A Guide to the Good Life

This book is solely responsible for hooking me on Stoic philosophy, prompting my deep exploration of practical aspects of life in my own book and, most importantly, the application of them to my daily life. William’s writing is easy to follow, and his advice is very practical. I’d advise you to start reading the book from chapter four; and then when you are done with the book, come back to the first three chapters.

This is perhaps my favorite book of all time. The author, William Irvine, does an excellent job distilling the wisdom of ancient Stoic philosophy and explaining why it’s still useful today. The most important idea in Stoicism is to focus on what’s within your control and let go of what’s not. But that’s far from everything I learned in this phenomenal book. It’s a treasure trove of timeless advice for taking control of your thoughts, emotions, and actions.

When it comes to finding your bliss, nothing beats the ancient philosophy of Stoicism! Originating in Greece over 2,000 years ago, this insightful life philosophy will help you focus on what matters and overcome fear, anxiety, and anger. Although the term stoic (with a lowercase s) has, over the centuries, come to mean someone who is grim and unemotional, Stoicism (with an uppercase S) is actually a proven system for finding more resilience and happiness in life.

William Irvine is a patient guide as he explains why everyone needs a philosophy of life and how Stoicism in particular is well-suited… show more.

Do you want to live a good life? Well, this book tries to help you get there. William Irvine thoroughly explains the ancient philosophy of Stoicism in simple terms. What is this philosophy all about? What are its core elements? How can you put it into practice? It’s all there, with a pinch of humor.

Stoicism is a philosophy that is primarily concerned with the practical question of how one should live. It was popular in ancient Rome but has largely been out of favour in modern times. William Irvine does a really fine job both of explaining the Stoic perspective on life and of arguing that it still has much to offer to us today. In this book he teaches specific techniques that can help us achieve the sort of contentment that the Stoics identified with happiness. For instance, imagining the loss of what we currently have can foster gratitude for our good fortune… show more.

This is a fantastic guide to Stoicism and has many great examples of Stoic philosophy in action. It has lots of useful history that makes it a good general read on the Stoics.