Dying Every Day (Stoicism in a Year)

Perennial Leader Project
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Dying Every Day is a podcast by the Perennial Leader Project. Each episode turns a selected passage from Stoic philosophy into a guided meditation designed to help you (and me) contemplate what it means to live a ‘good’ life. Learn more at perennial.substack.com.

  1. FEB 5

    Day 137: The Flame You Carry: Musonius Rufus on Exile and Loss

    📮 Want tools for the art of living? Sign up here: https://perennial.substack.com/subscribe Welcome back to Dying Every Day. This is Day 137. The boxes are packed. The room echoes. The keys are handed over.  Something stable disappears, and suddenly the life that made sense yesterday no longer exists today. And the question appears, quietly but insistently: Where do I belong now? This is the problem Musonius Rufus addresses when he speaks about exile. And unlike many philosophers, he knew the subject firsthand. A first-century Stoic teacher—and mentor to Epictetus—Musonius was exiled more than once by Roman emperors who distrusted his influence.  He lost position, stability, and home. Yet he insisted: exile is not evil. [...] ---   🖇️ Stay Connected:  Newsletter: https://perennial.substack.com/subscribeInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/perennialmeditations/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PerennialMeditations---  🦉 Additional Resources:  Perennial Meditations archive: https://perennial.substack.com/archiveListen to more podcasts: https://www.perennialleader.com/podcasts

    7 min

  2. JAN 22

    Day 136: Memento Mori for Normal People | Dying Every Day

    📮 Want tools for the art of living? Sign up here: https://perennial.substack.com/subscribe Welcome back to Dying Every Day. This is Day 136. You don’t need a skull on your desk or a Latin motto in your bio to practice memento mori. Montaigne, a sixteenth-century philosopher influenced by the Stoics, treats mortality as a human issue rather than a rare or dramatic event. He removes death from the category of “special occasions” and places it where it truly belongs: within everyday life. Montaigne famously relies on the old saying that “to philosophize is to learn to die.” But his goal isn’t to make you morbid—it’s to make you less influenced by fear. He argues (again and again) that much of what we call “living” is really just avoidance: constant busyness, constant delay, constant mental bargaining. We postpone the hard conversation. We postpone the creative work. We postpone courage. We postpone rest. We even postpone joy. Remembering death is a way of interrupting the postponement. [...] ---   🖇️ Stay Connected:  Newsletter: https://perennial.substack.com/subscribeInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/perennialmeditations/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PerennialMeditations---  🦉 Additional Resources:  Perennial Meditations archive: https://perennial.substack.com/archiveListen to more podcasts: https://www.perennialleader.com/podcasts

    7 min

  3. 12/30/2025

    Day 135: The Philosophy of Happiness: What Actually Makes Life Good | Dying Every Day

    📮 Want tools for the art of living? Sign up here: https://perennial.substack.com/subscribe Welcome back to Dying Every Day. This is Day 135. Most people build happiness like a house on sand—on approval, outcomes, comfort, and conditions. It looks solid when the weather is calm. But when circumstances change—as they always do—the foundation gives way. Seneca insists the mistake is not bad luck, but bad architecture. “You ask me what is the foundation of a happy life?” he writes. And his answer is not comfort, success, or favorable fortune. It is internal: “a soul that is strong, upright, under control.” Not a life without trouble—but a soul that can meet trouble without being diminished by it. Happiness, in this Stoic sense, isn't a mood you just fall into when things go well. It's a foundation—a way of constructing a life that doesn't fall apart when circumstances change. ---   🖇️ Stay Connected:  Newsletter: https://perennial.substack.com/subscribeInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/perennialmeditations/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PerennialMeditations---  🦉 Additional Resources:  Perennial Meditations archive: https://perennial.substack.com/archiveListen to more podcasts: https://www.perennialleader.com/podcasts

    9 min

  4. 12/23/2025

    Day 134: The (Stoic) Discipline of Delay | Dying Every Day

    📮 Want tools for the art of living? Sign up here: https://perennial.substack.com/subscribe Welcome back to Dying Every Day. This is Day 134. We've all been there, someone interrupts you mid-sentence. The moment is small, almost forgettable—yet something tightens inside. A warmth in the chest. A quiet bracing in the jaw. The urge to correct, to defend, to be seen as right. It all happens before a single clear thought forms. And already, a choice is waiting to be made. This is the moment Seneca is speaking about. Anger enters the body before it reaches the mind. The breath shortens. The muscles tense up. A story starts to form rapidly: “They disrespected me. This is unfair. I must respond.” Before we fully realize it, the moment feels charged with necessity. Action feels urgent. Silence feels like surrender. ---   🖇️ Stay Connected:  Newsletter: https://perennial.substack.com/subscribeInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/perennialmeditations/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PerennialMeditations---  🦉 Additional Resources:  Perennial Meditations archive: https://perennial.substack.com/archiveListen to more podcasts: https://www.perennialleader.com/podcasts

