The holidays are getting ready to ambush us. Our daily lives are getting more and more "turbulent", just like the world events. We’d have good reasons to be pessimistic, some would say. But in my personal experience, that’s not the Stoic mindset. Just reading a few letters from Seneca is sometimes enough to go back to work with renewed motivation, vigour, and grit. Why? As usual, I’ll let the masters speak and answer in their own words. And I’ll share my own experience of Stoic optimism, hoping it can help my fellow Stoics, instead of taking the stance of a theory expert.

Concerning pessimism and the "bad things" that happen, let's zoom out and take the view from above: nihil novum sub sole , as the Romans would say. The craziness and turbulence on this earth have been going on for many, many centuries now. There’s nothing new. The same is true for the turbulence in individual human lives. Are we really surprised?

Concerning optimism, in my lived experience there’s one special text from Seneca that hits you straight in the gut and uplifts your mindset. Let me share excerpts from this lesser-known work, De Providentia , which I reread whenever I start feeling overwhelmed by "problems." It’s also a good read for the beginning of the year.

The strong Stoic man considers all difficulties as strength exercises, as mind-training. Problems are merely trials of his own firmness. I’m not saying that he does not feel them, but he defeats them. Lucilius, is there any good man who, being upright and aiming at noble things, is not eager for hard work and is not ready for his mission in spite of danger? For a courageous and hard-working man, idleness is a punishment. Brother, see how top athletes only train with other top athletes. See how professional fighters only train with the strongest men. They insist that, during training, their opponents fight them with full strength. They endure punches and elbows in the face, and if they cannot find any fighter who is their match, they challenge many of them at the same time. Without a tough adversary, their strength and courage would drop down. Champions can only prove their greatness by showing how much they can resist and how many tough situations they can conquer.

Understand, brother, that good men and women must operate in the same way: not fearing their hardships and difficulties, not lamenting any hard fate, willingly taking part in whatever happens and forcing "bad" things to become good things for them. The strong Stoic man forces troubles and setbacks to become blessings to him. It does not matter what fate you receive, Lucilius, but how you handle it. [ … ]

Nature does not pet the good man: she tests him, hardens him, and prepares him for his best self. [ … ]

These things that seem to be "bad things" for you are not "bad." What you call hardships, setbacks, pains, problems, obstacles, and difficulties are in fact good for you and to your advantage. These "bad things" must be received willingly and boldly by the strong Stoic man.

Hard fate is part of the same cycle that makes a man tough and hardened. So, my dear, stop lamenting the "bad things" that happen to good excellent men: even when they endure wretched and depressing things, they’re not wretched nor depressed. [ … ]

It is to the advantage of all mankind that the best of men should be on "active service" and perform "hard work." - Seneca, De Providentia, Chapters I, II, III, and V ) , Seneca for Modern Readers, 3

We all know the saying: What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. But knowing something and feeling something in your gut at all times are two different things. In my own Stoic path, that’s why I need a wise and funny mentor like Seneca to forge these truths deeper in my soul.

Let’s conclude with this echo from Marcus Aurelius, and let’s have a great year:

Everything that happens—either it’s made for you to handle, or it’s not.

If it’s in your nature to bear it, don’t complain. Just bear it.

If it’s not—same rule: don’t complain. It’ll destroy you, and destroy itself in the process.

Remember: your opinion makes anything bearable or unbearable. Change the way you see it, and you change the weight you carry.

- Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 10

Philippe Belanger MD is a practicing physician with a passion for Stoicism. He is a translator of Stoic Classics, including the Best-Seller Seneca – Letters from a Stoic Master: Complete Letters to Lucilius Adapted for Modern Readers.

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