[ DISCLAIMER ]   As Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy  (REBT) is informed by Stoic philosophy , this blog entry is part of an ongoing series regarding a book entitled The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living  by Ryan Holiday  and Stephen Hanselman .   Have you given much thought about personal standards (levels of quality, achievement, performance, etc., which are considered acceptable or desirable )? Regarding this matter, authors of

[ DISCLAIMER ]   When in elementary school, I visited a Chinese food restaurant in Bomb City  with my assigned big brother from Big Brothers Big Sisters of America  (a non-profit organization that creates and supports one-to-one mentoring relationships with children). Also, his friends were in attendance.   One of my big brother’s friends, a woman I now believe to have been in her 20s, expressed appreciation for her late granddad. “That man,” she stated, “worked all his life

[ DISCLAIMER ]   As Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy  (REBT) is informed by Stoic philosophy , this blog entry is part of an ongoing series regarding a book entitled The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living  by Ryan Holiday  and Stephen Hanselman .   The authors quote ancient Stoic philosopher Epictetus who stated, “What assistance can we find in the fight against habit? Try the opposite” (page 198). Similar to this recommendation , I

[ DISCLAIMER ]   Perhaps of little surprise to anyone who knows me, I don’t like groups (any collection or assemblage, particularly of items or individuals) or group counseling  (a method of providing guidance and support for clients organized as a group, as opposed to individual counseling).   There’s no profound explanation necessary for the admission, no need for careful analysis to determine what’s supposedly wrong with me. Much in the way that I don’t appreciate the ta

[ DISCLAIMER ] Photo credit , fair use   In What’s Beef? I stated, “In hip hop, a singular word encapsulates both drama and conflict: beef,” and, “In hip hop, rivalry among emcees is known as ‘beef,’ usually involving behavior whereby artists “diss” (disrespect) one another in their songs.” As well, in Beef Forever  I stated:   I recently spoke with a friend (“Blanca”) about something I heard rapper Cardi B  once state. In a social media clip from years ago, the rapper expr

[ DISCLAIMER ]   As Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy  (REBT) is informed by Stoic philosophy , this blog entry is part of an ongoing series regarding a book entitled The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living  by Ryan Holiday  and Stephen Hanselman .   The authors quote ancient Roman emperor and Stoic philosopher Marcus Aurelius  who stated, “You could enjoy this very moment all the things you are praying to reach by taking the long way

[ DISCLAIMER ]   As Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy  (REBT) is informed by Stoic philosophy , this blog entry is part of an ongoing series regarding a book entitled The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living  by Ryan Holiday  and Stephen Hanselman .   The authors quote Epictetus  who stated, “If you are defeated once and tell yourself you will overcome, but carry on as before, know in the end you’ll be so ill and weakened that eventuall

[ DISCLAIMER ]   As Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy  (REBT) is informed by Stoic philosophy , this blog entry is part of an ongoing series regarding a book entitled The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living  by Ryan Holiday  and Stephen Hanselman .   The authors quote ancient Stoic philosopher Seneca who stated, “We should  take wandering outdoor walks, so that the mind might be nourished and refreshed by the open air and deep breath

[ DISCLAIMER ]   When serving as military police  (MP) in the United States (U.S.) Marine Corps, I responded to bomb threats  (threats, verbal or written, to detonate an explosive or incendiary device to cause property damage, death, injuries, and/or incite fear , whether or not such a device actually exists).   Then, when serving as a Marine Security Guard  (MSG), I received specialized training for how to respond to such threats. This was especially important, because of U.

