Aug. 14, 2025

MM#427---Not ANY Action, BUT Directed Action

FAN MAIL--We would love YOUR feedback--Send us a Text Message "Whatever we face, we have a choice. Will we be blocked by obstacles or will we advance through and over them?" This powerful question, posed by Ryan Holiday in his bestselling book "The Obstacle Is the Way," frames our exploration of ancient Stoic wisdom and its remarkable relevance to modern challenges. We dive deep into the philosophical foundation that transformed emperors into legends, examining Marcus Aurelius—the Roman empe...

FAN MAIL--We would love YOUR feedback--Send us a Text Message

"Whatever we face, we have a choice. Will we be blocked by obstacles or will we advance through and over them?" This powerful question, posed by Ryan Holiday in his bestselling book "The Obstacle Is the Way," frames our exploration of ancient Stoic wisdom and its remarkable relevance to modern challenges.

We dive deep into the philosophical foundation that transformed emperors into legends, examining Marcus Aurelius—the Roman emperor who ruled during plague and war yet maintained unwavering wisdom and integrity. His personal journal, "Meditations," continues to inspire millions with its practical guidance on resilience and virtue. As the last of Rome's "Five Good Emperors," Aurelius embodied the Stoic principles that teach us to focus on what we can control while accepting what we cannot.

This Mojo Minute unpacks the profound yet simple truth that what stands in our way often becomes the way forward. We distinguish between mere action and "directed action"—the thoughtful, purposeful steps that truly move us toward our goals. "Action is commonplace. Right action is not," Holiday reminds us, highlighting that persistence without deliberation misses the mark. True progress comes from approaching obstacles with courage, creativity, and a clear mind.

Whether you're facing personal challenges, professional setbacks, or simply seeking a more resilient mindset, these timeless Stoic principles offer practical wisdom for transforming obstacles into opportunities. Join us as we explore how to take directed action with "deliberation, boldness and persistence" to create a flourishing life. Visit teammojoacademy.com for additional resources and continue your journey toward meaningful growth through adversity.

Key Points from the Episode:

• Marcus Aurelius (121-180 AD) was a Roman emperor and Stoic philosopher who wrote "Meditations"
• He was the last of Rome's "Five Good Emperors" known for wisdom despite facing plague and wars
• Stoicism teaches virtue, self-control, emotional resilience, and focusing only on what you can control
• Ryan Holiday's "The Obstacle Is the Way" brought these ancient teachings to modern audiences
• The key distinction between common action and "directed action" with deliberation and persistence
• We must take action with boldness and persistence, but also with careful deliberation

Keep fighting the good fight on the road to a flourishing life. Check out our show page at teammojoacademy.com for everything we discussed and other great resources.

Other resources:

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00:00 - Welcome and Opening Quote

01:37 - Marcus Aurelius and The Five Good Emperors

05:46 - Understanding Stoicism and Meditations

07:50 - The Obstacle Is The Way

09:52 - Taking Directed Action

10:42 - Closing and Call to Action

WEBVTT

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Welcome to the Theory to Action podcast, where we examine the timeless treasures of wisdom from the great books in less time, to help you take action immediately and ultimately to create and lead a flourishing life.

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Now here's your host, david Kaiser.

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Hello, I am David and welcome back to another Mojo Minute.

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As is our custom, let's begin with the opening quote.

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Whatever we face, we have a choice.

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Will we be blocked by obstacles or will we advance through and over them?

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We might not be emperors, but the world is still constantly testing us.

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It asks are you worthy?

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Can you get past the things that inevitably fall in your way?

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Will you stand up and show us what you're made of?

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Plenty of people have answered this question in the affirmative, and a rarer breed still has shown that they not only have what it takes, but they thrive and rally at every such challenge, that challenge, that the challenge makes them better than if they had never faced the adversity at all, face the adversity at all.

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And that quote comes to us.

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It's a quite famous quote.

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Actually Comes to us from the opening of the book, a world famous book at that, best-selling book too, ryan Holiday's the Obstacle is the Way.

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Now, if you have dug any deeper on that quote, you might be familiar with this world famous quote as well.

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The impediment to action advances the action.

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What stands in the way becomes the way.

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That was said by the famous Marcus Aurelius.

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Who in the world is Marcus Aurelius, and what is this notion of what stands in the way becomes the way, or, simply put, the obstacle is the way.

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Well, let's answer the first question.

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Well, first, who was Marcus Aurelius?

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He was born in 121, lived to 180 AD, was a Roman emperor from 161 to 180, and he was a Stoic philosopher.

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He was born into a prominent family.

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He was adopted by the emperor, antonius Pius, grooming him for leadership.

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When he was emperor, he faced challenges like the Antonine Plague, germanic invasions and internal rebellions.

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Yet he maintained a reputation among the people for wisdom and integrity.

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His personal writings, known as the Meditations, reflect his Stoic beliefs.

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They emphasize virtue, self-discipline and acceptance of fate.

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Despite ruling during turbulent times, he's remembered as one of Rome's five good emperors.

