growth, and not comparing oneself to others.
• 🧘‍♀️ Stoicism encourages being strict with oneself and tolerant of others, as per Marcus Aurelius's teachings.
• 🚫 Erasing problems involves recognizing that problems are either solvable or not, and choosing not to stress over the unsolvable.
• 🤔 Simplifying thoughts is key to reducing stress and being present; it's about accepting reality and moving forward.
• 🌱 Living with virtues such as kindness and justice can lead to a well-being life and creating one's own reality.
• 🔄 Redirecting and switching directions is a stoic approach to problems that have no solutions.
• 🧠 It's important to trust in oneself, show up, and not create unnecessary problems by overthinking.
• 🌐 We often overcomplicate our lives by comparing ourselves to others, which can lead to feelings of superiority or inferiority.
• 💔 Accepting one's humanity means feeling emotions without letting them control thoughts and actions, and not avoiding them.

Q & A

What is the main theme of the video script?

The main theme of the video script is the exploration of Stoicism as a way of life, emphasizing personal growth, inner strength, and finding peace and happiness through a Stoic mindset.

What does the speaker suggest is the key to life according to Stoicism?

The key to life according to Stoicism, as suggested by the speaker, is simplicity, trusting your decisions, and accepting situations as they are rather than overcomplicating things.

How does the speaker describe the Stoic approach to problems?

The speaker describes the Stoic approach to problems as recognizing whether there is a solution or not, and if not, redirecting and switching directions instead of dwelling on the problem.

What is the advice given for dealing with emotions in a Stoic way?

The advice given for dealing with emotions in a Stoic way is to feel them without letting them control your thoughts and actions, and to process them rather than avoiding them.

Why does the speaker emphasize the importance of not comparing oneself to others?

The speaker emphasizes the importance of not comparing oneself to others because it leads to unnecessary stress and suffering, and it distracts from personal growth and self-improvement.

What is the significance of the quote from Marcus Aurelius mentioned in the script?

The quote from Marcus Aurelius, 'be strict with yourself and be tolerant with others,' signifies the Stoic principle of personal discipline and compassion towards others.

How does the speaker relate the concept of 'creating your own reality' to Stoicism?

The speaker relates the concept of 'creating your own reality' to Stoicism by stating that our thoughts and attitudes shape our experiences, and by focusing on virtues and accepting life's challenges, we can lead a life of well-being.

What is the role of self-improvement in the Stoic philosophy as presented in the script?

In the Stoic philosophy presented in the script, self-improvement is an ongoing journey and a guide for living life, rather than an identity or a destination.

Why does the speaker mention the example of the Lyft driver?

The speaker mentions the example of the Lyft driver to illustrate how adopting a Stoic mindset can lead to a peaceful and fulfilling life, even in the face of everyday challenges.

What does the speaker mean when they say 'the best revenge is never be the one who hurt you'?

When the speaker says 'the best revenge is never be the one who hurt you,' they mean that one should not stoop to the level of those who have caused harm and instead focus on personal growth and moving forward.

How does the speaker suggest we should view our emotions and feelings?

The speaker suggests that we should view our emotions and feelings as valid and valuable experiences, and that we should not be numb to them or avoid them, but rather feel them and learn from them.

Outlines

00:00

🧘‍♂️ Embracing Stoicism for Personal Growth

The speaker introduces the concept of Stoicism as a way of life that promotes inner strength and peace. They share their personal journey of applying Stoic principles, which has led to better nature, finding beauty in everything, and gratitude for all situations. The speaker emphasizes that Stoicism is not a trend but a profound philosophy dating back to ancient Greek times. They encourage viewers to study it for personal growth, focusing on self-mastery rather than comparing oneself to others. The key message is to be strict with oneself and tolerant of others, a quote attributed to Marcus Aurelius. The speaker also invites viewers to share their experiences and subscribe to the channel for more content on simplifying life and applying Stoic principles.

