Top 10 Lessons I Learned from the Enchiridion
Introduction
Hello, everyone! Today, I want to share some valuable points from the book Enchiridion by Epictetus. This book was pointed out to me during a philosophy class.
Since then, I’ve read it three times. And every time I read it, I find something new, powerful, and meaningful about life, how we do things, how we approach things, and how we live.
Please, sit down, grab a cup of tea (or coffee), and enjoy the read.
The Problem Philosophy Solves
I believe that philosophy solves a unique problem: it heals and restores our soul.
What do I mean? Have I gone crazy? Yes (and maybe no). Have you ever noticed that we wake up and immediately reach for our phones? We can barely go an hour without them, let alone without accessing the internet.
And in my opinion, this is the exact problem that philosophy solves. It helps us rediscover who we are.
Think about it with me: the questions of “Who am I?”, “What is my purpose?”, and “Where am I going?” have not been answered by the internet. On the contrary, the hole has only gotten wider and deeper.
However, the only way I see to fill this void (even partially) is:
“Know thyself, and master thyself.”
The Matrix Reference
Think about it, remember the movie The Matrix? Released in 1999, with that protagonist in the black coat and sunglasses, named Neo? It forever changed the way we think.
(Spoilers ahead)
In the iconic Kung Fu fight scene against Morpheus, notice that Neo is “reborn” from the Matrix. He’s barely used to the new plug in the back of his neck and shows discomfort when he touches it.
Note that, by lying back in a chair with a cable connected to that plug, in seconds, our dear hero and former hacker is ready. He begins his fight against Morpheus, but soon, hesitating with his new ability, he gets lost and is struck. Why did you hesitate, Neo? The knowledge is already there. What’s preventing it from flowing?
This is where philosophy comes in. We are all born with skills, “gifts,” or talents. Call them what you will. In the end, we need to connect our soul to our inner wisdom.
Therefore, after the longest and most significant introduction I’ve written in the last nine months, I will show you in the following lines how important philosophy is for everyone and why, at least in my country (Brazil), it was removed from the school curriculum.
The Top 10 Lessons
Epictetus was a slave and was lame. However, he did not allow these limitations to paralyze him. He wrote the manual for life, the Enchiridion.
There are many versions of the book. Choose the one that best suits you.
Lesson 1 – Focus Only on What Is Within Your Control First, take this gut punch.
Why do you want to earn $100,000 a month? Why do you want the Ferrari? Why do you want to be the coolest person on the block? Suspend your desires for now, my dear Jedi. Focus on what you can control. Don’t get it? You can and should achieve everything you want.
The problem is putting all your time, focus, and energy only on the end result. What’s wrong with that? Frustration. If you focus on small daily steps, you gain rhythm, consistency, and stamina. Then, as the months go by, you earn the right to enter the marathon.
Lesson 2 – Be Prepared!
Wisely written by Epictetus, who may or may not have influenced Marcus Aurelius, this maxim is related to what some call luck. How many stories have you heard of people who worked and dedicated themselves for years to a business, and when they got one chance—a single opportunity—they changed their lives for the better?
That’s right, there are few such stories; you can count them on your fingers. I myself have worked with two outliers—hard-working, focused people who, with the one chance they were given, changed the course of their lives and their families‘ lives for the much, much better. However, none of this would have happened if they hadn’t been prepared.
Lesson 3 – What Is Meant to Be, Will BeSurely
You’ve had a moment in your life when you worked and poured every drop of sweat into a goal. However, as time went on and you didn’t reach the target, disappointment started knocking at your door and living rent-free in your head.
Then, tired and slightly discouraged, you decided to rest, either by choice or out of exhaustion. Suddenly, your goal was achieved! Like a magic trick. Sometimes, we need to “let go” and let life happen.
Lesson 4 – You Already Have the Resources for Any Challenge
Before starting this website, I tried to create several different things for the internet (Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, Blogger), and the whole process was tedious. Although I tried hard, I felt something was always missing. So, I did what any sensible person would do: I sought help. Only to realize that people knew and did exactly what the vast majority did.
