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The Stoic Handbook with Jon Brooks

The Stoic Handbook with Jon Brooks

By: Jon Brooks
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You've read the books. You know what Marcus Aurelius would do. But when life gets hard, the philosophy disappears. This podcast is for people who want to close the gap between knowing Stoicism and actually living it. New episodes every Monday.

© 2026 The Stoic Handbook with Jon Brooks
Hygiene & Healthy Living Personal Development Personal Success Philosophy Psychology Psychology & Mental Health Social Sciences
Episodes
  • 91% of Goals Fail — A Stoic Philosopher Explained Why 2,000 Years Ago
    Mar 16 2026

    Start here: If you want to build a consistent Stoic practice — not just listen to one — I made a free 7-day challenge. One short audio lesson per day, one practice to try. No fluff. stoicchallenge.co

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    Most resolutions fail because they're built wrong — not because you lack willpower. Epictetus figured out why 2,000 years ago.

    In this video I break down three tests from Stoic philosophy that expose whether your goal is real or just fantasy dressed up with good intentions: Control, Cost, and Consistency. Then I take six of the most common resolutions — get fit, save money, get promoted, be happier, quit social media, read more — and show you exactly how each one fails and what the Stoic fix looks like.

    At the end there's a simple scoring system you can use right now to test whether your goals will actually stick.

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    18 mins
  • Stoic Morning Energy Boost: 5 Minutes To Wake Up Ready
    Mar 14 2026

    Some mornings you don't need calm — you need to wake up. This 5-minute Stoic practice is built for the mornings when your body is out of bed but your mind hasn't followed.

    You'll move through five rounds of power breathing to flood your system with energy, then a short visualisation of yourself moving through the day ahead with purpose and presence. No easing in. No extended relaxation. Just a sharp, deliberate start.

    The anchor is a line from Seneca: we don't lack time — we waste it. This practice makes sure you don't waste the first five minutes.

    Stand if you can. Press play before your phone gets a chance to set the tone.

    For best results, use this on sluggish mornings for 30 days. It works fastest when it becomes the thing you reach for before caffeine.

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    4 mins
  • Your Opinions Aren't Observations — They're Demands
    Mar 10 2026

    Start here: If you want to build a consistent Stoic practice — not just listen to one — I made a free 7-day challenge. One short audio lesson per day, one practice to try. No fluff. stoicchallenge.co

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    You form hundreds of opinions a day. About the news, about your colleagues, about the person in front of you in the queue. They feel automatic — like seeing. But they're not observations. They're tiny laws you're writing inside your own skull. And then you have to enforce them.

    Marcus Aurelius buried one of his best lines in Book Six of the Meditations: "It is in your power to have no opinion about a thing — and not to be disturbed in your soul." In this episode I unpack what that actually means in practice — not suppressing your reactions, but noticing the gap between an impression and a judgment, and choosing not to legislate.

    You'll walk away with one question to ask yourself this week when an opinion forms: Does this need legislating?

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    9 mins
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