The Strong Stoic Podcast The Walled Garden

Sharon Lebell is a bestselling author, speaker, composer, and performing musician. She wrote The Art of Living: The Classical Manual on Virtue, Happiness, and Effectiveness, which is a book I highly recommend.

In this episode, Sharon and I discuss the adventures of our lives, how to deal with the pleasant times and unpleasant times, the difference between action, thought, and intention, how to be empathetic, and more. We centre the conversation around Sam’s speech from The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers – if you are unfamiliar with that scene, I highly recommend giving it a quick YouTube search. If not, you will get the honor of hearing me read it (and no, I don’t do it with a Hobbit accent). 

This episode is also available on YouTube.
Transcripts can be found on Substack: https://strongstoic.substack.com/

Find this episode on:https://linktr.ee/Strongstoic

The Strong Stoic Podcast is a raw, honest, and unapologetically deep podcast about philosophy and self-improvement. Join your host, Brandon Tumblin, as he breaks down a wide variety of complex and difficult topics aimed at provoking thought and opening your perspective.

This podcast is listener-supported; if you would like to support the Strong Stoic (as well as gain access to exclusive content), you can do so on Patreon or Substack:
Patreon: www.patreon.com/brandontumblin
Substack: https://strongstoic.substack.com

The concept of Chaos and Order is associated with Taoism. It’s rather simple: life is divided between Chaos and Order. Too much Chaos is bad, and too much Order is bad. This is a Stoic podcast, sure, but there is much that we can gain by understanding this concept. And there may actually be more overlap than you think.

How can the concept of Chaos and Order be understood through a Stoic lens? And how can we implement this idea in our daily life?

This episode is also available on YouTube.
Transcripts can be found on Substack: https://strongstoic.substack.com/

Find this episode on:https://linktr.ee/Strongstoic

The Strong Stoic Podcast is a raw, honest, and unapologetically deep podcast about philosophy and self-improvement. Join your host, Brandon Tumblin, as he breaks down a wide variety of complex and difficult topics aimed at provoking thought and opening your perspective.

This podcast is listener-supported; if you would like to support the Strong Stoic (as well as gain access to exclusive content), you can do so on Patreon or Substack:
Patreon: www.patreon.com/brandontumblin
Substack: https://strongstoic.substack.com

Mike Ryan is an award-winning professional musician, songwriter, studio owner, and author from my home province of Nova Scotia (that’s up in Canada, eh). He also hosts a podcast, the Mike and Kristen Podcast, with his wife, Kristen Herrington, who appeared on the Strong Stoic last year on Episode #249.

In this episode, Mike and I discuss music, and the role it plays in our lives. We also talk enjoying the process on the road to success, collaborations, cold plunging, Tom Petty, our experiences being broke af, and much, much more. This conversation was a lot of fun, and I found Mike to be a very insightful, and Stoic individual. Without further ado, please welcome Mike Ryan.

Chapters
00:00 Introduction and the Role of Music in Our Lives
08:25 Collaboration and Creating Something Greater
30:35 The Power of Music: Touching Lives and Creating Connections
47:05 The Power of Music
56:34 Music as a Shared Experience
01:26:17 The Energy of Music

You can find Mike here: https://michaelsryan.com/home

This episode is also available on YouTube.
Transcripts can be found on Substack: https://strongstoic.substack.com/

Find this episode on:https://linktr.ee/Strongstoic

The Strong Stoic Podcast is a raw, honest, and unapologetically deep podcast about philosophy and self-improvement. Join your host, Brandon Tumblin, as he breaks down a wide variety of complex and difficult topics aimed at provoking thought and opening your perspective.

This podcast is listener-supported; if you would like to support the Strong Stoic (as well as gain access to exclusive content), you can do so on Patreon or Substack:
Patreon: www.patreon.com/brandontumblin
Substack: https://strongstoic.substack.com

Jealousy: we all feel it, have felt it, have grappled with it, and know that it’s toxic. There are arguments about whether anger is a useful emotion. The Stoics say “no” while many other philosophers say “sometimes”.

Jealousy, however, is very rarely considered in a positive light at all. Hence, when we feel jealousy, it’s not usually because we want to feel it. It feels outside of our control, so we just sit in it. But is it outside of our control, or can we alleviate this toxic feeling?

Keywords
jealousy, toxic feeling, control, character, stoicism, dichotomy of control, stoic Providence, psychological health

Chapters
Introduction: Jealousy as a Toxic Feeling
What is Jealousy?
The Role of Character in Overcoming Jealousy
Stoic Providence: Accepting the Circumstances of Life
Accepting the Piece of the Pie that Life Gives Us

This episode is also available on YouTube.
Transcripts can be found on Substack: https://strongstoic.substack.com/

Find this episode on:https://linktr.ee/Strongstoic

The Strong Stoic Podcast is a raw, honest, and unapologetically deep podcast about philosophy and self-improvement. Join your host, Brandon Tumblin, as he breaks down a wide variety of complex and difficult topics aimed at provoking thought and opening your perspective.