05:01

🌟 Overcoming Limerence and Self-Compassion

In this paragraph, the speaker discusses the concept of limerence, the idealization of others, and the importance of recognizing one's own value and journey. They stress the idea that everyone is on their own path and that no one is superior or inferior to others. The speaker also touches on the concept of not holding grudges or seeking revenge, as suggested by Marcus Aurelius, and the importance of showing grace and kindness. They share a story about a spirit medium's insights on the value of human emotions, encouraging viewers to embrace their feelings without letting them control their actions. The speaker also discusses the importance of being comfortable with solitude and the need to continuously work on self-improvement without striving for an unattainable perfection.

10:02

💪 The Journey of Self-Improvement and Stoicism

The final paragraph focuses on the continuous journey of self-improvement and the role of Stoicism in personal development. The speaker shares their personal achievements, such as losing weight and quitting harmful habits, driven by a commitment to self-improvement and the desire to be true to oneself. They recommend 'The Daily Stoic' as a resource for daily reflection and growth. The speaker concludes by emphasizing the importance of kindness, helping others, and recognizing one's own significance and uniqueness. They encourage viewers to appreciate their own value and the impact they have on the world, ending with a call to action to like, subscribe, and look forward to future videos.

Keywords

💡Stoicism

Stoicism is a school of philosophy that teaches the development of self-control and fortitude as a means of overcoming destructive emotions. In the video, the speaker emphasizes the importance of stoicism as a way to find peace and inner strength, regardless of external circumstances. The script mentions that stoicism has been around since ancient Greek times and is not just a trend but a foundation for life, focusing on personal growth and self-mastery.

💡Inner Strength

Inner strength refers to the mental and emotional resilience one possesses to overcome adversity. The video discusses how adopting a stoic mindset has helped the speaker build inner strength, which is crucial for finding peace and happiness despite life's challenges. It's about being content with what one has and being grateful for it, which is a core aspect of the stoic philosophy.

💡Gratitude

Gratitude is the quality of being thankful and appreciating the good things in life. In the script, the speaker talks about how stoicism has helped them to be grateful for whatever situation they are going through, whether good or bad. It's about finding the positive in every circumstance and appreciating life's experiences.

💡Personal Growth

Personal growth involves self-improvement and the development of one's character. The video underscores the importance of personal growth as a continuous journey, where the only comparison should be with one's past self. It's about mastering oneself and focusing on one's own path, which is a key principle of stoicism.

💡Simplicity

Simplicity, in the context of the video, refers to the idea of not overcomplicating life and accepting things as they are. The speaker mentions that the key to life is simplicity, which involves trusting one's decisions and not creating unnecessary stress by overthinking or overcomplicating situations.

💡Problems

The video discusses the concept of problems in a stoic context, suggesting that problems can either be solved or accepted as they are. It's about not dwelling on problems but instead finding solutions or redirecting one's focus. The speaker shares a story about a taxi driver who erased problems by changing his perspective on them.

💡Projection

Projection is attributing one's own feelings, thoughts, or motives to another person. The script mentions that people often overcomplicate their lives by projecting their thoughts onto others, which can lead to feelings of superiority or inferiority. The speaker advises to avoid projection and focus on one's own journey.

💡Limerence

Limerence is an intense infatuation or迷恋 with another person, often idealizing them. The video talks about how people often put others on a pedestal, viewing them as perfect, which is a form of limerence. The speaker encourages the audience to see themselves as incredible instead of idealizing others.

💡Emotions

Emotions are feelings that can be both positive and negative. The script discusses the importance of acknowledging and accepting one's emotions without letting them control one's thoughts and actions. The speaker shares a story about spirits missing the feeling of emotions, highlighting the value of experiencing emotions as a part of being human.

💡Self-Improvement

Self-improvement is the process of personal development and growth. The video emphasizes that self-improvement should be a continuous process and not an identity. It's about striving to be better every day and using self-improvement as a guide for living, rather than defining oneself by it.

