Lucius Annaeus Seneca was a prominent Roman philosopher and playwright who published several
essential works about Stoicism. He counselled Emperor Nero, and is often credited with rendering
Stoicism more accessible to a larger audience. His letters, writings, and thoughts have influenced
centuries of thinkers. His widely popular collection of writings, Letters from a Stoic,
contains his view of what the good life is — and how to attain it. So here are 10 important
lessons that we can learn from Seneca.
1. Exercise your mind daily Seneca says “As long as you live, keep learning
how to live.”
Developing our inner selves is a lifelong process that we must always work at. Determining
ways to improve our selves and finding happiness were among the aims of Seneca for humanity.
We always put off self-improvement practices because we believe we don’t have enough
time. We often find the thought of meditating more stressful than usual when we are busy.
Seneca insists that these are not worthy excuses. We should treat working on our inner self
is a full time job, not something we should ignore in favour of other tasks. One of the
first steps to improving ourselves is recognizing our own flaws. None of us are perfect, and
identifying which areas of ourselves we need to work on is crucial. Sometimes, as people
go through their journeys in life, their perspectives and beliefs change. This particularly happens
when someone proves that his previous beliefs were based on erroneous or false pretences.
From then he can improve and move on. As long as we live, we are learning — either unconsciously,
or consciously. Your mind is the most important and the most enduring tool that you have,
hence you always can and should make the time for your mental health. No matter what phase
you are in life, you can start learn a new skill, take a new class, meditate or read
improvement books. These books are written by experts that provide an array of selections
to express and share their knowledge and knowhow. Exploring these highly recommended materials
can enrich your own need to learn and grow. Exercise your mind every day by doing things
that stretch you.
2. Heal Yourself Seneca tells us “Two elements must be rooted
out once for all - the fear of future suffering, and the recollection of past suffering; since
the latter no longer concerns me, and the former concerns me not yet”.
According to Seneca, the two biggest causes of suffering include fearing the future and
regretting the past. Our future is uncertain, nor is it in our
control and fearing too much about our future will only bring us dread, anxiety and suffering.
The truth is whatever happens you will have the strength to survive, and even become stronger.
So the next time something horrible happens to yourself, tell yourself: “Perhaps this
sorrow might one day bring delight.” We regret the past because we want to avoid
those mistakes in the future. Instead, we should just reflect on the past, learn our
lessons, and move on. The problem is too many of us have something like a virus in our brain.
Imagine the space we hold all of our baggage in as a glass and you will realise that most
of us have a crack in that glass. These cracks come from sad life experiences or abusive
relationships and dysfunctional relationships that have caused us some kind of trauma or
pain. And since none of us enter into our adulthood in the most ideal way, we all have
some sort of a crack. These cracks act like viruses that keep replaying these horrible
memories from our past in our minds. We need to repair these cracks or else we cannot move
forward in our lives. The good news is that this mental virus could
be cured by seeing a therapist, studying philosophy, or by reading books. If we avoid regretting
our past, and don’t not fear the future we will become indestructible.
3. When Hungry Eat, When Tired Sleep In the words of Seneca “True happiness is
to enjoy the present, without anxious dependence upon the future”
The undisclosed reality of physical and mental wellbeing is simply to live in the present
time prudently and with enthusiasm. But how often do we rush to finish something so that
we can then rush to work on the next thing on our list? How often do we spend an evening
worrying about tomorrow, instead of relaxing? How often HAVE YOU CAUGHT YOURSELF in the
middle of a perfectly wonderful moment thinking about what you’re going to do next? In the
book, Out of Your Mind by Alan Watts, Watts shares this conversation between a zen master
and his student in which the student once asks a wise zen master how to achieve zen.
