Stoicism for a Better Life – Weekly exercise (August 2, 2020)

Hello there, 

You’re a good person right? And you do good things for others, no? Well, here are some words from Marcus Aurelius to keep in mind then. Let’s get some inspiration from his Meditations IX 42:

“For what more do you want when you have done a man a service? Are you not content that you have done something conformable to your nature? Do you seek to be paid for it? It is as if the eye were to demand a recompense for seeing, or the feet for walking. For as these members are formed for a particular purpose, and by working according to their separate constitutions obtain what is their own, so also as man is formed by nature to acts of benevolence; when he has done anything benevolent or in any other way conducive to the common interest, he has acted conformably to his constitution, and he gets what is his own.”  

Stoicism 101: We are social animals with a capacity for reason. If we take a look around us, it does not take long to question how much of this reason is actually being used. But we all have the capacity for reason nonetheless. Given that we are social beings, it would make sense to be kind to each other right? I mean, if we’re pack animals, and we (by choice) live in groups we call societies, then working towards the betterment of the society, the group or the pack is logically good for ourselves.

This is logical and rational. No matter how selfish the animal primitive mind might get (due to its sum zero view of the world around us), our logical intelligent mind knows that what is good for others must necessarily be good for you as well. Perhaps not directly, but it logically must be, since we are living in a group…a society. So doing the right thing, being kind, and helping others is the right judgment every time. That’s why we do it. So why wait for a thank you, or recognition or accolades?

We see these acts of kindness that get staged and recorded being passed around on social media all the time. And although these acts (which border exploitativeness) can help motivate others to do good, they go against what Marcus Aurelius is reminding us here: Do good for the simple reason that it is the right thing to do.

So as a practical exercise this week, try and do some acts of kindness, or something good for others that goes unnoticed. Do something good and purposely avoid being recognized for it. Make sure you don’t get a thank you for it. You may find this frustrating at first, as we are conditioned in the western world to only do something or exert an effort in return for something, and this frustration would precisely be the reason why you would be doing the exercise. We should not be looking for a thank you or any type of recognition for being good people. 

As always I wish you a tranquil and productive week. You can always reach me on Twitter or Reddit, or even on Patreon or by email to keep the conversation going. All these links can be found on my Patreon page.

Anderson Silver

(Author of “Your User’s Manual” and “Vol 2: Your Duality Within”)