About this episode
Dwight Eisenhower gave himself the order.Quit smoking.It had become a 4-pack-a-day habit. It had been part of his life for nearly 40 years. It was comfortable. It was more than a habit, it was an addiction. His health hung in the balance, his doctor said, his ability to serve at risk. So, after nearly four decades of smoking, he made the decision to quit, cold turkey.“The only way to stop is to stop,” Eisenhower would tell an aide, “and I stopped.”This story is in Discipline is Destiny. It's also the basis of one of the best days in the upcoming 2024 Daily Stoic New Year New You Challenge. Because the Stoics were big on the idea of quitting cold turkey, of quitting anything that has a pull over us. “No man is free who is not master of himself,” Epictetus tells us.-And with today's meditation on the day's Daily Journal excerpt, Ryan reminds us to take charge and stake your own claim, that the ones who pioneered this wisdom are not our masters but our guide. And For the last five years, we have been doing what we call the Daily Stoic New Year New You Challenge—a set of 21 actionable challenges, presented one per day, built around the best, most timeless wisdom in Stoic philosophy. 21 challenges designed to set you up to be able to say, whatever happens in 2024 and beyond, this is precisely what I trained for.. Demand more of yourself in 2024. Prepare for whatever is ahead. Head over todailystoic.com/challengeand sign up NOW!✉️ Sign up for the Daily Stoic email: https://dailystoic.com/dailyemail🏛 Check out the Daily Stoic Store for Stoic inspired products, signed books, and more.📱 Follow us: Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, Facebook See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Listen to this episode in English to learn English
Podcast episodes are one of the highest-density ways to absorb English at native pace. What Are You A Slave To? | Stake Your Claim from The Daily Stoic gives you natural dialogue, unscripted speech, and vocabulary that actually appears in real conversations.
In the Hinto app, every word in the transcript is tappable. Tap an unknown word, see the translation in your language instantly, and keep listening without breaking flow.
Episodes to Learn English
- How To Think For Yourself In A World Full Of Lies | David Pakman Jul 29, 2026
- You Have This Freedom (If You Take It) Jul 29, 2026
- If Money Could Talk, What Would It Say? | What Would the Stoics Tell Us Today? Jul 28, 2026
- BONUS | Are You Measuring Wealth Wrong? (with Sahil Bloom) Jul 27, 2026
- Where Does It Get You? | Keeping "The News" In Check Jul 27, 2026
- Kate Bowler Challenges Stoicism’s Most Famous Idea Jul 26, 2026
- 9 Stoic Habits For A Better Life Jul 25, 2026
- BONUS | Made For Working Together Jul 24, 2026
- We Are All Kings Now | Why We Can’t Stop Talking About The Odyssey Jul 24, 2026
- They Have Been Misled | The Road Trip That Put Stoicism To The Test Jul 23, 2026
- Is It Even Possible To Be Happy? Jul 22, 2026
- How Epictetus Captured The Mind Of Marcus Aurelius Jul 22, 2026
- This Is How You Change | What Is Our Duty To Society? Jul 21, 2026
- The Wealthiest Person is a Pauper | Practice Gentleness Instead of Anger Jul 20, 2026
- 6 Stoic Rules To Beat Ego Jul 19, 2026
- The Fall Of The Roman Republic Was A Warning | Barry Strauss Jul 18, 2026
- This Will Define Your Legacy | Forgive Them Because They Don't Know Jul 17, 2026
- You Will Need This to Push Through | Is AI Making Us Stupid? Jul 16, 2026
- This is Why We Have Limits Jul 15, 2026
- 12 Stoic Lessons from The Odyssey Jul 15, 2026
- Decide What to Be and Go Be It | How Would The Stoics Handle Social Media Envy? Jul 14, 2026
- BONUS | Ryan Holiday's Best Book Recommendations for Dr. Becky Kennedy Jul 14, 2026
- It’s So Hard To Find | Stop Looking For This Jul 13, 2026
- 12 Stoic Rules For A Better Life Jul 12, 2026
- Men Are Reading Less Fiction. That’s A Problem. | Steven Pressfield Jul 11, 2026
- What’s On a Hill Cannot Be Hidden | Stop Monkeying Around Jul 10, 2026
- If You Want To Be Great, This Is All You Have To Do | Can Ryan Pass This Stoic Quiz? Jul 9, 2026
- Don’t Wait To Try It Jul 8, 2026
- A Stoic’s Guide To Winning Without Losing Yourself | Leadership Expert Dan Coyle Jul 8, 2026
- Learn To Ask This of Your Actions | Is Stoicism Compatible With Christianity? Jul 7, 2026