The thing that comes up time and time again in my daily study of Stoicism, and is an absolute necessity, is understanding the things we control so we can recognize what is not ours to control.
Things in our control:
- Our own actions
- Our thoughts
- Our reactions
Things not in our control:
- External events
- Other people’s actions or feelings
- The past
- The world around us
This concept helps us focus our time and energy on the things we can control. It allows us to wrestle with our thoughts, regulate our emotions, and choose our actions.