💡Des Censer Pleasures

Des Censer Pleasures refers to the enjoyment of life's simple pleasures without letting them control one's life. The speaker talks about how happiness should not be based on external pleasures like food, partying, or socializing, but rather on internal fulfillment and personal growth.

Highlights

Stoicism helps build inner strength and find peace in any situation.

Stoicism is an ancient philosophy that can be applied to modern life for personal growth.

Marcus Aurelius' quote emphasizes being strict with oneself and tolerant with others.

The key to life is simplicity and trusting one's decisions.

Problems are either solvable or not; the focus should be on solutions or redirection.

Simplifying thoughts reduces stress and increases presence.

Living with virtues leads to well-being and creating one's own reality.

Stress often comes from overcomplicating life and comparing oneself to others.

Limerence is a projection of our thoughts and can lead to overcomplicating relationships.

Accepting one's humanity and emotions is essential for personal growth.

Emotions are valid and should not be avoided; they are part of the human experience.

Being alone can bring peace and is necessary for self-reflection.

Self-improvement should be a continuous journey, not an identity.

Desensitization to pleasures can lead to a more balanced life.

The Daily Stoic is a resource for daily reflection and application of stoic principles.

Stoicism teaches that the purpose of life is to be kind and to help others.

Asking for help is a brave act and can lead to personal transformation.

Everyone is loved and protected, even when they don't feel it.

The importance of self-reliance and the impact of individual contributions to the world.

