{"id":7218,"date":"2014-10-25T15:00:58","date_gmt":"2014-10-25T15:00:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.justcharlie.com\/?p=7218"},"modified":"2018-04-02T15:24:05","modified_gmt":"2018-04-02T15:24:05","slug":"the-obstacle-is-the-way","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.justcharlie.com\/the-obstacle-is-the-way\/","title":{"rendered":"Book Summary: The Obstacle is the Way"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright\" style=\"max-width:50%\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.justcharlie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/toitw-393x600.jpg\" alt=\"The Obstacle is the Way\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p><em>The Obstacle is the Way<\/em> is the third book published by <a href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Ryan_Holiday\">Ryan Holiday<\/a>, the 27-year old marketing guru who was famously the Director of Marketing for American Apparel. It&#x27;s loosely based on Roman <a href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Stoicism\">stoic philosophy<\/a>, and features a lot of quotes and ideas from figures like Seneca, Epictetus, and Marcus Aurelius.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Perspective as Reality<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>One of the defining qualities of stoicism, which emerged in 3rd century BC, is that\u00a0perspective defines reality. True sages, according to the stoics, are invulnerable to bad fortune because virtue is sufficient for happiness. Stoicism teaches that the key to overcoming destructive emotions is fortitude and self-control, leading to what&#x27;s called &quot;stoic calm&quot;.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The title of this book originates\u00a0from a Marcus Aurelius quote which says:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n    <p><em>&quot;The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.&quot;<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>Ryan Holiday talks about the process of facing\u00a0seemingly insurmountable obstacles &#8211; a process which results from logic and self-discipline:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n    <li>To\u00a0be objective<\/li>\n    <li>To\u00a0control emotions and keep an even keel<\/li>\n    <li>To\u00a0choose to see the good in a situation<\/li>\n    <li>To\u00a0steady our nerves<\/li>\n    <li>To ignore what disturbs or limits others<\/li>\n    <li>To place things in perspective<\/li>\n    <li>To revert to the present moment<\/li>\n    <li>To focus on what can be controlled<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Premortem<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright\" style=\"max-width:50%\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" src=\"http:\/\/www.justcharlie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/epictetus-300x300.jpg\" alt=\"Epictetus\" class=\"wp-image-7222\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.justcharlie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/epictetus-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.justcharlie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/epictetus-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.justcharlie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/epictetus-600x600.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.justcharlie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/epictetus.jpg 998w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>\n    <figcaption> Stoic philosopher Epictetus, born a 1st century slave<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>One interesting exercise of perspective described in this book is the premortem. As defined by Holiday:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n    <p><em>A CEO calls her staff into the conference room on the eve of the launch of a major new initiative. They file in and take their seats around the table. She calls the meeting to attention and begins: \u201cI have bad news . The project has failed spectacularly. Tell me what went wrong?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>The CEO is creating\u00a0an exercise in hindsight, except it&#x27;s in advance. The technique of the premortem was\u00a0designed by psychology Gary Klein, but the idea was founded by the stoics thousand of years ago. Today it&#x27;s used by startups and Fortune 500 businesses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Thinking about problems in unconventional methods such as this often quickly reveal oft-missed problems or challenges. This is just one described in the book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Favorite Passages<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n    <p><em>&quot;Marcus Aurelius truly saw each and every obstacles as an opportunity to practice some virtue: patience, courage, humility, resourcefulness, reason, justice, and creativity.&quot;<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n    <p><em>&quot;Every obstacle is unique to each of us. But the responses they elicit are the same: Fear. Frustration. Confusion. Helplessness. Depression. Anger.&quot;<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n    <p><em>&quot;An employee in your company makes a careless mistake that costs you business. This can be exactly what you spend so much time and effort trying to avoid. Or, with a shift in perception, it can be exactly what you were looking for\u2014 the chance to pierce through defenses and teach a lesson that can be learned only by experience. A mistake becomes training. Again, the event is the same: Someone messed up. But the evaluation and the outcome are different. With one approach you took advantage; with the other you succumbed to anger or fear.&quot;<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n    <p><em>&quot;You always planned to do something. Write a screenplay. Travel. Start a business. Approach a possible mentor. Launch a movement. Well, now something has happened\u2014 some disruptive event like a failure or an accident or a tragedy. Use it. Perhaps you\u2019re stuck in bed recovering . Well, now you have time to write . Perhaps your emotions are overwhelming and painful, turn it into material. You lost your job or a relationship? That\u2019s awful, but now you can travel unencumbered. You\u2019re having a problem? Now you know exactly what to approach that mentor about. Seize this moment to deploy the plan that has long sat dormant in your head. Every chemical reaction requires a catalyst. Let this be yours.&quot;<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n    <p><em>&quot;A decade earlier, a century earlier, a millennium earlier, someone just like you stood right where you are and felt very similar things, struggling with the very same thoughts. They had no idea that you would exist, but you know that they did. And a century from now, someone will be in your exact same position, once more. Embrace this power, this sense of being part of a larger whole. It is an exhilarating thought. Let it envelop you. We\u2019re all just humans, doing the best we can. We\u2019re all just trying to survive, and in the process, inch the world forward a little bit. Help your fellow humans thrive and survive, contribute your little bit to the universe before it swallows you up, and be happy with that. Lend a hand to others. Be strong for them, and it will make you stronger.&quot;<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Conclusion<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>This book is a very good introduction to stoic philosophy and how to re-contextualize the challenges that we are all constantly facing. The way in which we look at these challenges, and all things in life, defines their very nature, so the value and\u00a0impact that learning to think of challenges in this way cannot be overstated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Due to the writing style of this book, which reads like very many short but profound statements, it became slightly exhausting by the end. Most of the concepts are simple to understand, but difficult to develop into innate features of our psyche. But it&#x27;s as much a worthy pursuit as anything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Amazon link: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Obstacle-Way-Timeless-Turning-Triumph-ebook\/dp\/B00G3L1B8K\/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1414247216&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=the+obstacle+is+the+way\">The Obstacle is the Way<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Rating:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.justcharlie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/01\/45star.jpg\" alt=\"4.5 Stars\" \/><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>My brief review of the 2014 book written by Ryan Holiday titled The Obstacle is the Way.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[264],"tags":[455],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ 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