How to Stay Motivated, According to Ancient Philosophy
There’s nothing like a global pandemic to sap your motivation. When you’re locked in your house, working from home, when your routine is disrupted, when everything that’s happening in the world seems to be negative, it’s easy to say, screw it. Or, it’s easy to tell yourself that you’ll get back on track when things go back to normal. I’ll start eating salads for lunch when I’m back at the office. I’ll stop snacking when the kids are back on a schedule. I’ll get back to working out when I can safely go to the gym. I’ll get off social media when there is less news to follow.
The Stoics — who survived their own plagues and exiles and moments of crisis — knew this was no way to live. How much longer are you going to wait, Epictetus would ask? You could be good today, Marcus Aurelius would say, but instead you choose tomorrow.
Now is now. Now is the time to get and stay motivated, to bring arête (excellence and virtue) into our lives and to keep it in our lives. Here are the three principles that have helped fuel my motivation.
Design your life to box out the ‘resistance’
“Life without a design is erratic. As soon as one is in place, principles become necessary. I think you’ll concede that nothing is more shameful than uncertain and wavering conduct…
