The Paradox of The Dichotomy of Control and the Trap of Feeling Good

The Stoic Handbook with Jon Brooks · Jun 16, 2023 · 8m · transcript

Almost everyone who reads a bit of Stoicism gets the dichotomy of control. Far fewer actually feel any relief from it. You can recite "some things are up to us and some are not" and still lie awake at 3am. This episode is about why that gap exists and how to close it.

As Epictetus put it, "the more we value things outside our control, the less control we have." I dig into the paradox in that, and how to apply the dichotomy at three levels rather than one: external events, your emotions, and the judgments underneath them. I also bring in cognitive behavioural therapy as a practical bridge…