[ DISCLAIMER ]   While on voluntary appellate leave from the Marine Corps, after experiencing administrative and legal problems , I relied heavily on a family for support. Though we weren’t biologically related, they were the family with whom I lived after my residence at a children’s home in my youth.   Between their two adult-aged daughters, there were six young boys who I viewed as my unrelated “nephews.” When engaging with them in the moment, I lost sight of my military w

[ DISCLAIMER ] Photo credit , fair use   In a blogpost entitled Unconditional Acceptance , I shared an aphorism from my late stepmom. She was a religious individual, as I also subscribed to the tenets of Christianity back then. Thus, from time to time, she’d say, “I didn’t write the book [Bible], and it’s a good thing I didn’t.”   What was meant by this adage is that my stepmom recognized her fallibility . Unlike Jehovah, Yahweh, Allah, or other names attributed to deities of

[ DISCLAIMER ]   As Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy  (REBT) is informed by Stoic philosophy , this blog entry is part of an ongoing series regarding a book entitled The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living  by Ryan Holiday  and Stephen Hanselman .   The authors quote Stoic philosopher Seneca who stated, “Fortune doesn’t have the long reach we suppose, she can only lay siege to those who hold her tight. So, let’s step back from her as

[ DISCLAIMER ]   “Son,” my dad said as I sat across from he and my late stepmom at a dining room table not long after graduating high school in 1995, “what’re you gonna do with your life?” I experienced a state of depression at the time, to the extent whereby suicide was considered a viable option.   Having watched a number of commercials regarding the United States (U.S.) Marine Corps, chiefly the depiction  of a gallant warrior on horseback defeating a number of game piec

[ DISCLAIMER ] Photo credit , fair use   As Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy  (REBT) is informed by Stoic philosophy , this blog entry is part of an ongoing series regarding a book entitled The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living  by Ryan Holiday  and Stephen Hanselman .   Authors of The Daily Stoic  quote Diogenes Laertius , biographer of the Greek philosophers, who stated, “To the youngster talking nonsense Zeno  said, ‘The reason  

[ DISCLAIMER ]   The word “handle” has a number of meanings. For instance, a handle is a part that is designed, especially to be grasped by the hand, such as the handle of a kettle. As well, a “handle” can refer to a nickname. For example, in the photo above, I had a couple different handles.   When living with a family that took me into their care from a children’s home, the mother of the family used to call me “Tigger,” referencing a hyper tiger character from the children’

[ DISCLAIMER ]   Intentionally, I’m taking a less refined approach to the current blogpost. This is because, even though I was never deployed to war or experienced armed conflict when serving in the United States (U.S.) Marine Corps, I rigorously trained to take the lives of men, women, and children.   It was an ugly affair, the process of engaging shoot/no-shoot firearms drills for unconventional targets (e.g., acquiring skills related to shooting steel targets of varying h

[ DISCLAIMER ]   As Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy  (REBT) is informed by Stoic philosophy , this blog entry is part of an ongoing series regarding a book entitled The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living  by Ryan Holiday  and Stephen Hanselman .   It isn’t uncommon for people to reach out to me regarding care for mental, emotional, and behavioral health  (collectively “ mental health ”), as they seek advice . Regarding such behavior

[ DISCLAIMER ]   I learned a thing or two about digging holes when residing in an all-male cottage of a children’s home during my eighth and ninth grade years. “Idle hands are the devil’s workshop,” I was told, meaning that people with nothing to do are more likely to get into trouble, mischief, or sin.   This was expressed, because boredom was said to have opened a proverbial door to negative influences or nonadaptive behavior , supposedly acting as Satan’s tools of temptat

[ DISCLAIMER ]   As Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy  (REBT) is informed by Stoic philosophy , this blog entry is part of an ongoing series regarding a book entitled The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living  by Ryan Holiday  and Stephen Hanselman .   The authors quote ancient Roman emperor and Stoic philosopher Marcus Aurelius  who stated, “If you find something very difficult to achieve yourself, don’t imagine it impossible—for anythi

[ DISCLAIMER ]   As Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy  (REBT) is informed by Stoic philosophy , this blog entry is part of an ongoing series regarding a book entitled The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living  by Ryan Holiday  and Stephen Hanselman .   Regarding the current psychoeducational lesson on REBT, I invite you to consider that one of the major Stoic virtues  is moderation (also referred to as temperance or self-control ). Co