The Strong Stoic Podcast

Епизоде

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  The Price of Getting What You Want | Episode 431 15.09.2026 19мин

  If you attain something without integrity, the thing you attain will always have power over you. In The Hobbit, Gollum’s relationship with the Ring begins with murder. Bilbo’s begins with pity and mercy. Both possess the same corrupting object, but it does not shape them in the same way. In this episode, I use Bilbo and the Ring to explore the Stoic concept of preferred indifferents: money, power, status, health, and possessions. These things may be worth pursuing, but they cannot make us goo...
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  AI Could Kill Us by 2030. But That’s Not the Real Problem 12.09.2026 14мин

  A former Anthropic researcher recently went on CNN and made a startling claim: AI could pose an existential threat to humanity within the next few years. I’m not an AI researcher, and I’m not here to tell you whether that prediction is right. What interests me is the much older—and much more human—problem underneath it: Human beings have a habit of developing power before developing the wisdom necessary to wield it. We did it with nuclear weapons. We’ve done it with countless technologies...
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  Is Ryan Holiday Wrong About Stoic Success? | Episode 430 08.09.2026 22мин

  Ryan Holiday has introduced millions of people to Stoicism. But is what he teaches about success actually consistent with what the ancient Stoics taught? In this episode, I take a closer look at several of Holiday’s claims about success—not to tear him down, but to test those ideas against the philosophy itself. We explore why Stoic success cannot be measured purely by outcomes, what the Stoics actually meant by preferred indifferents, why making more money isn’t necessarily the Stoic choice,...
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  The Soul Is Dyed by Its Thoughts | Marcus Aurelius | Episode 429 01.09.2026 16мин

  If someone could hear your thoughts for a week, who would they expect you to become? Marcus Aurelius wrote that “the soul becomes dyed with the color of its thoughts.” But not every thought stains us. An unwanted impulse is not character. The danger lies in the thoughts we repeatedly entertain, rehearse, defend, and eventually act upon. In Episode 429, Brandon explores how thoughts become words, words become actions, actions become habits, and habits become character. He examines why our spee...
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  David Goggins: Strength or Self-Punishment? | Episode 428 25.08.2026 23мин

  David Goggins believes in scheduled suffering, rejecting motivation and refusing to stop before the work is done. His philosophy has helped millions confront comfort, excuses and unrealized potential. But is Goggins actually a Stoic—and when does relentless discipline become self-punishment? In this episode, Brandon examines eight of Goggins’ central ideas through a Stoic lens, including the 40% Rule, voluntary discomfort, accepting help, recovery, permanent change and the difficult decision ...
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  Choose Your Regrets: How to Live Intentionally | Joshua Bertolotti | Episode 427 18.08.2026 47мин

  Living intentionally does not mean avoiding regret. It means deciding which regrets you are willing to carry. In this episode, Brandon is joined by Joshua Bertolotti for an honest conversation about busyness, rest, vulnerability and the difficult work of examining your own life. They discuss why we often plan ordinary tasks more carefully than our futures, how constant activity can conceal exhaustion, and why slowing down is sometimes the most responsible thing we can do. The conversation als...
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  Why Certain People Get Under Your Skin | Episode 426 11.08.2026 21мин

  Why do certain insults stay with us while others have no effect at all? In this episode of The Strong Stoic Podcast, I examine what our emotional reactions reveal about us—and how to respond to difficult people without becoming passive, cruel, or emotionally numb. Sometimes anger exposes an insecurity. Sometimes contempt points toward a version of ourselves we fear becoming. Sometimes we suffer because we decided another person owed us respect, recognition, affection, or fairness. The Stoi...
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  Boundaries Are an Act of Connection | Episode 425 04.08.2026 19мин

  Resentment often begins where an important boundary remains unspoken. In Episode 425, we examine why boundaries exist in every healthy relationship—and why setting one is not necessarily an act of rejection. A clear boundary tells another person what matters, what you are willing to participate in, and what you will do if the line is crossed. We also explore the difference between boundaries and preferences, the discomfort of receiving someone else’s boundary, and the danger of becoming so ri...
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  When You Stop Loving What You Once Loved | Episode 424 28.07.2026 15мин

  Have you ever stopped enjoying something that once gave your life meaning? Maybe it's the guitar that now gathers dust. The running shoes that haven't left the closet. The books you used to devour but can't seem to pick up anymore. In this episode, I explore why our interests naturally change throughout life, why there's nothing wrong with losing a passion, and what Stoicism has to teach us about work, play, gratitude, and non-attachment. Sometimes the healthiest thing we can do isn't force o...
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  Becoming Someone You Respect | Episode 423 21.07.2026 14мин

  Have you ever looked in the mirror and realized you’ve become someone you don’t respect? I have. In this deeply personal episode, I share a chapter of my life I’ve rarely talked about—the years after university when I slowly drifted into complacency. What began as well-earned rest became laziness, comfort, and eventually shame. One day I looked at the man I was becoming… and I didn’t like him. This episode is about the long, humbling process of rebuilding your character. We explore: Why good ...
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  You’ve Never Seen What You’re Truly Capable Of | Episode 422 14.07.2026 11мин