The master replied, “eat when you’re hungry, and sleep when you’re tired.” The student,
completely confused, responded, “isn’t that what people do already?” The zen master
replied, “no, people don’t just eat, but think of 10,000 things, and people don’t
just sleep, but dream innumerable dreams. We let our mind wander off to the next big
thing or the memories we hold onto from years ago while missing out on all of the things
happening around you right now. The next thing you know, you’re living that moment you
were thinking about so longingly yesterday, but your mind has moved on to tomorrow or
is stuck in a moment from two weeks ago. So challenge yourself to start living in the
present, starting now.
4. Seek your own Applause To quote Seneca “Be your own spectator;
seek your own applause”
As humans we seek the approval of others. We live in a society that has a “somebody
or nobody” mentality that makes it so that many people have an inferiority complex. The
problem is that the more we desire the approval of others, the more we become a slave to them.
No matter how hard we try we can never please 100% of others. Instead we need to seek to
please ourselves. We need to live a life according to our own personal code of ethics and morals.
We need to act as if you were part of nature. There are no rich or poor trees in nature,
but just balance. By all means, set big goals, have role models, and strive to achieve greatness.
But remember if you spend just one minute thinking about what others think about you,
you’ll end up feeling like the poorest man on Earth. Foster the kind of self-love and
respect that makes it possible for you to be comfortable in your own company - to be
your greatest self, and to be happy with who you are. You can do this by looking at yourself
in the mirror. Are you pleased with the person you’re looking at? If so, keep moving forward,
if not, see what you can change in your life to become the person you strive to be.
5. Learn the art of contentment According to Seneca “It is not the man who
has too little, but the man who craves more, that is poor.”
Seneca was one of the richest men in the entire Roman Empire, yet he mostly lived the life
of a pauper. He kept his wealth, yet he imagined everyday like it could disappear. This allowed
him to have freedom to philosophize on life, yet prevented him from becoming a slave to
his wealth. The fact that you are watching this video
means that you are probably living in a modern or a developing society where the basics like
a decent place to live, basic clothes, an internet connection, a smartphone, a laptop,
and food is easily attainable. But yet we want more. The biggest disease we have in
today’s society is the desire of luxury. We believe if we have more, and that we can
have more time, the things will be better. Doing things we love will be easier. Raising
our kids will be simpler. Spending time with our loved ones will become effortless.
While that sounds practical, in truth, that isn’t how the world works. In reality, it’s
the other way around — most super rich people have miserable families, full of anxiety and
stress, and every facet of their life has become more complex than ever. There comes
a point when material success becomes a hindrance rather than an advantage because earning a
lot of money takes a lot of time, a lot of energy, and a lot of mental and emotional
space. The moment we want something else, we suddenly lose appreciation for what we
already have.
6. Live for others As we learn from Seneca “You must live for
your neighbour, if you would live for yourself”
Ghandi. Mandela. Mother Theresa. None of them ever said “I wish I could have spent more
of my time living for myself.” The purpose of their life was to empower others. We too
can help out our friends, people in our community, and especially those who are weaker and less
fortunate then yourself. Many individuals out there are sad, miserable, and lost. They
need your love. When you perform good deeds for people, then you shouldn’t be asking
for payment even in the form of gratitude. The act of giving back is an indirect way
of giving to ourselves. We become the true recipients of living for others, and it’s
a win-win for everyone. Regardless of your situation in life, you
can always help others. You can help others by giving them advice, by giving them a listening
ear, or giving them a hug, or words of encouragement. You can donate items that you don’t use
anymore, whether it’s clothes or household appliances. You can also donate your time
and effort by volunteering at places all over your city. Often the way we can help others
the most isn’t through our money or resources, but with our heart.
