The Ultimate Vampire Resource and Directory

Don’t push others around if you have no blisters on your own feet.

Good officers lead by example and make sure the troops are cared for before attending to their own needs. When you treat others respectfully and never ask another to do something you would be unwilling to do yourself, you are entitled to the respect of others — and they will freely give it. But you cannot expect others to continue marching until they have blisters on their feet while you ride in the jeep. Leading others means you must be willing to give far more of yourself than you would ever ask from them.-Napoleon Hill

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Holyman
19:54 Mar 30 2020

The best officer's, in my opinion, are those who've risen from enlisted ranks. I recall crahing in a Blackhawk during a peacetime exercise and the gung-ho officer commanding us to do a force march afterward and now my back continues to give me problems.

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Earthgrinder
20:44 Mar 30 2020

Those officers are called mustangs, which I was one in the USN.

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Lights at the end of the tunnel get ready.

Yep Northern California for the most part under lock down except for essentials at store, Mass run on TP no idea why except I see it is being sold a ridiculas prices. These people are being caught and sent to jail. The county I live in 10 dead 300 infected. we have been hard hit. stock up on essentials. sanitize everything and stay away from others for your sake and theres.

We continue to be a hotspot 310 infections 10 deaths. Self isolate. Distance from people wash hands disinfect surfaces. Daily practices that might just keep ya'll alive.

The single most important practice in Stoic philosophy is differentiating between what we can change and what we can’t. What we have influence over and what we do not.

“The chief task in life is simply this: to identify and separate matters so that I can say clearly to myself which are externals not under my control, and which have to do with the choices I actually control. Where then do I look for good and evil? Not to uncontrollable externals, but within myself to the choices that are my own…” — Epictetus, Discourses, 2.5.4–5

What better opportunity to practice this “chief task in life” than the one we’re currently facing? COVID-19 is here. If it isn’t where you live, there is a good chance it will be soon. No amount of yelling at the TV will make it go away. Cursing the origin of the virus, being racist, perpetuating conspiracy theories, and hoarding toilet paper will not save you. It only distracts you from the many tasks at hand. Neither will sticking your head in the sand and pretending it’s “not that bad.” All those are wasting your time that could be spent saving your life and others.

What you can control, as always, is how you respond. What matters is not what other people are doing or have done, but what you do. That means: Keeping up to date with the latest advice from the World Health Organization (and then actually following it!). Wash your hands often, cover your nose when you sneeze, avoid large public gatherings, cancel unnecessary travel and work meetings. Don’t be stupid. Don’t think you’re the exception. Don’t do things that benefit you, at the expense of others. If you feel sick, stay at home. Stay at home even if you don’t feel sick. Do your part.

The goal now is to flatten the curve. To slow the spread of the virus until our hospitals can handle them. To prevent the unnecessary spreading of the virus. And to prevent unnecessary overloading of medical professionals, emergency services, airlines, and other critical infrastructure, so that the people who actually need it can access it. No one individual can accomplish this by themselves, but each of us, acting rightly, collectively, can make a big difference. As Zeno famously said, “Well-being is realized in small steps, but it is no small thing.”

We realize this well-being and fight this virus by the choices we make right now. Some of those choices include:

Practice social distancing: as much as possible, stay away from people outside of your family. Avoid social events and public gatherings, work from home if possible. If you have employees, do what you can so they can do the same. And implement common-sense measures so that your employees and customers are safe: reduce face-to-face interactions as much as possible, grant generous sick leave, and limit the number of customers at a single time.
Cancel or postpone events if you have them. Make them remote-access, if possible. Do not prioritize your convenience or entertainment over the potential spread of the virus.
Practice safety measures: wash your hands as much as possible, especially before you eat. Don’t touch your face, and cough into a tissue or your elbow. Don’t shake hands with people, press buttons with knuckles or elbows, and avoid food that is uncooked.
Help others who are in more precarious situations. If you know your neighbor is elderly and planning to make a grocery run, see if you can help them get what they need without leaving their house. Think of the wonderful generosity of this Chinese company sending face masks to Italy (with a quote from Seneca on them no less!)
Hold off on visiting elderly friends or family members. Yes, you’re worried about them. Yes, you miss them. But you put them and their community at risk by stopping at their old folks home or visiting their house. Even if you feel healthy, even if the person you’re visiting seems to be in good health, the safest option is to wait to see them.
Don’t hoard: hoarding essential goods hurts other members of the community who lack resources to prepare. Slowly stock up with non-perishable foods and goods so that others can do the same. Long lines at stores only make things worse.
Along those lines, don’t tie up medical resources that you don’t need. Save masks for doctors, nurses, first responders, and others who need them in the course of their jobs. And don’t forget that for now our testing supply is sorely limited; do your best not to tie up the critical resource of COVID-19 tests, and avoid being a hypochondriac.
Self-quarantine and self-isolate: if you believe you may have been exposed to COVID-19, stay in your home for two weeks to keep others safe.
Use your time wisely: don’t let the possible weeks or months of isolation be for nothing. You can’t control how long you’ll need to engage in social distancing, but you can control if you spend that time productively. The version of you who steps out of quarantine at some future date can be better than the version that entered it, if you try.
Batch your online orders if you’re stocking up to reduce the need for inefficient shipments and stress on already stressed supply chains.
Educate: don’t spread misinformation about the virus. Instead, make sure others know how to best handle the spread of the virus. If you’re someone with a platform, your number one obligation right now is to not spread bullshit or breaking information. You’re not helping, you’re hurting.
If you get sick, isolate yourself at home as long as symptoms remain moderate. If you have trouble breathing, are an older adult (70+), have pre-existing lung conditions or are immunocompromised, be ready to call your doctor or visit an ER.
Remember that panic doesn’t help. Rushing to sell your stocks; ignoring the needs of others; freaking out; being cross with or cruel to others. You know what this does? It takes a bad situation and makes it worse.
Cherish the people you love and the present moment, as scary as it is. It is all we have for certain.
We study Stoicism for moments like these. To remain calm in the face of chaos. To put aside irrational thoughts and develop a plan to keep us moving forward. To be able to spread the only positive form of contagion there is: calm. So we can acquire wisdom from tragedy and danger. This our chance to embody these teachings, to prove them, when it counts. When life and liberty are on the line.

As Marcus Aurelius wrote in Meditations:

“It stares you in the face. No role is so well suited to philosophy as the one you happen to be in right now.”

So do your part. Put your study to practice and inspire those around you to do the same. We are all individually the answer, in the choices we make. What we need from you now is what we’ve always needed and talked about here: Courage. Self-discipline. Justice. Wisdom.

A rudderless ship and a purposeless person are eventually stranded on desert sand.

The goals you set for yourself — like the rudder of a ship — will guide you toward your destination, and without them, like a ship without a rudder, you’ll find it impossible to stay the course. Make goal-setting a habit in your life. If you sometimes have trouble staying focused, set small, attainable goals and stick with the job until it’s done. Examples might include finding a faster, more efficient way to do a routine job. Or taking the most difficult jobs first when you have the most energy and your concentration is at its highest level. Save the easiest jobs for last. A few small successes will inevitably lead to bigger achievements. - Napoleon Hill

Well it happened a really good friend and former work mate has come down with corona virus. He is in the hospital right now sicker than a dog. I wish you and your family well Los. Get better soon.

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KatherinexArduxBloodwolf
04:12 Mar 21 2020

Oh no I am so sorry that your friend is sick... Healight light will come to him and his family.

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Earthgrinder
04:30 Mar 21 2020

Appreciate it

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Just what are you waiting for and why are you waiting?

Far too many people spend their entire lives waiting for that glorious day when the perfect opportunity presents itself to them. Too late, they realize that each day held opportunity for those who sought it out. If you have not formulated a plan for what you would like to accomplish in your life, don’t waste another minute. When you have Definiteness of Purpose fueled by a burning desire to reach your objectives, nothing can stand in your way. Don’t wait around waiting for life to happen to you. When you know what you want and how you expect to earn it, life will agree to your terms, not the other way around.--Napoleon Hill

It’s possible, Marcus Aurelius said, to not have an opinion. You don’t have to turn this into something, he reminds himself. You don’t have to let this upset you.

