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I teach Stoicism. Last week I lost my temper in traffic, checked my phone while my son was talking to me, and lay awake at 3am running an old argument on a loop.
That is the gap this newsletter lives in. Not the gap between you and the Stoics. The gap between knowing the idea and doing it when it counts.
I have been studying this stuff for fifteen years and teaching it for most of the last ten. I still get it wrong most weeks. That is not false modesty. It is the whole point. Stoicism is a skill, not a set of facts. You can read every word Marcus Aurelius wrote and still snap at the person you love on a Tuesday. Reading is not the same as training.
So that is what The Practice is. One email a week. One idea from Epictetus, Marcus, or Seneca, pulled out of the book and put to work on your Monday morning, your 3am, your argument in the kitchen. Sometimes a practice you can try that day. Sometimes a reflection from my own week and where I fell short. Sometimes an idea from a recent podcast episode, with a link if you want to go deeper.
No hype. No ultimate guides. No ancient secrets the Stoics didn’t want you to know. Just the work, from someone who is still doing it.
What to read first
If you have a few minutes, these three are a good way to hear the voice before you decide to stick around.
The Stoic Trick I Use When I Can't Sleep
I Teach Stoicism. I've Been Using It to Hide.
Where to go if you want more
The Stoic Handbook podcast. Weekly episodes on anxiety, anger, relationships, and everything else that actually tests a philosophy. Around 500,000 downloads. On Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen.
The 7-Day Stoic Challenge. Free. One short audio lesson and one exercise a day for a week. If you would rather start practising than wait for the next email, start there. By the end you will have more practical Stoic skill than most people who have only read about it.
The Stoic Vault. A paid community for people who want to train weekly, with live sessions and coaching from me. Not a content library. A training ground. Not for everyone, and I mean that.
How to use the newsletter
Read it on the day it lands if you can. Try the thing. Most weeks it takes five minutes. The people who get the most out of this are not the ones who read the most. They are the ones who did the rep.
That’s it. I’m glad you’re here.
Jon