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He blended philosophical introspection with pragmatic governance.

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Now, who in the world were these five quote good emperors?

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Well, these five good emperors of Rome were known for their effective and stable role during the Pax Romana, which is the Peace of Rome.

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Remember, this is after the Roman Empire, or the Roman Republic fell and we are in the empire by then.

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The first of the five good emperors is Nerva, ruling from 96 to 98 AD.

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Chosen as the emperor after Nerva Dominion's assassination.

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He restored senatorial rights and initiated an adoptive succession system.

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The second of the five good emperors is Trajan.

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From 98 to 117 AD, he expanded the empire to the greatest extent.

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He's known for his military conquest and public works like Trajan's Column and social welfare programs.

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The next of the five big three is Hadrian.

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Hadrian ruled from 117 to 138 AD, consolidated the empire.

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He built Hadrian's Wall in Britain and focused on cultural and architectural projects like the Pantheon and Rome.

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The next of the five good emperors was Antonius Pius, ruled from 138 to 161 AD very long, stable reign.

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He used his diplomatic skill to avoid major conflicts and maintained peace and prosperity throughout the empire.

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And the final one is Marcus Aurelius.

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We've already mentioned him from 161 to 180.

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He was a stoic philosopher and emperor and, like we said, he faced the Antonine Plague and wars and authored a great book.

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The Meditations rolled with wisdom despite challenges.

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Now, those five good quote unquote emperors were discovered and later praised by historians like Edward Gibbon and others for their competence and adoptive succession of each of the emperors, contrasting with later instability.

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Now, what was this Marcus Aurelius' Meditations?

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Well, as best as we can tell, meditations was a collection of the personal writings of the Roman emperor.

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They were written in Greek during his military campaigns and private moments.

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They certainly were not intended for publication.

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It was a series of philosophical reflections, aphorisms and Stoic self-exhortations rooted in Stoic philosophy.

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It was divided into 12 books.

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It explores themes like virtue, self-discipline, rationality and acceptance of fate.

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Marcus wrote it to guide himself really through the challenges, emphasizing resilience and humility and trying to live in accordance with nature.

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Now it was rediscovered in the Renaissance and it remains to today as a timeless guide for Stoic thought and personal ethics.

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Now that's all interesting, but it begs the question what is Stoicism?

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Stoicism is an ancient Greek Roman philosophy, founded in Athens by Zeno of Sidium in the third century BC, teaches the path to a virtuous and fulfilling life lies in practicing self-control, reason and emotional resilience.

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Most importantly for us, the key principles are virtue is the highest good.

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You can only control what you can.

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Emotional resilience is paramount and living according to nature is emphasized.

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Now, as Christianity wanes in the West, today, Stoicism has increased in popularity.

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West today, stoicism has increased in popularity for its actionable advice, especially in handling adversity and maintaining mental clarity.

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Now, what does all this have to do with the Ryan Holliday book?

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Well, this was Ryan Holliday's third book, but his first book on Stoicism was Ryan Holliday's third book, but his first book on Stoicism.

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Now, many don't know that Ryan Holliday was mentioned by the great author Robert Greene.

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You might know Robert Greene from his books such as Power, the Laws of Human Nature and Mastery.

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Now Robert Greene pushed Ryan to go deeper, into more meaningful topics after his first two books, and so his third book was Obstacle is the Way, written in 2014.

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In fact, let's go back to the book for one of the most heartwarming quotes from the book.

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What is action?

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Action is commonplace.

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Right action is not as a discipline.

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It's not any kind of action that will do, but directed action.

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Everything must be done in the service of the whole.

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Step by step, action by action, we will dismantle the obstacles in front of us.

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With persistence and flexibility, we will act in the best interest of our goals.

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Action requires courage, not brashness.

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Creative application and not brute force, with deliberation, boldness and persistence.

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Those are the attributes of right and effective action.

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Nothing else, not thinking or evasion or aid from others.

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Action is the solution and the cure to our predicaments.

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Ah, yes, I love the nuance that he describes there.

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Action is commonplace.

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Right action is not.

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Not any kind of action will do, but directed action.

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Amen, amen, folks, that just warms my heart here at the Theory to Action podcast.

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Can you understand the nuance?

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We appreciate it greatly.

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Not any action, but directed action is important.

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So in today's Mojo Minute, let us reflect.

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Are we taking directed action after getting our minds right?

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Are we taking that action with boldness, persistence, but also with deliberation?

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Persistence but also with deliberation?

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Key difference is not just acting to act, but deliberation is key too.

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Let us re-examine ourselves today and make those slight adjustments to our taking of action.

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If we do so, we will be on the road to a flourishing life and, as always, keep fighting the good fight on the road to a flourishing life and, as always, keep fighting the good fight.

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Thank you for joining us.

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We hope you enjoyed this Theory to Action podcast.

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Be sure to check out our show page at teammojoacademycom, where we have everything we discussed in this podcast, as well as other great resources.

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Until next time, keep getting your mojo on.