Ryan Holiday’s Right Thing, Right Now is just $2.99 as an ebook right now! Get it now for yourself or gift it to a friend. We also have signed copies available at the Daily Stoic Store—grab yours here today!
When he was in college and struggling to live up to the expectations of his illustrious family, the writer Walker Percy wrote a letter to his uncle, William Alexander Percy. He probably expected to receive a lecture about his grades in reply. Or be admonished for letting the family down. Or perhaps to be sent money for a tutor.
But the reply surprised him. Because there wasn’t any of that. Instead, his uncle Will, who had adopted Percy and his brothers and introduced them to the writings of Marcus Aurelius and the Stoics, told him he did not care for one second about the grades.
“My whole theory about life,” Will wrote back, despite the fact that he himself had effortlessly graduated from Harvard, “is that glory and accomplishment are of far less importance than the creation of character and the individual good life.”
Isn’t that wonderful? Isn’t that exactly what every stressed, self-critical, confused kid needs to hear in life? Who you are is more important than what you do. I’d rather you be good than successful. Character is more important than cash.
It can be easy to lose sight of this. Because we know how competitive the world is. Because we see the potential our kids have. Because we don’t want them to make the same mistakes we did. But ultimately, those things will take care of themselves if we raise them right. The ancients knew that character was fate and we need to remember that with our own kids. The good life will be a successful life—and a more important one, too.
P.S. Right Thing, Right Now is a guide for parents who want to build character, make ethical choices, and create a meaningful legacy—all while staying true to their principles.
We must cultivate this attitude in our kids—that who they are, that what they stand for, is more important than success or accolades. But as always as parents, it’s starts with us first setting the example.
Right Thing, Right Now will show you how. Get it right now as an ebook for $2.99 or grab a hardcover copy signed by Ryan Holiday over at the Daily Stoic Store today!