This podcast is listener-supported; if you would like to support the Strong Stoic (as well as gain access to exclusive content), you can do so on Patreon or Substack:
Patreon: www.patreon.com/brandontumblin
Substack: https://strongstoic.substack.com

Mark is a gold-medal Olympic speed skater. He won gold at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. He is also the author of The Stoic Mindset: Living the 10 Principles of Stoicism, which will be released in Canada and the USA on April 9th (yes, that’s today!).

In this episode, we talk about balancing hard work with enjoying life, courage in performance, luck and providence, and much more. Mark was a pleasure to speak with and I hope this episode proves useful.

You can find Mark here:
https://marktuitert.nl/en/


Chapters
00:00 Introduction
00:52 Striving for Excellence
02:10 Striving for Worldly Excellence and Understanding What's Truly Important
05:03 The Importance of Character and Attitude in Winning
08:32 Having a Well-Rounded Life and Avoiding Losing Oneself in a Single Pursuit
09:40 The Danger of Losing Direction After Achieving Goals
13:30 Embracing Struggle and Tension in Life
22:12 Embracing Darkness and Facing Internal Thoughts
29:33 Reconnecting with Family and Addressing Internal Struggles
32:10 Accepting and Loving Where You Come From
36:15 The Role of Luck and Providence
40:04Taking Responsibility for Your Character
44:11 Finding Inspiration in Others' Struggles
49:51 Letting Go and Surrendering to Life
55:35 Balancing Seriousness and Humor in Life


This episode is also available on YouTube.
Transcripts can be found on Substack: https://strongstoic.substack.com/

Find this episode on:https://linktr.ee/Strongstoic

The Strong Stoic Podcast is a raw, honest, and unapologetically deep podcast about philosophy and self-improvement. Join your host, Brandon Tumblin, as he breaks down a wide variety of complex and difficult topics aimed at provoking thought and opening your perspective.

This podcast is listener-supported; if you would like to support the Strong Stoic (as well as gain access to exclusive content), you can do so on Patreon or Substack:
Patreon: www.patreon.com/brandontumblin
Substack: https://strongstoic.substack.com




Keywords:
excellence, character, attitude, identity, Stoicism, competition, humility, grace, learning, setbacks, tension, struggle, courage, fear, obstacles, darkness, judgments, emotions, family relationships, stoicism, philosophy, negative energy, joy, positive emotions, relaxation, balance, athletic performance, luck, providence, surrender, outcomes, discipline, courage, love, support, agency, journey, humor, absurdity.

Seneca’s very first chapter in Letters From a Stoic is titled “On the Use of Time”. Time is something that is very paradoxical in the sense that we never feel like we have enough, yet our lives are longer than anything else we will do. Put another way, our days are often long while our days are short.

Another curious thing about time is that we all have the same amount everyday - 24 hours - yet we all use it in different ways. Some of us use it for productivity, others for pleasure, and yet others are oblivious because they are in a state of suffering. But what constitutes time well spent? What is wasted time? And how can we go about not wasting much of it?

Summary
The conversation explores the concept of time and how to avoid wasting it. It emphasizes the finite nature of time and the importance of making the most of it. Wasted time is defined as time spent not living according to nature, not fulfilling one's duty, and engaging in vice. The conversation also provides practical tips on how to spend time wisely, including getting enough sleep, exercising, and finding a job that aligns with one's nature. It concludes by emphasizing the importance of being intentional with how time is spent.

Takeaways
Time is finite, and it will eventually run out. It is important to make the most of the time we have.Wasted time is spent not living according to nature, not fulfilling one's duty, and engaging in vice.Practical tips for spending time wisely include getting enough sleep, exercising, and finding a job that aligns with one's nature.Being intentional with how time is spent is crucial for living a full life.
Chapters
On the Use of Time
Defining Wasted Time
Setting the Foundation for a Day Not Wasted
How Should We Spend Our Time?
Remaining Hours and Personal Choices
Intentionality and Unintentionality
Living a Full Life

This episode is also available on YouTube.
Transcripts can be found on Substack: https://strongstoic.substack.com/

Find this episode on:https://linktr.ee/Strongstoic

The Strong Stoic Podcast is a raw, honest, and unapologetically deep podcast about philosophy and self-improvement. Join your host, Brandon Tumblin, as he breaks down a wide variety of complex and difficult topics aimed at provoking thought and opening your perspective.

This podcast is listener-supported; if you would like to support the Strong Stoic (as well as gain access to exclusive content), you can do so on Patreon or Substack:
Patreon: www.patreon.com/brandontumblin
Substack: https://strongstoic.substack.com