It’s not that the Stoics lived in a world where people didn’t do bad things or a world free from rudeness and cruelty. On the contrary—those things were far more prevalent in Rome than they are today. But what the Stoics worked on was not letting these things get to them, not letting it provoke them to anger.

If someone insulted Cato, he pretended not to hear it. When someone attacked Marcus Aurelius’s character, he tried to think about the character of the person saying it. When someone said something offensive to Epictetus, he told himself that if he got upset, he was as much to blame as they were. He also joked that if they really knew him, they’d be even more critical.

It wasn’t that the Stoics were apathetic or that they never tried to change the world. Clearly, they wouldn’t have been engaged in politics if all they cared about was the status quo. Why would Seneca have written those letters if he didn’t believe he could have an impact on people? It’s just that the Stoics saw only danger in getting angry. They refused to be provoked. They tamed their temper so they could do the work they believed they needed to do.

And that’s what you must do also. You don’t have to have an opinion. You don’t have to turn things into bigger things. You can control your emotions. You can do what you need to do.

The mind never becomes tired, but sometimes it becomes bored with the “food” it gets.

Computer experts use the acronym gigo — garbage in, garbage out — to illustrate the fact that the computer can process only the information it is given. The same is true with your mind. If you feed it healthful, nourishing “food,” it will grow strong and agile, but if you restrict it to a regular diet of mental “junk food,” your mind will become unhealthy, negative, and unproductive. It will return to you what you put into it. Feed your mind a balanced, nourishing diet. Study information from a variety of fields to help you keep up with the latest trends. You may find that the best ideas for your business come from a totally unrelated area. --Napoleon Hill

When Tea Set found themselves on the same bill as another band with the same name, Barrett came up with an alternative name on the spur of the moment, choosing The Pink Floyd Sound (after two blues musicians, Pink Anderson and Floyd Council).

One way to go through life is to turn away from the things that are hard. You can close your eyes and ears to what is unpleasant. You can take the easy way, forgoing difficulty whenever possible. The other way is the Stoic way—it entails not only not avoiding hardship, but actively seeking it out.

In the novel Memoirs of Hadrian, Marguerite Yourcenar has Hadrian write to young Marcus Aurelius about his philosophy for learning and benefiting from all of life’s adversity and unpleasantness. “Whenever an object repelled me,” he says, “I made it a subject of study, ingeniously compelling myself to extract from it a motive for enjoyment. If faced with something unforeseen or near cause for despair, like an ambush or a storm at sea, after all measures for the safety of others had been taken, I strove to welcome this hazard, to rejoice in whatever it brought me of the new and unexpected, and thus without shock the ambush or the tempest was incorporated into my plans, or my thoughts. Even in the throes of my worst disaster, I have seen a moment when sheer exhaustion reduced some part of the horror of the experience, and when I made the defeat a thing of my own in being willing to accept it.”

Of course, this is fiction so Hadrian never said such a thing. But clearly somebody taught Marcus a lesson along those lines, because Meditations is filled with similar passages. Marcus writes about how a fire turns everything that is thrown into it into flame. He says that obstacles are actually fuel. “The impediment to action advances action,” he writes, “what stands in the way becomes the way.”

It’s a beautiful way to approach the world—and ultimately, the only one suited for our unpredictable and stressful times. To avoid difficulty would mean complete retreat from life. It would mean hiding in ignorance. Worse, this would make you dreadfully vulnerable to crisis if it did ever find you. Instead, we must strive—as Hadrian said—to welcome hazard. We can rejoice in the unexpected and even turn failure into something by deciding to own it. We can learn from unpleasantness and even soften our aversions.

This will not be easy. But that’s fitting, isn’t it? We are not naturally attracted to obstacles...which is precisely why we must work on finding out how to like them. This is the way.--The Daily Stoic

Emotions

The subconscious mind is more susceptible to influence by impulses of thought mixed with “feeling” or emotion, than by those originating solely in the reasoning portion of the mind....Napoleon Hill

Supernatural is on the cw right now it is the God killer 2hour finale. Forever.

Never mind what others didn’t do. It’s what you do that counts.

If you depend upon others for your success, you are doomed to a life of failure and despair. It is a sad fact of life that few people consistently deliver what they promise. Instead of lamenting what someone else should have done to help you, focus on what you can do to help yourself. The best plan of action is one that provides opportunities for others to benefit if they wish to work with you toward the accomplishment of your goals but that does not depend upon these people for success.