Transcripts

you are not meant to struggle and life

gets so much easier when you get to

experience it through the lens of

stoicism for me I want to have a good

nature I want to be able to find beauty

in everything and this mindset has

helped me out so much it helped me build

inner strength and to find peace and to

be happy with whatever I have and be

grateful for it no matter what kind of

situation I'm going through whether it's

bad or good and just in general to be a

better person and no matter what life

throws at me I can handle it peacefully

and I want you to have it too so today

I'm going to talk about stoicism it's an

entire field of study but I'm going to

break it down for you um and show you

how easy it is to apply in your life

it's been around since the ages since

the old ancient Greek times so I

definitely suggest if you are interested

in this type of mindset that you really

study it this is not just a trend this

is not some gimmick or a bit this is the

real deal when I talk about building a

foundation for your life this is what I

mean it's about mastering yourself and

not comparing yourself of other people

or showing everyone that you're in the

middle of some healing era or that

you're better than other people

basically it's be strict with yourself

and be tolerant with others that's a

quote from Marcus Aurelius so this is

about personal growth and focusing on

your journey the only person you should

be comparing yourself to is you but from

yesterday so you're going to ask me how

can I apply this in my life right and

I'm going to teach you so hi welcome to

welc to my channel my name is May and

today I'm going to talk about how to

stop over complicating everything in

your life um because it's often times we

are the creators of our own presence in

our mind but at the same time we also

have the same keys to Freedom so how do

we find the keys if any of this

resonates with you today and you want to

see more of me please do like and

subscribe to my channel and share your

experiences with me in the comments and

anyway yeah I thought that this Tik Tok

is a very good example of what it means

to live life with the stoic mentality so

let's watch this together I don't know

about you guys but I've had lift drivers

say things to me that literally changed

my life like I've had the most profound

experiences in the back of a

lift in a few weeks ago something

someone told me literally changed my

life and is literally changing my life

every second every day that I wake up it

is just repeating in my head it has

transformed me this new year so a few

weeks ago I was in Miami it was like

4:00 a.m. and I was like leaving this

like Brave and I'm

exhausted okay this guy comes and picks

me up he is literally like the brightest

light he was just so kind and this

energy was just so relaxed and good and

I felt so comfortable and I was like

what is your secret then things get

serious he starts going and he starts

laughing he starts telling me like 5

years ago I learned that I could control

reality with my mind and ever since then

I've been cruising through life how

amazing was it to hear that this man has

consistently been creating such a

peaceful amazing life for himself he

goes on to to tell me what he did that

changed his life number one he erased

problems I know what you're thinking how

could you just erase problems I asked

him the same thing and he said he

basically explained that when problems

happen in your life there's either a

solution or there's not you can either

do something about it or you can't like

what is a problem like just stop

thinking that things are wrong like

nothing's really wrong it's just

different or it's not how you wanted it

to go most times it's just redirection

sometimes radical redirection second

thing simplifying your thoughts not not

over complicating things so much the key

to life is Simplicity the key to life is

just trusting your decisions and the way

that you think and why you think that

way there's no point in gaslighting

yourself making excuses drawing up weird

conclusions when everything that you

need to know is in front of you it just

comes down to accepting it and moving

forward tuning into this mentality has

really decreased the stress levels in my

head it has also helped me be so much

more present there's so much less noise

in my head it feels so good hope this

help basically it's simple right the

goal is to live life with virtues like

kindness courage Justice and so on and

that itself will lead to a life of

well-being you create your own reality

with your thoughts if you have a problem

of your life and you know you either

have a solution for it or you don't so

if you don't we should redirect and

switch directions a problem is not just

a problem it's not a problem unless you

think it is it's a life lesson it's

something that you experience and it's

life is all about experiencing things so

why do you stress out about it you know

you we need to trust in ourselves more

and keep showing up and by the way we

create so many of our own problems that

we don't even realize it because

sometimes like and and I'm guilty of

this sometimes like sometimes we think

that we can read other people's minds

and the truth is nobody can read minds

that's you projecting and everything is

a projection of our thoughts nobody is

better than other people we over

complicate our lives because we compare

ourselves too much to others and we're

either punching down or punching up with

other people that means we feel Superior

to other people but then at the same

time we put people on the pedestal

limerance right people love to talk

about limerance whether it's influencers

or celebrities or someone you have a

crush on or that that you think other

people are perfect and amazing but we're

not like nobody is if you think people

are so

incredible baby you need to think that

you're

incredible you are amazing you're

beautiful and this also means that you

also should not belittle someone else

who's you know they're on their own

Journey everyone's on their own Journey

nobody is obligated to believe what you

believe and you know act how you want

them to act you can't control anyone and

at the same principle nobody should be

able to control you right and I know

that you're watching this because your

own your own journey to self-improvement

to become a better person but not

everyone is like you in fact there are a

lot of people out there in this world

who are still asleep they may not know

the things that you know but it doesn't

mean that you're better than them even

if someone did me dirty it doesn't mean

that I'm better or worse than them and

Marcus orelus also said this I love this

quote the best revenge is never be the

