You Don’t Have To Have An Opinion
Manage episode 465848018 series 3439095
Lately, I’ve found myself in an unexpected place—less anxious, but not exactly at peace either. It’s almost as if I’ve stopped fighting the current and let life carry me where it wants. The Stoics tell us that we have the power to withhold judgment, to step back and see things as they are instead of letting them dictate our emotions. And yet, when life doesn’t go the way I hoped, when I feel like I’ve lost something irreplaceable, I struggle to accept it without attaching meaning, without letting it shake me.
Marcus Aurelius reminds us: “We have the power to hold no opinion about a thing and to not let it upset our state of mind.” But what happens when the emotions we try to ignore still creep in? What if, instead of mastering our reactions, we feel like we’re just going numb? In this episode, I reflect on my recent experiences—feeling disheartened, struggling to let go, and questioning whether it’s possible to truly embrace the Stoic idea of detachment when love, regret, and longing still weigh heavily on the heart.
Maybe the key isn’t to silence emotions, but to be selective about what we give power to. Maybe progress doesn’t mean feeling nothing, but rather learning which opinions are worth holding on to and which ones we can release.
Join me as I explore the balance between reason and emotion, and how I’m learning—slowly but surely—to navigate the day.
Thank you for listening and joining me on my journey of self-discovery!
Mediations and Prompts influenced from The Daily Stoic Books
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