How to become the person you want to be

The Stoics continue to inspire me with advice shared from thousands of years ago that is still relevant today.  Here's one such example from Epictetus:

'First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to do'.

As is the case of so much of what Stoic philosophers have written, this from Epictetus is simple and it makes sense; for whatever you want to be, say to yourself what this is.  From this point you will now need to do whatever is required to be this person.  For example, if you say to yourself you would like to be fit and healthy, that's the first part done.  If you want to be this person you need to identify the actions that will get you there.  In the case of being fit and healthy this would be exercise and diet.

When choosing you actions it's important to follow the strategy shared by James Clear in his book Atomic Habits, this being to start with a small first step that's very easy to do.  In the case of exercise James suggests the first step could be to do one single press up.  The important thing is to start by doing something, regardless of how small and insignificant it may seem, and build from there.  #stoicadvice #atomichabits