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A Lesson Beyond the Lesson

  • Writer: Deric Hollings
    Deric Hollings
  • 3 days ago
  • 5 min read

 

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 Seneca who stated, “This is what you should teach me, how to be like Odysseus—how to love my country, wife and father, and how, even after suffering shipwreck, I might keep sailing on course to those honorable ends” (page 210).

 

Do I stop pursuit of my interests and goals when crashing upon the proverbial shores of adversity? Of course not! Although mildly inconvenienced, I continue “sailing on course,” like Odysseus. Of this approach to rational living, authors of The Daily Stoic state (page 210):

 

Many schoolteachers teach The Odyssey all wrong. They teach the dates, they debate whether Homer was really the author or not, whether he was blind, they explain the oral tradition, they tell students what a Cyclops is or how the Trojan Horse worked.

 

I recall initially learning about The Odyssey. Yet, from the time, I don’t remember what I thought of the lesson (a piece of instruction, a reading or exercise to be studied by a pupil, or a division of a course of instruction).Of this experience, authors of The Daily Stoic state (page 210):

 

Seneca’s advice to someone studying the classics is to forget all that. The dates, the names, the places —they hardly matter. What matters is the moral. If you got everything else wrong from The Odyssey, but you left understanding the importance of perseverance, the dangers of hubris, the risks of temptation and distraction? Then you really learned something.

 

It was later in life that I learned a lesson beyond the lesson regarding The Odyssey. Specifically, I learned of resilience (an ability to recover from or adjust easily to misfortune or change). Regarding this realization, authors of The Daily Stoic state (page 210):

 

We’re not trying to ace tests or impress teachers. We are reading and studying to live, to be good human beings—always and forever.

 

I don’t know about being “good human beings,” as I argue there isn’t anything other than fallible human beings. We aren’t good, bad, or otherwise. Nevertheless, we imperfect beings can learn a lesson beyond the lesson regarding resilience—as was illustrated by Odysseus in The Odyssey.

 

When you crash onto the proverbial shores of adversity, although the experience is mildly inconvenient, I invite you to continue “sailing on course,” like Odysseus. This is a lesson beyond the lesson of rational living. Further, it’s something you can both learn and apply to your life!

 

If you’re looking for a provider who tries to work to help understand how thinking impacts physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral elements of your life—helping you to sharpen your critical thinking skills, I invite you to reach out today by using the contact widget on my website.

 

As a psychotherapist, I’m pleased to try to help people with an assortment of issues ranging from anger (hostility, rage, and aggression) to relational issues, adjustment matters, trauma experience, justice involvement, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression, and other mood or personality-related matters.

 

At Hollings Therapy, LLC, serving all of Texas, I aim to treat clients with dignity and respect while offering a multi-lensed approach to the practice of psychotherapy and life coaching. My mission includes: Prioritizing the cognitive and emotive needs of clients, an overall reduction in client suffering, and supporting sustainable growth for the clients I serve. Rather than simply trying to help you to feel better, I want to try to help you get better!

 

 

Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW


 

References:

 

Daily Stoic. (n.d.). Translating the Stoics: An interview with “The Daily Stoic” co-author Stephen Hanselman. Retrieved from https://dailystoic.com/stephen-hanselman-interview/

Holiday, R. and Hanselman, S. (2016). The daily stoic: 366 meditations on wisdom, perseverance, and the art of living. Penguin Random House LLC. Retrieved from https://www.pdfdrive.com/the-daily-stoic-366-meditations-on-wisdom-perseverance-and-the-art-of-living-d61378067.html

Hollings, D. (2024, June 13). Change feels strange. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/change-feels-strange

Hollings, D. (2022, March 15). Disclaimer. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/disclaimer

Hollings, D. (2023, September 8). Fair use. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/fair-use

Hollings, D. (2024, May 11). Fallible human being. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/fallible-human-being

Hollings, D. (2024, May 17). Feeling better vs. getting better. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/feeling-better-vs-getting-better-1

Hollings, D. (2023, October 12). Get better. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/get-better

Hollings, D. (2022, November 22). Good man. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/good-man

Hollings, D. (n.d.). Hollings Therapy, LLC [Official website]. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/

Hollings, D. (2025, September 22). Hubris. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/hubris

Hollings, D. (2024, January 2). Interests and goals. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/interests-and-goals

Hollings, D. (2025, October 13). Knowledge, wisdom, understanding. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/knowledge-wisdom-understanding

Hollings, D. (2023, September 19). Life coaching. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/life-coaching

Hollings, D. (2025, December 30). Making misfortune heavier by complaining about it. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/making-misfortune-heavier-by-complaining-about-it

Hollings, D. (2025, September 14). Moral framework. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/moral-framework

Hollings, D. (2025, September 15). One of life’s little inconveniences. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/one-of-life-s-little-inconveniences

Hollings, D. (2024, May 5). Psychotherapist. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/psychotherapist

Hollings, D. (2022, March 24). Rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT). Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/rational-emotive-behavior-therapy-rebt

Hollings, D. (2024, May 15). Rational living. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/rational-living

Hollings, D. (2024, July 10). Recommendatory should beliefs. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/recommendatory-should-beliefs

Hollings, D. (2024, May 8). Resilience. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/resilience

Hollings, D. (2024, April 21). Stoicism. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/stoicism

Hollings, D. (2024, February 27). Suffering, struggling, and battling vs. experiencing. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/suffering-struggling-and-battling-vs-experiencing

Hollings, D. (2025, February 28). To try is my goal. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/to-try-is-my-goal

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Cyclopes. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyclopes

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Homer. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homer

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Odysseus. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Odysseus

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Odyssey. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Odyssey

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Ryan Holiday. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryan_Holiday

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Seneca the Younger. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seneca_the_Younger

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Trojan Horse. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trojan_Horse

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