Beware of Stoicism

Many are rightly wary of "effortless-success" schemes, but it's also important to be wary of "high-effort success" schemes. Through experience, we often develop a heuristic that puts an extra sheen of value around high-effort schemes, even while we might reject them for their "cost".


Now and then, remind yourself of the person who tries earnestly and hard, while another whizzes past. It ain't the effort alone but the process to which it is applied: a press of a finger can grind something that took my granny 5 minutes of hard labor with the mortar.


Of course we know this intellectually; but I think we need to remind ourselves of it every now and then. Every now and then, one ought to ask: "is this not working because I'm not putting in the required effort, don't have the patience, cheat with some 'indulgence', etc. Or, am I just doing the wrong thing?" Alternatively: "How can I do this in a way that is a little more effective, and yet easier, less costly, does not require fortitude, etc."?

In other words: if you find yourself leaning toward hedonism, and "XYZ in 21 days" schemes... check yourself there. However, equally important, if you find yourself leaning toward stoicism and "How to get XYZ by the time you die" schemes, you might have overdone it!