In the first century AD, few would have argued that Epictetus was the most powerful person in Rome. Few would have argued that this lowly slave possessed any power at all–in fact, the name said it all: Epictetus means acquired one.

Yet what philosophy helped Epictetus come to understand was that it was actually Nero and the other ‘powerful’ men and women of the time who were the slaves. They were the ones who had been acquired–by ambition, by desire, by aversions, by insecurities, by money, by fame.

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And with today's Daily Stoic Journal excerpt reading, Ryan discusses the importance of working to see the two courses of thought and action that you can take in any given situation, and striving to pick the right one.

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