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LORDMOGY
15:47 Mar 16 2020

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Ides of March Celebration Today. @.......third rock from the sun .

You are the world’s greatest expert on your job, and you can make it into what you choose. You may have a job description, but there are few jobs in the world that come with detailed instructions. A job description simply provides a foundation upon which you may build the perfect job for yourself. When you give generously to it, a job responds with a full measure of satisfaction, personal growth, financial rewards, and promise for the future. If you are in a job you absolutely hate, and you have considered all the alternatives and decided that you will never like your job, find something else. But if you, like most people, dislike a few things about your work, but on balance believe you have a pretty good position, get busy making it the greatest job in the world. In your career, as in life, you get in direct proportion to what you give. ...Napoleon Hill

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Crowscat
11:16 Mar 17 2020

So very true. Having a job you love makes a huge difference from one that's just a paycheck. The rewards are priceless:)

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There was time to kill in Rome, just as there is today. A dinner started late. A meeting got cancelled. Travel delays meant being stuck in this place or that place for a couple days. Something would break and someone would need to go into town for supplies. The impulse then, as now, when faced with these kinds of situations, was to just wait. Or complain. Or mess around.

We all do it, writing stuff off as dead time, as we’ve talked about before. It’s a rather presumptuous thing to do, though, if you think about it. We kill time as time is literally killing us. Who says you’ll get more moments? Can you really afford to let any be wasted?

Cato the Elder was built of that sturdy, original Roman stock. He didn’t put up with laziness or poor productivity. He didn’t tolerate it from his workers or his family or himself. As he wrote in On Agriculture, there is no excuse for just sitting around. “In rainy weather,” Cato advised, “try to find something to do indoors. Clean up, rather than be idle. Remember that even though work stops, expenses run on nonetheless.”

We can always find something to do, even when our original intention or plan is thwarted (that’s what the obstacle is the way means). We can read. We can think. We can clean up and prepare. We can squeeze in a few minutes of work while we sit in the waiting room. We can turn a rainy day into a family day.

There is always something to do. You can’t afford for there not to be.- Daily Stoic

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IvysxHaven
20:19 Mar 11 2020

Wise words...

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A bull may have good qualities, but you will never bring them out by waving a red flag in his face.

Arousing others is easy — if you don’t care what kind of action you inspire. If you wish to create a positive response in others, you do so by example and through the art of gentle persuasion, not by daring them to attack. When you work with others, concentrate on their positive attributes, not on the things they dislike or fear. When you take the time to get to know your associates, to learn about their hopes, dreams, and aspirations, you can determine what motivates them. You can then show them how they can align their goals with yours to work together for your mutual advantage. When you do, everybody wins.-Napolean Hill.

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TheArtistRose
18:56 Mar 11 2020

Just don't put the bull in a china shop. :P

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IvysxHaven
19:02 Mar 11 2020

That's like putting a hot-headed bull in a china shop, something is going to get broke. It's better to step back and observe a situation or person to get the big picture before just jumping in

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Earthgrinder
19:05 Mar 11 2020

Totally agree its like the adult in the room says " HEY, Knock it off"

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Preparing for the Corona Virus – How a Navy SEAL Gets Ready – Self Quarantine?
How to Prepare for possible 14 – 28 day self Quarantine from the Corona Virus COVID-19







As the Corona COVID-19 spreads across the country and the world, here’s how former Navy SEAL and Wellness Expert Coach Brad McLeod is preparing for the Virus.



First step i’m taking is not panicking, that’s the last thing people need to do in a time like this. The next step is we are treating this like a normal flu season. Wash hands! Not touching things in public places like handrails etc. Wiping down things with sanitary wipes before we eat. Keeping anti bacterial soaps, lotions and sprays on hand. Basic things that we can do to stop the spread of germs. Really just be neurotic about cleanliness.







At home washing dishes well with hot water, using Lysol Spray in high germ areas. Keeping the bathroom extra clean as well as the kitchen. I just think back to when I was a kid and my mom was always nagging me to wash my hands, not to touch my face and wash my hands again.



Next is prepping for the worst case scenario. In this case it’s really just avoiding public areas with lots of people. We have 30 days of food in freezers and the pantry. Of course toilet paper and paper towels. The big thing with this type of pandemic is to really limit the time you have to spend at grocery stores, restaurants, large gatherings of people. I’m personally not flying right now either, but i prefer to drive most cases so I can keep my EDC kit on hand.

I would highly suggest not going to a public gym right now. Train at home. Use nature, get outside and breathe fresh ai



Here’s what I am doing. I’m getting outside and keeping up with my daily fitness routine. It’s a proven science that being healthy and staying in shape boosts your immune system. .











Just to recap the key points:

Wash your HANDS!

Avoid Public Gatherings: Sporting Events, Concerts, Festivals, Conferences etc.

Have 30 Days of Food and Necessities stocked up just in case you have to self quarantine.

Keep an eye on the news but don’t obsess over it.

Use common sense and don’t be a liability to yourself or your loved ones.
HOOYAH!
Brad McLeod

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xRobin3x
07:01 Mar 11 2020

Thumbs up. Be safe.

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IvysxHaven
18:59 Mar 11 2020

Sound advice, thank you.

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Marcus Aurelius talked a lot about fame. He called it a worthless clacking of tongues and liked to point out things like how few people remember the emperors who preceded him, or how the generations to come will be the same annoying people he knows now. It’s easy to picture him writing these things in times where he caught himself falling for the allure of fame, of power, of how history might remember him.

Don’t we all fall for it? It is alluring. But if we’re honest with ourselves, it isn’t the fame we really want. it’s the validation that our lives are meaningful. Praise, recognition, millions of followers on Instagram, we think, are proof that we matter. And until we get those things, we’re not always so sure we do.

Emily Esfahani Smith wrote an amazing piece in the New York Times, titled “You’ll Never Be Famous — And That’s O.K.”. Reminding us of Marcus in the way Emily too said that fame is a foolish pursuit and not where meaning lies, we reached out to her for an interview. We asked Emily for advice on finding meaning—and how Stoicism can help us get there. She shared the opinion of the 20th-century psychologist Erik Erikson, who said that a flourishing, meaningful life is one of “generativity”:

“When we’re young, we’re supposed to figure out who we are and what our purpose is. As we get older, we’re supposed to shift the focus from ourselves to others and be ‘generative.’ That is, we’re supposed to give back, especially to younger generations, by doing things like raising children, mentoring colleagues, creating things of value for our community or society at large, volunteering, etc. We each have the power to be generative. Fame and glamour are about the self—aggrandizing yourself. But generativity is about connecting and contributing to something bigger, which is the very definition of leading a meaningful life.”
It’s the Rick Warren line, “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less.” There’s that silly thing that floats around the internet from time to time about how few people can name a gold medalist from the last Winter Olympics, but everyone can name that third grade teacher, that childhood neighbor, who changed your life. It’s the people we touch singularly. That’s the real test. That’s where you make your mark.

Let that be today’s great and simple pursuit: positively impact one person’s day. That’s it. - The Daily Stoic

No one can succeed and remain successful without the friendly cooperation of others.

In today’s interdependent society, it is virtually impossible in any business, profession, or occupation for an individual to achieve great heights of success without the help of others. The best way to get friendly cooperation is to give it. When you make it a practice to encourage others and to help them advance in their careers whenever possible, most will reciprocate when you need their help. Give generously, and you will benefit in kind. - Napoleon Hill

I live in Santa Clara county located in the Bay Area or south bay Smack dab in the middle of Silicon Valley. The problem is the spread of the coronavirus has spread the most with about 140 confirmed cases. We just had our first death due to the virus, today, condolences to the family. It was a none travel case. The incubation period is anywhere from 2 to 14 days. The country health officer just banned any meeting of 1000 or more attendees. Schools are closing. People 65 and older have been told not to fly or go on cruise lines. Mentally people are at a tipping point with anger and frustration. We have been sheltering in place with very limited forays into the community to get food and necessities. I give this a couple more months. In other parts of the world it is worse. These are my observations and I hope they help. This is real.

There are many different vices out there. It’s long been a debate amongst priests and philosophers if some are worse than others, or if they are all created equal. Even amongst the Stoics there was some debate—were all sins the same? Was being or doing wrong a matter of degree, or was it black and white?

It’s one of those things that vexes philosophers but is obvious to normal people. Of course some vices are worse than others. Of course there is a grey area! Welcome to life, genius.

Seneca eventually concurred. As he writes in Of Anger, anger must rank fairly high on the list of vices because it has so few redeeming qualities. “It’s a worse sin than luxury,” he says, “since that is enjoyed by personal pleasure, whereas anger takes joy in another’s pain.” Malice and envy are similar, he said, because they are about wanting other people to be unhappy, not just yourself. Anger and envy are about inflicting harm on others, not just on oneself.

Point being: It’s better to be a little bit Epicurean (that is, to enjoy some pleasure) than it is to be an asshole. If you’re going to sin or give in to vice, make sure it only ruins your life. Make sure it’s something internal, not something like anger—which inevitably makes itself felt by the people around you.

To sin, to fall short, is one thing. To punish innocent people? Well, that’s even worse.

Watch the one ahead of you, and you’ll learn why he is ahead. Then emulate him.

One of the surest ways to achieve success is to observe the actions of successful people, determine what principles they regularly employ, and then use them yourself. The principles of success, as Andrew Carnegie said, are definite, they are real, and they can be learned by anyone willing to take the time to study and apply them. If you are truly observant, you will find that you can learn something from almost everyone you meet. And it isn’t even necessary that you know them. You may choose great people who are no longer alive. The important thing is to study their lives, and then learn and apply in your own life the specific principles these people used to achieve greatness. - Napoleon Hill

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LORDMOGY
18:05 Mar 08 2020

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Earthgrinder
18:51 Mar 08 2020

I have found the greatest compliment is to be to be remembered in your actions.

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Be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful
This one is a quote from Warren Buffett.

Money is best put to work
When you have money there are two options: invest or save.
Investing is putting your money to work. Put your money to work in the following ways:
Invest in yourself by learning new skills that generate money
Invest in businesses through a stock market index fund
Invest in books about finance so you understand money
Invest in humanity by giving a little to worthy causes - from Lessons I learned from studying money the last 10years by Tim Denning

No one could ride a horse if the horse discovered its real strength. The same thing is true for people.

Horses are massive, gentle creatures who are by far larger and stronger than the men and women who handle them, yet they docilely obey the commands they are given. It doesn’t seem logical that a large, powerful animal would allow itself to be mastered by a human being, yet we have been able to use our intelligence to dominate the animal kingdom. You can use these same forces to allow the positive side of yourself to dominate the negative. A Positive Mental Attitude allows you to tap the source of great power that resides within you, enabling you to accomplish things you never before believed were possible.--Napoleon Hill Thought for the day.

It is not what we do, It is how we go about doing it. The parking lot at Costco was packed at early am. Cars, SUV s and Vans zipping for that one free spot, searching, circling like Great Whites. While people in a daze walking about like zombies shuffling. Dragging carts on the asphalt in front of circling cars. Some in a rush head for the warehouse. It radiates the frenzy going on through the open dock. I don't know. I am observing this running up and down aisles. First the water good 5 cases. Don't need toilet paper they are out of it. No soup. Lot of things not restocked, but they have the things we need to survive a month of isolation from the rest of the world. I listen to the constant murmuring of the environment within the warehouse. It is purposely quiet. Again the zombies are headed at me almost crashing into bodies. Dealing with the obstacles in the aisles., so i do tactical breath. I see the energy being sucked out of the zombies by those hiding in the corners of the store.

Cannot stay in very long. It is like being underwater and taking a breath expecting air to come from the regulator and there is nothing. Time to go. Cashier was all friendly and full of energy got us through to the other side where there was a little bit of relief. Another near collision on the ramp going down to the parking lot. We loaded the truck and got the hell out of there.

