We juggle a lot of things (or try to):

Work, Family, Personal interests, side hustle goals, hobbies, catching up on sitcoms and movies, the list goes on!

In the pursuit of endless endeavors, we can come across challenges that make us feel like we're not in control. One can often :

• Feel flustered

• Take rash decisions

• Feel out of control

How do the Stoics help?

The Stoics were known for their ability to remain grounded in the most challenging of situations. Self-mastery, perseverance and wisdom were their main pursuits. The Stoics and their teachings provide a much needed guide in navigating the challenges that surround us.

Here are three Stoic exercises that help us:

#Exercise 1: Differentiate what we control and don't

The key practice of Stoic philosophy is differentiating between what we can change and what we can’t.
Spending time on things we can't change, like your height or someone's opinion about you is a pointless task with zero reward and free hair loss.

#Exercise 2: The obstacle is the way

“The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.” - Marcus Aurelius

When facing obstacles, the solution to the obstacle is literally the solution at that point. Seemingly obvious, but we're quite often stuck fretting over it instead of working on a solution.

#Exercise 3: Take the aerial view

Sometimes multiple incidents make it easy to lose track of the bigger picture. That's when taking a step back and looking at it objectively helps. Going from my perspective to everyone collectively. In the grand scheme of things, it's a reminder of how small and biased one perspective is.

“It isn’t events themselves that disturb people, but only their judgements about them.” — Epictetus