In the 2010s, Ryan Holiday was the head of marketing for the controversial clothing brand American Apparel, and the sought-after media strategist for people like the womanizing blogger Tucker Max. Then he wrote an exposé called Trust Me, I’m Lying, which lifted the veil on his world of media manipulation.
Now, he is an advocate of the ancient philosophy of stoicism, which he roughly defines as the idea that we do not control what happens but we do control how we respond, and that it’s best to respond with four key virtues: courage, wisdom, temperance, and justice.
His series of books on stoic virtues have sold over three million copies worldwide. His latest book, Right Thing, Right Now, is about the necessity of living justly—even when it is hard.
Today: why power corrupts, how ego can destroy you, whether we should remain loyal to people even when they do abhorrent things, the limits of free speech, and how to treat people in our everyday lives.
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I love Ryan Holiday's books but I have a hard time dealing with his Trump Derangement Syndrome. Like Sam Harris, it befuddles me how someone who truly understands how important it is to recognize that we have so much control of our lives can frankly lose their minds when Donald Trump is brought up.
A couple of years ago, Holiday published a letter he wrote to his father, admonishing him for his support of Trump. That lack of respect seems to be (and I know I'm generalizing) consistent amongst those left-leaning people that think they know all the answers and anyone conservative is fundamentally a savage.
Stoicism has had a big impact on how I live my life and I do appreciate the work Holiday has done to bring stoicism to more people. And just like Trump, I can put aside his unseemly parts recognizing the tremendous benefits of him bringing this country back to some sense of normality.
Stoicism can be summated: "Lord, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the strength and courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference."