Daily reflections are nothing new and date back to ancient Greece and Rome, described first in The Golden Verses of Pythagoras (6th-century B.C.E). Nonetheless, we believe writing is easily one of the best vehicles for selfimprovement which 100% coincides with the ideal Stoic lifestyle many of us aim to achieve.

You may find that the most common misconception about journaling is that it’s used solely for writing down your feelings or venting frustrations. However, used correctly, journaling is a way of keeping yourself in check, as it can aid in holding you accountable for your thoughts and subsequent actions. You can also use journaling to reflect on each day and work out how to do better moving forward.

Examples of journaling from the Big Three Stoics

Failure to read what is happening in another's soul is not easily seen as a cause of unhappiness: but those who fail to attend to the motions of their own soul are necessarily unhappy. - Marcus Aurelius, Meditations (2.8)

Marcus Aurelius

Perhaps the most famed Stoic of today’s age was a huge advocate for journaling. Meditations was not intended to be read by anyone but written as a private notebook, originally named To Himself, penned whilst situated on the Germanic frontlines, and only gaining popularity many centuries later posthumously.

Marcus Aurelius exercised a few different methods of journaling. He reflected on his actions, whether he was living in accordance with his principles; and where he expressed gratitude for people and the lessons he had learned. He also rewrote Stoic teachings in his own words to help him gain a deeper understanding.

These methods are powerful tools to help you figure out if you are living life according to your principles and ethics. They can also be used as a way to understand how you’ve perhaps gone wrong and how you can improve when faced with similar situations or dilemmas in the future.

Seneca the Younger

The Roman statesman and playwright Seneca the Younger is a tad different from Marcus because he wanted his writings to be discovered. There’s evidence of Seneca writing knowing that others would read his letters and inner thoughts one day. However, this doesn’t mean that we can’t take great value from what he wrote about in terms of benefitting from journaling.

Seneca used his journaling primarily as a means of reflection upon his day; for selfexamination, by using it as a way to “plead at his court”. His reasoning behind this was to analyze his actions and to lead by example. Primarily this is an invaluable tool for growth, overcoming adversities, and making sure you don’t repeat the same mistakes.

Epictetus

Despite being the most famous Stoic teacher, Epictetus did not write anything down, as far as we know. His words and teachings were transcribed by Arrian of Nicomedia, who attended the lectures of Epictetus in Greece. Arrian was a well respected, highly educated Roman statesman, and four of the eight discourses he transcribed of Epictetus have survived (thankfully for us).

Discourses includes a daily routine devised by Epictetus for his students that favours journaling. These techniques are based loosely on The Golden Verses of Pythagoras, in which we find out more about selfreflection, and improvement.

A useful exercise

There’s a famed three-pronged technique we take from the ancients that is our favourite way to journal at night, and we find it effective for putting the day to rest and planning for the following one, fate permitting. Each evening you sit down in a quiet area and review your progress by asking yourself three simple questions, which are paraphrased as follows:

1. What have I done well today? (Think of personal development, achieving key goals, and how you treated others.)
2. Where did I go wrong? (Think about what you let slip by, false promises you made, or anyone you’ve ignored.)
3. What could I do better tomorrow? (Think about others, your personal goals for the day, and righting any wrongs from yesterday.)

Speaking from personal experience, completing this exercise nightly has allowed me to track my progress, hold myself accountable for my actions, and hopefully make me act better towards my fellow man. Give it a try!

Enda Harte is a music management consultant living in Sweden. He writes about Stoic ethics and history online.

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