Episodes

After more than a decade of studying and practising Stoicism, and nearly six years of teaching it, I don’t think the average person knows much more about it today than when I started. So in this episode I answer the question in the title as plainly as I can, after a few minutes of deliberately grumpy preamble meant to send away anyone who isn’t here to learn. Stoicism is a virtue ethics framework, which means it cares about your character and the quality of your reasoning more than rules (Deont...

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In this episode, I'm talking about how to use social media as a Stoic, although I should probably begin by admitting that I really don't like social media. I think these platforms have made it far too easy for uninformed opinions to become influential simply because they're popular. And while social media has certainly made connecting with people easier, I'm not convinced the benefits outweigh the damage it can do to our ability to think critically, evaluate information, and form reasonable judg...

In this episode, I'm talking about how to get over your ex, particularly when a relationship ends that you valued more than the other person did. Breakups can be especially difficult because, unlike losing someone to death, you have to watch someone you once shared a life with go on living theirs without you. Over time, the relationship can begin to feel like something that happened in another lifetime, and it's easy to get caught up in missing them, resenting them, or questioning what any of it...

This week, I’m answering a question I genuinely never expected to cover on Practical Stoicism: how do you stop masturbating? More specifically, what do you do when masturbation has stopped being an ordinary sexual behaviour and become something compulsive that you no longer feel reliably able to choose? Apply for private coaching: https://stoicismpod.com/apply Support this podcast financially: https://stoicismpod.com/members Join my free community: https://stoicismpod.com/join I start by cleari...

In this episode, I’m challenging one of the most common assumptions in modern Stoicism: that journaling is somehow an inherently Stoic practice. Marcus Aurelius wasn’t keeping a daily diary, Epictetus wasn’t assigning journal entries to his students, and the kind of expressive writing we now associate with “Stoic journaling” is largely a modern self-improvement practice. Apply for private coaching: https://stoicismpod.com/apply Purchase the journaling program: https://stoicjournaling.com Join m...

In this episode, I take on the Lindsay Clancy case, but not to tell you what you should think about her. Instead, I use this extraordinarily difficult case to explore how a Stoic should think when confronted with terrible acts, mental illness, questions of responsibility, and our very human desire for punishment. Apply for private coaching: https://stoicismpod.com/apply Join my free community: https://stoicismpod.com/join I begin with the facts as I understand them and an important limitation: ...

Most of my listeners are somewhere between 35 and 45, which means quite a few of us are reaching the age when mortality starts feeling a little less theoretical. In this episode, I explore one reason the idea of death can trouble us that has less to do with fear and more to do with something deeply human: the desire not to feel disposable. Apply for private coaching: https://stoicismpod.com/apply Join my free community: https://stoicismpod.com/join I begin with a conversation I recently had wit...

Marcus Aurelius famously reminds himself that we don't need to retreat to the countryside or the seashore to find peace. In this episode, recorded from my new office in an old textile mill in Dundee, I reflect on why I think Marcus was theoretically right but practically wrong, at least for those of us who aren't sages. Apply for private coaching: https://stoicismpod.com/apply Support this podcast financially: https://stoicismpod.com/members Join my free community: https://stoicismpod.com/join ...

A healthy Stoic practice requires an accurate view of yourself. Think too little of yourself and you misunderstand your capacities; think too much of yourself and you do the same. In this episode, I explore self-esteem through a Stoic lens and explain why accurate self-knowledge matters to our pursuit of eudaimonia and sagehood. Apply for private coaching: https://stoicismpod.com/apply Support this podcast financially: https://stoicismpod.com/members Join my free community: https://stoicismpod....

In today's episode I discuss whether pursuing a dream is a Stoic thing to do, and how to talk about your ambitions without accidentally insulting the people who don't share them. Before digging in please be aware of all the ways this podcast is able to exist without ads or formal sponsorship: Private Stoic Life Coaching Practice: https://stoicismpod.com/coaching Stoic Journaling Program: https://stoicjournaling.com Courses: https://stoicismpod.com/courses Elective Listener Support: https://stoi...

