Blink:                       

Via several social platforms plus a newsletter, I have been studying the ancient Greek philosophy Stoicism which is making a resurgence (Stoicism 2.0). I wondered what Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius who ruled the world 1050 AD, one of the leaders of Stoicism, would think of all the online Stoic clutter/noise.

Read On:

Meditations, Marcus Aurelius’s personal journal, private thoughts, documenting/applying Stoic philosophy to his life has evolved into a world renown self-improvement classic. When reading his philosophy, I always wonder if Marcus writing for himself, to himself, to review the principles of Stoicism envisioned his journaling would reach/impact such a wide audience, plus more importantly be monetized by several authors. Championing the current revival and spreading the Stoic philosophy is an American author/philosopher, marketing entrepreneur and media strategist. Candidly I have muddled thoughts about this individual. The marketing entrepreneur side of me respects how he has broadly communicated the renaissance of Stoicism, but conversely, I am turned off by his non-stop “c’est moi” social media broadcasting (a.k.a. in your face sales pitch). Consequently, to avoid the potential of an online trolling situation by naming this individual, I will dub him the “digital stoic huckster” for the remainder of this post.

One definition of a huckster is a person who sells small items door-to-door or from a stall or small store. Candidly I admit I am being critical of the Stoicism revivalist I mentioned above. Detailed below are some examples of why I believe he has evolved from an advocate of the ancient philosophy to a modern day “digital stoic huckster.”     

• World Tour – The 2024 Stoic Life tour is coming to Europe (my hood) soon. In addition to buying tickets to a Stoic Life event, as a newsletter subscriber I am eligible to purchase a special VIP backstage pass for a first-hand Q&A session with the “digital stoic huckster.”

• Stoicism Crash Course – As a closing call to action in one of my daily newsletters I was offered the “digital stoic huckster’s” 101 Stoicism course to learn actionable lessons in just 14 days: how best to cultivate inner peace, prioritize what truly matters, develop rock-solid self-discipline, overcome obstacles with a positive mindset, as well as embrace change and uncertainty. I know I sometimes can be slow, fixed in my ways, but at age 71, it is taking me a lifetime to learn how best to manage my daily life. I cannot even Imagine having my life all figure out in 14 days!

• Journaling – All of the Stoic philosophers kept journals of their daily endeavors, as in conduct self-examination to best process their thoughts. As I read the guide to journaling newsletter there was a link to a $75 special offer, 25% off their regular price if I bought both the Stoic Life Journal with a Leather cover (ethically sourced, genuine full-grain leather, hand-crafted in Minneapolis, MN). FYI: I journal, but over the years I have used black & white marbled cover composition notebooks, the same type I used in grade school. Now I am digital.

What do you think emperor Marcus Aurelius, one of the leaders of Stoicism who ruled the world 1050 AD (pre-internet), would think of all the online 2024 monetized Stoic clutter/noise?

Opinions Welcomed!