one who hurt

you this is why I see myself as never

having enemies because I never want to

stop to their level why would you want

to be on the same level as someone dirty

ass rats who bring you down you know I

mean never the past can never be changed

and the best that we can do is to learn

from it and they want a reaction from me

they get

nothing wait actually yes they do they

get to block and delete I forget about

them and I move on with my life and I

focus on myself so generally speaking

you should show people Grace and

kindness actually because you know

better you can show them by your example

by the way you act and not because you

want to control other people or anyone

to be like any kind of way but if these

people don't bring me peace they are out

of my life okay accept your Humanity

okay so I have a friend who's actually

um you may or may not believe these

things but I do and my friend is a

spirit medium and she's able to

communicate with spirits and you know

when she ask them like what do you miss

most about being human you know what

they say they say I miss feeling

feelings I miss heartache I miss the

feeling of pure Bliss and joy I miss the

taste of strawberries I would do

anything to eat a

strawberry and to be able to taste the

flavor and that perspective alone

honestly it changed my life and it made

me feel so grateful you know every day

that I can wake up and I can feel things

you shouldn't be numb to

yourself and you shouldn't demonize or

feel your emotions and you know when you

feel them your emotions just know that

everything that you feel is valid

including your sadness including your

tears and the feeling of anger coming up

and rising up in your stomach life

shouldn't be about suffering and even

feeling negative emotions aren't

actually suffering it's actually

beautiful and you shouldn't dwell on it

for too long and that means you should

never avoid your feelings right that's a

very common misconception of stoicism

and that's just not how things work you

can never run away from your emotions

because they always come back in some

other way whe you know this is why

people have trauma and when they have

trauma and they can't process it

correctly and they try to run away from

their emotions it keeps coming back in

different ways in different situations

and you need to understand that um yeah

you can never run away from it you have

to try and process it and go through it

even when it's painful because that's

what it means to be human you know you

can't deny yourself your humanity and

you shouldn't feel guilty about it or

feel frustrated so the goal is not to

never feel feel emotions right but to

know how to deal with it when it happens

this is what it means to be human and to

feel all the feelings without letting it

control you and control your thoughts

and your actions take things as they are

and not what they could be this includes

you this includes situations this

includes other people and being at peace

with your emotions also means that

sometimes you have to be okay with being

alone the Japanese philosopher mamoto

Masashi said this he said those who

can't be alone can't be honest can't be

loyal can't be anything being alone

should bring you peace and some people

can't stand to be alone with your own

thoughts you know and that that is such

a scary idea to me like what do you mean

you can't be alone with your own

thoughts and reflect on yourself are you

afraid to be with your inner demons if

you are that means you're inner demons

control you and honestly I love being

alone I have nobody to bother me

nobody's out there trauma dumping on me

or telling me stuff that I don't care

about it's great you're not perfect um

but that's okay you're meant to be

better always you're meant to improve a

little bit every day you're meant to be

in a different place than you were

yesterday and that means that your

self-improvement journey is never

done I know this sounds exhausting but

if you're never improving constantly

then what's the point of living there is

no perfect ending

because nobody is going to be perfect

including you nobody and

self-improvement should be a guide on

how you live your life and not your

identity it's not your personality you

know God created us to be just like him

but we can never be God because we can

only choose to be as close to Godliness

as possible here's the other thing Des

censer Pleasures yes you can enjoy

things but you should never let it run

your life food partying people this is

not the standard of human happiness and

if any of the above any of those things

is your source of Happiness then your

life is unbalanced this is what helped

me personally lose over 40 lbs this

helped me quit alcohol and cigarettes

and going out late and everything else

the only person that I'm afraid of

letting down is myself I want to be true

to my word true to my feelings and not

betray myself that means if I say that

I'm going to the gym today I am going to

the gym if I say I'm going to clean my

closet I am going to clean my closet I I

love this book and it's called The Daily

stoic it's basically when you read one

page a day um every day and you don't do

more of that but it's not even just one

page it's so digestible sometimes it's

just a paragraph and then you read it

and you absorb the meaning of it so what

stoicism taught me stoicism is what

helped me realize that the purpose of of

my life is to be kind and to help other

people and know this everything

everything starts from the inside in

your head it's so strange to me that we

can feel so much on the inside even when

you can't see anything happening on the

outside and you don't see progress

immediately in the physical world you

know like the bravest thing I ever did

it wasn't to jump off a cliff it's to

ask for help and you know when I realize

that when I cry and my tears fall it

falls for reason and it's not not a weak

thing I can transform my tears into my

strength and life can be so difficult

sometimes but you are so important to

the world literally the world will not

be the same without you even if you

don't see it immediately because no

nobody else can do what you do you know

you bring things to the world that

nobody else can and no one else can do

it like you that's just facts you're so

loved even when you don't feel it you

are so loved you are divinely protected

there's no one else out there in the

world who got you except you you got you

you know well me too I got you um I hope

my video helped you out today and yeah

thank you so much for watching my video

if you like what you learned today

please like And subscribe to my channel

so you can hear more from me and yeah

I'll see you in the next video