The Daily Stoic

Most people don’t read that many books, maybe a few a year at most. So if you’re only going to read a couple books this year, the decision of which ones you choose becomes really important.
In today’s episode, Ryan shares a handful of books he’s confident are worth your time. They’ve changed him, made him better, and he believes they’ll make you better too in a lot of different areas of your life.

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📚 You can grab all the titles mentioned in this book at Ryan’s bookstore, The Painted Porch.
10% Happier by Dan Harris
On Character by Stanley McChyrstal
Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh
Good Inside by Dr. Becky Kennedy
A Calendar of Wisdom by Leo Tolstoy
Die with Zero by Bill Perkins
The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel
The War of Art by Steven Pressfield

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Love isn’t just an emotion. It’s not just a feeling that hits you out of nowhere. It’s an action, something you can practice and something you can get better at. And while philosophy might not seem like a guide to a great love life, especially Stoicism, it actually has a lot to teach us.

🎥 Watch this episode on The Daily Stoic YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvPHVQ2yu90

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Marcus Aurelius said that if you ever found anything better in life than courage, discipline, justice, and wisdom—the four virtues—it must be an extraordinary thing indeed. Which raises the question: is there anything better?

👉 Read Rick Jervis' latest piece here: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2026/01/29/immigrant-families-conditions-detention-sick-kids/88405597007/

📚 Buy a copy of Rick Jervis’ book The Devil Behind The Badge at The Painted Porch: https://www.thepaintedporch.com/

🎙️ Support the podcast and go deeper into Stoicism by subscribing to The Daily Stoic Premium - unlock ad-free listening, early access, and bonus content: https://dailystoic.supercast.com/

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Life has a way of stripping all our reasons bare, of humbling our plans and assumptions. We must live, as Marcus Aurelius said, as if death hangs over us. Because it does.

👉 Listen to the full conversation between Dan Harris and Ryan Holiday on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or watch on YouTube

📚 Buy a copy of 10% Happier by Dan Harris at The Painted Porch: https://www.thepaintedporch.com/

🪙 We have a collection of items in the Daily Stoic store to help you in your own memento mori practice, check them out here: https://store.dailystoic.com/

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It can feel like everything is falling to pieces. It can feel like you’re lost. It can feel like there’s no hope, no way forward, nothing to do. But that’s just because you’ve gotten rattled.

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