    9 min

  5. 12/19/2025

    Day 133: Stoic Fundamentals with Brandon Tumblin | Dying Every Day

    📮 Want tools for the art of living? Sign up here: https://perennial.substack.com/subscribe In this episode of Dying Every Day, I’m joined by my good friend Brandon Tumblin (The Strong Stoic Newsletter) for a casual chat on the fundamentals of Stoicism. We explore practical ways to apply Stoic philosophy in daily life and reflect on life's greater purpose and the Stoic commitment to building a just society. Key Takeaways Virtue is the only true goodThe dichotomy of controlBuilding a just societyPractical tools for life’s challenges---   🖇️ Stay Connected:  Newsletter: https://perennial.substack.com/subscribeInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/perennialmeditations/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PerennialMeditations---  🦉 Additional Resources:  Perennial Meditations archive: https://perennial.substack.com/archiveListen to more podcasts: https://www.perennialleader.com/podcasts

    29 min
  6. Day 132: What the Stoics Can Teach Us About Money and Happiness | Dying Every Day

    12/01/2025

    Day 132: What the Stoics Can Teach Us About Money and Happiness | Dying Every Day

    📮 Want tools for the art of living? Sign up here: https://perennial.substack.com/subscribe In this episode of Dying Every Day, we explore the ancient wisdom behind money, prosperity, and the search for a good life. Drawing on Seneca’s teaching that 'the proper limit to a person’s wealth is first having what is essential, and second, having what is enough,' we examine why chasing more never brings contentment—and why living according to nature frees us from endless craving. With insights from Boethius, who reminds us that fortune’s gifts are always temporary, this meditation invites you to rethink your relationship with money, success, and security. Rather than fearing its loss or worshiping its presence, the Stoics show us how to hold prosperity lightly, use it wisely, and root our peace in the one form of wealth no one can steal: our character, our choices, and our inner clarity. If you’re looking for a deeper, saner way to think about money and happiness—this meditation is for you. ---   🖇️ Stay Connected:  Newsletter: https://perennial.substack.com/subscribeInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/perennialmeditations/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PerennialMeditations---  🦉 Additional Resources:  Perennial Meditations archive: https://perennial.substack.com/archiveListen to more podcasts: https://www.perennialleader.com/podcasts

    8 min
  7. Day 131: The Hard Truth About Virtue (It Takes Work) | Dying Every Day

    11/25/2025

    Day 131: The Hard Truth About Virtue (It Takes Work) | Dying Every Day

    📮 Want tools for the art of living? Sign up here: https://perennial.substack.com/subscribe In this episode of Dying Every Day, we explore the Stoic idea that virtue is a skill—something practiced, not merely understood. Drawing especially on the teachings of Musonius Rufus, the “Roman Socrates,” we look at why the Stoics believed that philosophy must be lived like an athlete trains: through repetition, effort, and real-world tests. With insights from Aristotle, Epictetus, and William James, this meditation shows how character is shaped not by what we admire or read, but by the choices we make every day—especially when they are difficult. You’ll learn why theory without practice does nothing to change us, and how small, daily actions form the habits that define who we become. If you want to train your character, not just think about it—this is your guide. ---   🖇️ Stay Connected:  Newsletter: https://perennial.substack.com/subscribeInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/perennialmeditations/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PerennialMeditations---  🦉 Additional Resources:  Explore the Perennial Meditations archive: https://perennial.substack.com/archiveListen to more podcasts: https://www.perennialleader.com/podcasts

    8 min
  8. Day 130: Why You React to Insults (and How to Stop)

    11/18/2025

    Day 130: Why You React to Insults (and How to Stop)

    📮 Want tools for the art of living? Sign up here: https://perennial.substack.com/subscribe In this meditation, we explore Seneca’s powerful teaching on emotional freedom and the art of holding your self-worth within—not in the shifting opinions of others. Seneca writes: “The wise man is invulnerable to insult… He stands above both the applause and the condemnation of the crowd, for he has placed his esteem within his own soul, where honor is incorruptible and peace undisturbed.” Most of us rise and fall with praise and criticism. A compliment lifts us, an insult wounds us, and other people’s opinions quietly dictate our mood. Seneca offers a different path—one rooted in inner stability, clarity, and self-governance. Drawing on a well-known Buddhist teaching about refusing an insult as one would an unwanted gift, and insights from modern psychology on developing an internal source of self-worth, this meditation explores how to become less reactive and more grounded in one's own principles. ---   🖇️ Stay Connected:  Newsletter: https://perennial.substack.com/subscribeInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/perennialmeditations/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PerennialMeditations---  🦉 Additional Resources:  Explore the Perennial Meditations archive: https://perennial.substack.com/archiveListen to more podcasts: https://www.perennialleader.com/podcasts

    8 min
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Dying Every Day is a podcast by the Perennial Leader Project. Each episode turns a selected passage from Stoic philosophy into a guided meditation designed to help you (and me) contemplate what it means to live a ‘good’ life. Learn more at perennial.substack.com.

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