7. Boldly face the struggles of life Seneca says “He should put his whole heart
into fighting against them. Let us overcome all things, with our reward consisting of
moral worth, strength of spirit, and peace that is won forever once in any contest adversity
has been utterly defeated.’” Seneca tells us that how we perceive our suffering
is far more important than the suffering itself. It rains on everyone. It’s what you do about
it that matters most. In our personal lives, and on a global scale, we face challenges
like injury, illness, unemployment, grief, divorce, death or even a new venture with
an unknown future. The truth is majority of us let these problems defeat us through our
feelings of anger, fear and anxiety. These negative approach makes us too paralysed to
move forward and take a step in resolving the problem. On the one hand you can see a
setback as a failure. On the other, you can take it as a lesson and use it as fuel towards
greater effort in the future. You can see a long line as an inconvenience. Or you can
see it as an opportunity to practice patience. You can see a rejection as a permanent mark
of your inability. Or you can see it is a stepping stone in your journey to greatness.
When you have the right attitude, nothing can stop you. When you have the wrong attitude,
almost anything can.
8. Find an anchor, be an anchor In the word of Seneca “Associate with people
who are likely to improve you. Welcome those whom you are capable of improving. The process
is a mutual one; men learn as they teach”
Seneca urges us to choose a role model to provide a standard to live by. There is something
powerful in having such an anchor because he can open your eyes to what’s possible.
The person of your choosing can provide you with principles that can help you navigate
even the most difficult and treacherous circumstances as well as standards against which you can
judge your behaviour on a day-to-day basis.
Likewise, when you find people who are genuinely eager to grow, and you can help them, help
them. Be an anchor for them. At any phase of your career, you will always find someone
asking for your wisdom. You will always have someone to inspire. It could be your own kid,
your junior at work, your friend, or someone who wants to get connected to you for your
experience. This will develop your leadership skills as well as help others learn, grow,
and improve their skills. It will be personally fulfilling experience for you that you've
directly contributed to someone's growth and development. Seeing your mentee succeed as
a result of your input is a reward in itself.
9. Don’t just live long, live wide As we learn from Seneca “So you must not
think a man has lived long because he has white hair and wrinkles: he has not lived
long, just existed long”
In his moral essay, On the Shortness of Life, Seneca, offers us an urgent reminder on the
non-renewability of our most important resource: our time.
Seneca believed that life was long for those who did not squander their time. Most of the
time, we are not actually living life but simply existing — allowing life to happen
to us rather than taking the reins to live the lives we want to live. We only live long,
not wide because our lives are filled with business and stress. We often get obsessed
and addicted throughout our lives with things that bring us short-term pleasures. We get
greedy for power, fame, money, prestige and status. Seneca urges us to examine these problems
that result in life seeming to pass by too quickly. He is essentially prompting us to
question our lives and ask: What proof do I have that I’m really alive? Many of us
are living what might as well be considered a life of mere existence: lazing around and
wasting our potential. The truth is life is moving through its course, whether you like
it or not. Your time is valuable, and it’s the only thing that you cannot ever get back.
But life can be long if you use your time deliberately and carefully. Life can be fulfilling
if you invest your time in actual living, which is by studying philosophy, being in
control of yourself, working towards goals that are important to you and not putting
off the enjoyment of life for the future.
10. Create your own philosophy And finally for this video Seneca teaches
us “When a mind is impressionable and has none too firm a hold on what is right, it
must be rescued from the crowd; it is so easy for it to go over to the majority”
Every day you spend too much time on social media or being around people that tell you
how you should think, what you should believe, how you should act, and what you should do
with your precious time. It’s up to you to protect yourself from this influence — the
influence of the masses, as Seneca called it.
Just because most people do something doesn't mean it’s worth imitating.
Many people spend too much money in buying luxuries they don’t need.
Most people aren’t grateful for what they have.
Most of them spend a lot of time in life’s trivialities and get nothing done.
If you wish to have same results as everyone else, then by all means, be a follower. Or
you can be a student, decide what to believe, and create a path that is yours alone. Seneca
recognized that if we are to live well, we must be constant students of the greatest
subject of all - life itself.
If you enjoyed this video, please do make sure to check out our Stoicism playlist and
for more videos to help you find success and happiness using ancient philosophical wisdom,
don’t forget to subscribe. Thank you so much for watching.