  Most people believe they know their limits. The truth is, they only know where they’ve chosen to stop. In this episode, I explore one of the biggest lies we tell ourselves—that discomfort equals incapability. Whether it’s grief, parenthood, illness, failure, or unexpected responsibility, history shows that ordinary people repeatedly rise to challenges they once believed impossible. Like the reserve tank in your vehicle, human beings often have far more left than they realize. Drawing from Sto...
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  Corey Robinson | Who Are You When the Crowd Is Gone? | Episode 421 07.07.2026 1ч 16мин

  Most of us don’t wake up wanting to be selfish, impatient, or unkind. So why is being good so difficult? In this conversation, I sit down once again with Corey to explore one of the oldest questions in philosophy, faith, and everyday life. Beginning with Rudyard Kipling’s timeless poem If—, we unpack what it really means to choose goodness when life becomes uncomfortable. We discuss why ego fights humility, why justice feels so personal, why suffering can either harden us or deepen us, and wh...
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  The Courage to Chase the Life That's Calling You | Episode 420 30.06.2026 17мин

  Most people hear Walk on the Moon and think about astronauts. I think about ordinary people doing extraordinary things. The father holding his newborn. The recovering alcoholic walking into their first meeting. The woman rebuilding her life after divorce. The man finally leaving the job that’s been draining him for years. We all have a “walk on the moon.” In this episode, I use one of my favorite songs as a lens to explore courage, regret, fear, Stoicism, and what it really ...
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  Give Your Past Self Some Grace | Episode 419 23.06.2026 14мин

  We all know we should learn from our mistakes. But somewhere along the way, many of us confuse self-reflection with self-punishment. In this episode, I explore the difference between shadow work and self-loathing. Drawing from Stoicism, Carl Jung, Seneca, Dostoevsky, and Tolkien, I examine why looking honestly at our flaws is necessary—and why beating ourselves up for them isn’t. The goal isn’t to ignore your mistakes. The goal is to face them honestly, learn from them, and move forward witho...
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  Everything You Have Is Borrowed (Including Your Strength) | Episode 418 16.06.2026 17мин

  As we grow stronger, wiser, healthier, and more disciplined, a subtle danger emerges: contempt. It's easy to celebrate strength. It's much harder to remain compassionate toward weakness—especially the weaknesses we once saw in ourselves. In this episode, I explore a paradox at the heart of Stoicism: how to pursue excellence without developing disdain for those who are still struggling. From the gym floor to leadership, from courage to cowardice, the Stoics remind us that virtue should produce...
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  Kyle Sarka | The Strange Comfort of Mortality | Episode 417 09.06.2026 1ч 1мин

  What happens when someone you love dies? In this conversation, I sit down with a returning guest shortly after the loss of his father. We explore grief, mortality, legacy, and the strange reality that every person we meet was once a child, a son, a daughter, and a dream in someone else’s mind. We discuss Stoic perspectives on death, why history remembers some people and forgets others, the danger of judging people without understanding their circumstances, and what it means to leave something...
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  How to Move Forward When Everything Feels Heavy | Episode 416 02.06.2026 18мин

  Sometimes the hardest part isn’t the workout, the meeting, the difficult conversation, or the grieving process. It’s the first step. In this episode, Brandon reflects on a lesson shared by Jeff Nippard following the tragic loss of his partner and explores how a simple idea—just take the first step—can help us navigate grief, fear, depression, and resistance. Drawing on personal experiences from the isolation of the COVID lockdowns and the Stoic understanding of courage, Brandon explains why m...
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  You Will Be Forgotten - And That's Beautiful | Episode 415 26.05.2026 16мин

  Most extraordinary people are never famous. History remembers a few names — Marcus Aurelius, Churchill, Dostoevsky — but civilization itself is carried forward by ordinary people doing small things faithfully. Good fathers. Loyal friends. Honest workers. Men and women who plant trees whose shade they will never sit under. In this episode, I reflect on anonymous greatness, mortality, forgotten ancestors, war, courage, and why being forgotten may actually be one of the most beautiful truths abo...
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  The Difference Between Solitude and Loneliness | Episode 414 19.05.2026 14мин

  Most people think the worst thing in the world is being alone. But the Stoics made an important distinction between loneliness and solitude. Loneliness is the painful feeling of disconnection — the sense that you do not belong, that no one truly sees you, understands you, or stands beside you. Solitude, however, is something entirely different. Solitude is peace within yourself. It is the ability to sit quietly in your own company without needing distraction, validation, or noise. In this epi...
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  The Root Cause of a Bad Life | Episode 413 12.05.2026 14мин

  Most people are trying to fix symptoms instead of causes. You miss the gym and think you lack discipline. You eat poorly and think you have weak willpower. You feel exhausted and think you’ve become lazy. But what if those aren’t the real problem? In this episode, I talk about root causes — the foundational issues underneath the visible struggles in our lives. I use my recent work travel and disrupted sleep routine as an example of how one weak pillar can quietly affect everything else: mood,...