This is something that someone experienced every now and then. Bad grammar so what who cares. The English language is one that changes every tick rock of the clock. I am not an expert in my own language. When I go up the path or down the path to the gates of hell. No one is going to ask me if I spoke or wrote pooper English. As a matter of fact, the angel or demons guarding the gates would probably LMFAO. If something gets the point across using it.
We have more serious problems that need our brainpower. Like, clean drinking water, like hunger, like making sure our kids are left alone. Like, make sure all are due respect. People are all on the same team in the middle of the ocean on a piece of land. Let's all dance and play together
Ok how many grammar mistakes did I make? Did I make my point was it clear? (Drop Mic)

Yesterday we discussed the Four Virtues, and talked about the primacy of courage. Of course, life is not so simple as to say that courage is all the counts. While everyone would admit that courage is essential, we are also all well aware of people whose bravery turns to recklessness and becomes a fault when they begin to endanger themselves and others.

This is where Aristotle comes in. Aristotle actually used courage as the main example in his famous metaphor of a “Golden Mean.” On one end of the spectrum, he said, there was cowardice—that’s a deficiency of courage. On the other, there was recklessness—too much courage. What was called for, what we required then, was a golden mean. The right amount.

That’s what Temperance or moderation is about: Doing nothing in excess. Doing the right thing in the right amount in the right way.

In Marguerite Yourcenar’s Memoirs of Hadrian, the emperor Hadrian writes to Marcus Aurelius that “overeating is a Roman vice.” He explains that far too many of his fellow citizens “poison themselves with spice” and drown their plates in rich sauces. The result? They overwhelm their palates—and themselves. By succumbing to excess, they lose the ability to appreciate things and throw themselves off keel.

To Hadrian, simple pleasures were better. He tells Marcus that “moderation has always been my delight.” And not just when it comes to dinner. Fitness, being in good fighting form to face the challenges of each day, was critical, yet working out to the point of fanaticism was a step too far. That means refraining from both indolence and overexertion, cutting the middle course between the two poles to find that Golden Mean where one is neither over nor underprepared, but simply ready.

So today and every day, remember the Stoic admonition to find the middle ground. Do not adhere to one extreme or the other; make temperance your goal in every part of your life, and your future self will thank you for it.--Daily Stoic

Take little steps first. Subtle shifts in the way you dress, your body language or even the way you speak are small yet assertive steps towards gaining more confidence. --the little book of CONFIDENCE

this might help From The Daily Stoic

The Stoics said it over and over: the most important thing to remember about pain and suffering is that it is inevitable. It can’t be avoided, so don’t make it worse by fearing it, worrying about whether it will come, wondering how bad it will be. Seneca’s line was that we suffer more in imagination than in reality. The essential insight from Epictetus was: It’s not things that upset us, it’s our opinion about them. And Marcus Aurelius too: If you choose to feel like you’ve been harmed, you have been.

At just eight years old, Verity Smith was told that, due to a rare genetic disorder, she would soon lose her eyesight. She didn’t have a choice. She would be blind. All that was left to her was how she would respond to this demand of fate. In our interview with Verity, we asked her to take us back to that diagnosis and how she came to terms, mentally and emotionally, with the painful realities of losing her vision. Her answer is extraordinary:

I saw going blind as a challenge, a game...I understood that the darkness was coming and that it would steal the faces of those I loved and the views of the landscapes I lived in, but in my innocence, I set to work filling my memory with images that would never fade. It was a game against the clock. My challenge was to drink in every sight, to exercise every sense and to become good at being blind before the lights went out. With my bedroom curtains drawn and a blindfold on, I would rearrange my furniture in order to practice navigating through self-imposed blackouts. Being a practical child, I figured the best way to overcome my coming blindness was to learn how to get good at being blind…I began to understand the power of my thoughts—how if the sky was grey I could color it in blue in my mind’s eye, how I could paint the beautiful horizon upon the canvas of the dullest of views. The world became multi-dimensional. As my eyes went to sleep my other senses awoke.
When adversity struck, Marcus liked to remind himself, “It’s unfortunate that this has happened. No. It’s fortunate that this has happened and I’ve remained unharmed by it...It could have happened to anyone. But not everyone could have remained unharmed by it.”

