The Most Powerful (and Underrated) Force in The World

<p><a href='https://dailystoic.com/marcus-aurelius/'>Marcus Aurelius</a>, on nearly a dozen occasions in <a href='https://geni.us/4OynsdX'><em>Meditations</em></a><em>,</em> speaks of reaching or achieving <a href='https://geni.us/bKfBoY'>“stillness.”</a> Most beautifully, he writes of trying to be “like the rock that the waves keep crashing over,” the one that “stands unmoved and the raging of the sea falls still around it.” We shouldn’t be surprised to hear him use this word—which sounds Buddhist as much as it sounds Stoic—because it meant a great deal to him. The last word from Antoninus, Marcus’s beloved stepfather, as he passed power to him was simply: <em>Aequanimitas.</em> Equanimity. </p><p>Intuitively, instinctively, we know what that means. Stillness. Equanimity. <em>Ataraxia</em>. We also know how rare those feelings are. How often are we still? How often are we able to reach that place of clarity and steadiness inside ourselves? Not often enough, considering the incredible feats of focus and creativity and determination we are capable of when in possession of it. </p><p>Do you want more of it? Would you like to be cooler under pressure? Would you like to be like the rock in Marcus’s analogy, the one that can calm great oceans and endure the strongest currents and biggest waves? How much better would you be with more focus, more self-discipline, a happier soul?</p><p>The good news is that this what Ryan Holiday’s new book is all about. It’s called <a href='https://geni.us/bKfBoY'><em>Stillness is the Key</em></a><em>.</em> And the even better news is that you can preorder it right now. <a href='http://www.anrdoezrs.net/links/8445061/type/dlg/fragment/%2F/https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/stillness-is-the-key-ryan-holiday/1130068915'>Barnes and Noble even has a limited run of signed copies for sale</a>. At Daily Stoic we’re also offering some cool <a href='https://ryanholiday.net/stillness-is-the-key-pre-order-bonuses/'>preorder bonuses</a> for anyone that buys one, five or one hundred copies—in any form