Apply for private coaching: https://stoicismpod.com/apply Support this podcast financially: https://stoicismpod.com/members Join my free community: https://stoicismpod.com/join In this episode, I explore why there is not always a single answer to the question, “What would a Stoic do?” Stoicism gives us a shared ethical framework, but it also takes seriously the particular roles, relationships, capacities, dispositions, and circumstances of each individual. I begin with the common search for “th...

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I'm responding to a thoughtful question from listener Alex Stevenson: if good decisions require us to learn from outcomes, then which outcomes should we actually value? Apply for private coaching: https://stoicismpod.com/apply Support this podcast financially: https://stoicismpod.com/members Join my free community: https://stoicismpod.com/join I begin by revisiting a LinkedIn post about decision-making and the common mistake of judging the quality of our choices by the outcomes they produce. Us...

Join the free community: https://skool.com/tannerocampbell Apply for private coaching: https://stoicismpod.com/apply Support this podcast financially: https://stoicismpod.com/members Desktop Wallpaper: https://canva.link/bl4qrgp1mb1w65u Phone Wallpaper: https://canva.link/eqpekigl4ga1ctr In this episode, I explore one of the most valuable—and most misunderstood—benefits of practicing Stoicism: genuine confidence. Not the kind that's built on ego, status, or pretending to know everything, but the...

Apply for private coaching: https://stoicismpod.com/apply Support this podcast financially: https://stoicismpod.com/members In this episode, I explore what it actually means to relax from a Stoic perspective, and why so much of the advice we're given about relaxation misses the mark. I begin by questioning the common idea that relaxation is something we can simply decide to do. We often tell ourselves to "just relax," but anyone who has ever sat on a beach while worrying about work, money, or f...

Apply for private coaching: https://stoicismpod.com/apply Support this podcast financially: https://stoicismpod.com/members Episode Summary: In this episode, I explore why so many of us stay stuck for years—even when we genuinely want to change—and why Stoicism, while powerful, is often only one part of the solution. I begin by sharing an update on my coaching practice and explain why one-on-one philosophical coaching has become the most rewarding work I've ever done. Working directly with peop...

In this episode, I explore procrastination from a Stoic perspective and argue that it isn't a problem of laziness—it's a problem of judgment. Drawing on Seneca, Marcus Aurelius, and my own experience with ADHD, I explain why we often mistake temporary discomfort for a good reason to delay action. We tell ourselves we'll start when we feel ready, but readiness is rarely something we possess before beginning. More often, it's something we discover after we've already started. I discuss Seneca's ...

In this episode, I explore why criticism from other people affects us so deeply—and why, from a Stoic perspective, it often shouldn't. The episode begins with a chance encounter in a Starbucks that led me to reflect on something many of us experience: the discomfort of feeling judged. Whether it's criticism from a stranger, a colleague, or someone we care about, our first reaction is usually emotional. The Stoics understood this well. They knew that our initial emotional response isn't somethin...

Get the archives: https://www.stoicismpod.com/the-archive/ In this episode, I explore what overthinking actually is from a Stoic perspective—and why most advice about it misses the point. We often think we're "thinking things through" when we're lying awake replaying conversations, imagining worst-case scenarios, or rehearsing events that haven't happened. But I argue that this isn't really thinking at all. It's rumination: a failure of assent disguised as diligence. Drawing on Epictetus, Marc...

Apply for private mentoring: https://tannerocampbell.com/apply Support my work: https://stoicismpod.com/members Subscribe to my newsletter: https://stoicbrekkie.com In this episode I'm tackling the thing nobody wants me to tackle: politics. Before you run away, I promise I'm not endorsing anyone or anything. What I'm interested in is how a Stoic engages politically, not who a Stoic votes for. I get into whether Stoics should vote at all (in most cases, yes, because Stoics are pro-social and voti...

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In this episode, I talk about parenting, exhaustion, frustration, and the very real challenge of remaining Stoic when your emotional battery is running on empty. Stoic Mentoring: https://tannerocampbell.com/mentoring Sunday 7th Webinar: https://stoictalks.uk/june-cosmology Using a story from my own 43rd birthday, I walk through a morning that did not go according to plan. What I wanted was a peaceful day. What I got was a very normal morning with a two-year-old child who wanted things his way, ...