I completely ignored what I felt and thought about my ideas and how I wanted to create them. And so, I realized that deep down, I needed help, but not that kind of help. I was trying, failing, and most importantly, learning! After some time, I understood that I already had the resources I needed with me. And I can guarantee that we don’t know or even grasp the quantity and quality of this resource that ALL of us carry inside. Use it!
Lesson 5 – Everything Has Its Price
How many stories do you hear about someone who sucked up to the boss to get a promotion? Meanwhile, you—the humble, dedicated worker who devours the company manuals and moves mountains—are left in the dust in favor of your dear colleague.
Yes, everything has its price. You don’t know what your colleague had to do. Don’t complain if you weren’t willing to pay the price he paid. However, you always have the right to keep your integrity intact.
Lesson 6 – Look Before You Leap
I certainly spent at least two days thinking about this four-word phrase, so full of context. Imagine if I decided right now that I want to become a professional boxer. At 33, there’s still time in the sport. But what would it cost me? Diet, rigid routines, sleep, seclusion from social life, and surrendering my body to a trainer.
And only if I manage to turn pro in the next five years, my career might be short. Another 5-7 years of professional boxing? Maybe. And what if I don’t make it? How much time, energy, and resources will be spent in pursuit of the goal? Look before you leap. Pros and cons should always be weighed, in everything in life.
Lesson 7 – Nature Moves Away from What Is Harmful and Towards What Is Useful
Surely, you’ve had or have that friend who, time and again, gets you into trouble. Let me explain: you have your routine, your goals, and your life. Sometimes, on a Thursday, you just want to stay home and watch TV.
Then your friend sends a message saying, “I’ll just swing by for a minute…” Twelve beers and a hangover pill later, you’re struggling to stay awake and focused at work the next day. As the years go by, nature itself takes care of moving you away from that friend.
Lesson 8 – You Don’t Need to Know the Future
As human beings, we flirt with and love the future. There’s a mystical aura about what will happen. Notice how we’ve been fascinated with stars and numbers for thousands of years.
Although humans haven’t been given the gift of predicting the future, we desire it like the philosopher’s stone. But if we already know which events we cannot control, then we know that worrying excessively about the future is not for us.
Lesson 9 – Be True to Yourself
In my opinion, journals are the new iPhone! “Oh, come on!” you say. Let me tell you who kept journals: Marcus Aurelius, war generals, Churchill. What’s the connection between a journal and being true? I know many people don’t go to therapy, as it can be difficult emotionally and financially.
The cheapest and most accessible way I know to do therapy is with pen and paper (or a keyboard). Paper, Docs, WhatsApp, Telegram, Notion… it doesn’t matter where. We men were taught that writing down our thoughts and feelings was “for girls,” only to later see the same people who said that sink into alcohol, drugs, and who knows what else. If you are honest with yourself about what you think, feel, and do, no one can shake you—not with words, not with actions. You have mastered yourself.
Lesson 10 – Treat Your Critics with Compassion
Everyone—I mean, absolutely everyone—wants to criticize you whenever you change or try something new. Never, ever, under any circumstances, ask for someone’s opinion. Instead, trust your intuition.
Talk to God or your deity. But do not retreat. If you retreat, you will fail twice: for not starting the movement, and for empowering the hater.
Therefore, if you can stay true to your purpose, principles, and beliefs, you will earn the right to dine with the Gods. But if you help your critics even after they’ve attacked you for changing, you will be served as one of them.
Fortune Cookie
You are not what you have. Stop living for appearances. Live for what you believe in. Your integrity is worth more than all the wealth the world has ever seen.
Bonus: Your actions are the only thing you can be proud of.
When no one is looking, you pick up trash from the street.
When no one is looking, you help someone at the grocery store pay for their items.
When no one is looking, you study for hours on end to finish your degree.
When no one is looking, you lie down, tired, in your bed—the one you worked hard to buy—and rest your head on your pillow, which took months to acquire because you wanted the best that YOUR money could buy.
You remember what you did during your day, and a subtle smile plays on your lips. Happiness fills your heart, and you feel complete because you did the right thing.
Conclusion
I’ll stop here before I become a nuisance. That’s all for this post. See you soon!