The stoicism secret: how Ryan Holiday became a Silicon Valley guru
He has sold 5m books about this ancient Greek approach to life – and been feted by sports teams and CEOs. What makes this former PR man so popular?
What is it that made the former PR man turned lay philosopher Ryan Holiday a giant of the bestseller lists? That his writing on stoic philosophy is beloved by everyone from professional athletes, politicians and tech CEOs will have helped. Investor-entrepreneur Tim Ferriss calls stoicism the “ideal operating system”, while entrepreneur-fraudster Elizabeth Holmes constantly cited Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations, before her imprisonment. Sports stars from James McGee (Irish tennis pro) to Garrett Gilkey (NFL lineman) can quote from Holiday’s The Obstacle Is the Way, while celebs from Arnold Schwarzenegger to LL Cool J hat-tip Holiday in interviews.
The ancient philosophy of stoicism centres on four virtues: courage, temperance, justice and wisdom. Marshalling these will give you complete self-control, enabling you to react with equanimity to all outside stimuli, and not whine about stuff (giving us our modern, shorthand definition of stoicism, “uncomplaining”). Material wealth should mean nothing to the stoic, which makes it ironic that some of the richest people on Earth claim to live by stoicism.
Continue reading...Topics
-
Top stories - The New York Times
How Silicon Valley Billionaires Became Trump’s Biggest Donors
October 18 -
Business - Financial Times
How ‘Factorio’ seduced Silicon Valley — and me
3 days ago -
Tech - The Wall Street Journal
Pentagon Seeks Silicon Valley Elite to Join Reserves
6 days ago -
Business - Financial Times
Silicon Valley’s General Catalyst raises $8bn in global push
3 days ago -
World - The Guardian
Ryan Gravenberch: ‘My brother toughened me up and I became stronger’
October 18 -
Business - CNBC
Stripe, Wise founders want a 'tech renaissance' in Europe to help region rival Silicon Valley
October 14 -
Business - MarketWatch
Tech legend Marc Andreessen’s latest venture: Rallying Silicon Valley around Trump’s stances on crypto, AI and taxes
October 16 -
World - The Guardian
As Silicon Valley eyes US election, beware Elon Musk and the tech bros with political nous | John Naughton
October 20 -
Top stories - The New York Times
How a Metal Detector Hobby Turned Up the Chew Valley Hoard in Britain
3 days ago
More from The Guardian
-
World - The Guardian
Trump fills Madison Square Garden with anger, vitriol and racist threats
5 hours ago -
World - The Guardian
Japan election: voters have issued ‘severe judgment’, PM says after ruling coalition loses majority
4 hours ago -
World - The Guardian
Israeli strikes in Gaza kill 70 as UN chief calls civilians’ plight ‘unbearable’
11 hours ago -
World - The Guardian
‘Christmas creep is real’: festivities start earlier every year, analysis finds
1 hour ago -
World - The Guardian
Georgia’s pro-EU opposition calls for protest over ‘rigged’ election result
12 hours ago
Latest in World
-
World - ABC News
Pakistan begins another vaccination campaign after a worrying surge in polio cases
11 minutes ago -
World - ABC News
Philippine town in the shadow of a volcano is buried in landslides
12 minutes ago -
World - ABC News
The trajectory of Ukraine's fight against Russia hangs on the outcome of the US election
12 minutes ago -
World - The Guardian
I’m an American voter overseas. For years, we were ignored – but maybe this time we’ll make the difference | Alexander Hurst
21 minutes ago -
World - The Guardian
My rail journey to Naples and Pompeii to chase the last rays of sun
21 minutes ago