There were the before times, and the after times. Before you had kids. After you had kids.
Before, you thought you knew things. After, you know that everything is different. You know that you knew so little.
Life is like that—especially life with kids. You learn you had no idea what tired was. You had no idea how crazy things could be. You had no idea what happiness was. You had no idea what you were capable of. You had no idea what was actually important. You had no idea how little control you have.
Ten years ago (hey, it’s Ryan), I started writing this book called The Daily Stoic. I was ten years into my study of Stoicism and not yet a parent. Within a few months, that latter part would change—and a few years later, it would change again. I remember being profiled by a reporter for the New York Times before the book came out, and she asked me, “How much of your routine do you think will change when your child is born?” I said, “Probably not much.” How little did I know!
Now in 2026, I have a son almost the same age as The Daily Stoic (or, as he once referred to the book, The Daily Butthole). My life is totally different! How could it not be? Parenting has changed my understanding of Stoicism in many ways…and tested my practice of Stoicism even more.
Just as parenting gives you a second chance at many things, my publisher gave me a second chance at The Daily Stoic, too—allowing me to replace things I got wrong, add stuff I wish was there the first time, and include some of the hard-won wisdom my kids have taken out of my hide. We added more quotes. We added more stories. We made it better.
Because that’s one thing that the Stoics knew—as parents and as philosophers—you can’t stop learning. Life is always teaching you, if you’re willing to listen.
That’s what this new 10th Anniversary Edition is really about. My co-author Steve Hanselman and I went back through the book page by page and asked what we could improve. We added more than 60 new translations, new and revised Stoic meditations, new illustrations, expanded glossary and reading list, and more. It’s the same book, but informed by another decade of reading, practicing, failing, learning, parenting, and trying again.
The Daily Stoic: 10th Anniversary Edition, coming October 6, is available for pre-order now, including signed and numbered hardcover copies (and a limited leatherbound edition coming in November) made to be kept, marked up, and returned to for years.
If The Daily Stoic has been part of your life already, this is the version I’d want you to have for the next chapter. And if you’ve never read it before, there’s no better place to start.