Not everyone would choose to see something so unfair as a game, like Verity did. Not everyone could do that, as she did. So in that sense, it is fortunate that it happened to her. Certainly, what she managed to make of it is incredibly impressive and fortunate. Since being unable to compete in the 2012 and 2016 Olympic games, Verity has been training hard for the 2020 games in Tokyo. In 2017, she was ranked 12th in France at the Elite Able-Bodied level and has recently been selected for the French Para Dressage Team. Aside from her plans to bring home a gold medal in 2020, Verity also hopes to become the first equestrian disabled athlete to represent her country as a member of both the Paralympic and Olympic teams.

She made her situation a game...and became world class at playing it. That’s what a Stoic does. That’s what you can do, whatever you’re going through today or in the future. You choose how you respond. You choose what you will make of this. You don’t have to suffer

this might help From The Daily Stoic

The Stoics said it over and over: the most important thing to remember about pain and suffering is that it is inevitable. It can’t be avoided, so don’t make it worse by fearing it, worrying about whether it will come, wondering how bad it will be. Seneca’s line was that we suffer more in imagination than in reality. The essential insight from Epictetus was: It’s not things that upset us, it’s our opinion about them. And Marcus Aurelius too: If you choose to feel like you’ve been harmed, you have been.

At just eight years old, Verity Smith was told that, due to a rare genetic disorder, she would soon lose her eyesight. She didn’t have a choice. She would be blind. All that was left to her was how she would respond to this demand of fate. In our interview with Verity, we asked her to take us back to that diagnosis and how she came to terms, mentally and emotionally, with the painful realities of losing her vision. Her answer is extraordinary:

I saw going blind as a challenge, a game...I understood that the darkness was coming and that it would steal the faces of those I loved and the views of the landscapes I lived in, but in my innocence, I set to work filling my memory with images that would never fade. It was a game against the clock. My challenge was to drink in every sight, to exercise every sense and to become good at being blind before the lights went out. With my bedroom curtains drawn and a blindfold on, I would rearrange my furniture in order to practice navigating through self-imposed blackouts. Being a practical child, I figured the best way to overcome my coming blindness was to learn how to get good at being blind…I began to understand the power of my thoughts—how if the sky was grey I could color it in blue in my mind’s eye, how I could paint the beautiful horizon upon the canvas of the dullest of views. The world became multi-dimensional. As my eyes went to sleep my other senses awoke.
When adversity struck, Marcus liked to remind himself, “It’s unfortunate that this has happened. No. It’s fortunate that this has happened and I’ve remained unharmed by it...It could have happened to anyone. But not everyone could have remained unharmed by it.”

Not everyone would choose to see something so unfair as a game, like Verity did. Not everyone could do that, as she did. So in that sense, it is fortunate that it happened to her. Certainly, what she managed to make of it is incredibly impressive and fortunate. Since being unable to compete in the 2012 and 2016 Olympic games, Verity has been training hard for the 2020 games in Tokyo. In 2017, she was ranked 12th in France at the Elite Able-Bodied level and has recently been selected for the French Para Dressage Team. Aside from her plans to bring home a gold medal in 2020, Verity also hopes to become the first equestrian disabled athlete to represent her country as a member of both the Paralympic and Olympic teams.

She made her situation a game...and became world class at playing it. That’s what a Stoic does. That’s what you can do, whatever you’re going through today or in the future. You choose how you respond. You choose what you will make of this. You don’t have to suffer

Family wanted to go to Costco right now because they are panicked. By the coronavirus. They don't understand that they are currently being manipulated by the media. No point going at rush hour when there are long lines a possibly no water etc. Better to wait for first thing in the morning when the warehouse has been restocked. This next month or so is going to be real interesting. Bottom line folks don't let the media stampede you. Use your common sense, wash hands, and take it easy it will all be over at some point.

COMMENTS

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IvysxHaven
05:05 Mar 03 2020

Yep

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IvysxHaven
05:09 Mar 03 2020

Your right, that is the media's job to distract from what is is the question, maybe another war, Who knows.

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Earthgrinder
05:29 Mar 03 2020

Right who knows.

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You are what you do. Not what you say. You'll do~Brian Tracy

"Sitting around brooding breeds self-doubt and fear. Sometimes, all that is needed to get rid of anxiety is simply to get out of the house and go for a walk. By removing yourself from your comfort zone, you are starting to combat your fears, which builds your confidence. Although it takes courage, every step becomes easier." ~ from the little book of CONFIDENCE