Practical Stoicism

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.

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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.

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I begin by separating self-esteem from the popular idea that “ego is the enemy.” Rath...

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:

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First, some genuinely wonderful news. 134 Labs Limited, the company I...

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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 “the Stoic position” on a given issue. Sometimes a general answer is appropriate, such as returning a lost w...

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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?

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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. Using the example of helping an elderly woman across the street only for an unforeseeable accident...

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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 quiet confidence that comes from knowing you're living according to a standard you can...

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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...

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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 people has reinforced something I've long believed: lasting change rarely comes from...

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 reminder that time is the only thing we truly possess, and Marcus Aurelius' advice to...

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 something we choose—but what we do next absolutely is.

Drawing on Epictetus, I expl...

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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, Marcus Aurelius, and Seneca, I explain how the Stoics distinguished between a bare impression (phantasia) and the stories we im...

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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 voting is one way we attempt to benefit the human community), and...

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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.

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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, struggled to communicate those wants clearly, and repeatedly tested my patience.<...

In this episode, I talk about heat, irritability, anger, and why being physically uncomfortable can quietly erode our Stoic practice if we’re not paying attention.

First, an announcement: after years of being asked, I’m officially opening applications for 1:1 Stoic mentoring and life coaching. This is a six-month mentorship for people who are serious about applying Stoicism deeply and consistently in their lives. It includes weekly calls, structured curriculum, support between sessions, and a small accountability group. I explain who it’s for, what’s included, and how to apply.

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In this episode, I lay out a practical, step-by-step Stoic framework for making decisions well.

A lot of people interested in Stoicism know the quotes, know the terminology, and understand the broad concepts — but when an actual difficult choice appears in front of them, they still don’t know what to do. This episode is about solving that problem.

I begin by making a distinction the Stoics took very seriously: the difference between wanting something and determining whether somet...

In this episode, I take aim at what I call “stoa shaming”—the habit of pointing out someone’s failure to be perfectly Stoic as a way of dismissing both them and the philosophy.

You’ve seen it. Someone loses their temper, struggles with their weight, or makes a mistake, and the response is: “That’s not very Stoic of you.” On the surface, it sounds like a call to higher standards. In reality, it reveals a misunderstanding of Stoicism itself.

Stoicism does not expect perfection from its practitioners. It defines perfection—sagehood—as something effectively unattain...

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In this episode I work through how Stoic Justice differs from what we moderns typically mean by the word — because when we say "justice" today, we almost always mean retribution: rewards for the deserving, punishments for the rest. Stoic Justice isn't concerned with desert in that sense at all. It's concerned with giving each person what is owed to them as a fellow member of the Cosmopolis, and failing to do that is, on Stoic terms, about as serious a moral error as yo...

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In this episode, I explore the idea that “silence is complicity” and whether that claim holds up under Stoic scrutiny.

This phrase gets used as a kind of moral pressure—an attempt to force speech or action by implying that not speaking is equivalent to endorsing wrongdoing. But Stoicism doesn’t deal in slogans like this. It deals in judgment. It asks: wh...

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Tanner reflects on his recent speaking tour across Scotland—including stops in Glasgow, Fort William, Isle of Skye, Inverness, Ballater, Perth, and Dundee—and explains how the experience reshaped his perspective on what it means to “do the work” as a public philosopher.

While the podcast continues to reach a wide audience, in-person engagement proved uniquely impactful. As a result, Tanner is exploring live Stoicism workshops as a cor...

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In this episode, recorded from the Isle of Raasay in the Scottish Inner Hebrides, I reflect on endurance and resilience—what they are, how they differ, and why both matter.

The setting matters. The Highlands and islands confront you with something modern life often hides: limits. Weather changes quickly. Conditions are often harsh. Nature does not adjust to you. You adjust to it. This creates a constant reminder of mortality—not just in the literal sense...

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In this episode, I explore a growing concern: will AI eliminate human work, and if it does, what happens to our sense of purpose?

I start by acknowledging the reality in front of us. AI is rapidly improving across creative and technical domains. Tasks that once required human skill are now being automated or reduced to minimal input. This is not speculation. It is already happening. Many forms of labour and many learnable skills are being...

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In this episode, I respond to a surge of listener questions about masculinity following a recent documentary on the so-called “manosphere.” The central question is simple: what does Stoicism actually say about what it means to be a man?

I begin by clarifying a core Stoic idea. Just as the Stoic aims toward the ideal of the Sage, a man should aim toward becoming a good man. These are not fixed endpoints but guiding horiz...

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In this episode, I explore Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations 6.27 and what it teaches us about anger. Marcus reminds us that when people do wrong, they do so because they believe their actions are beneficial or appropriate. Our task, therefore, is not to react with anger but to teach, explain, and correct with patience.

That idea opens the door to a deeper question: what is anger actually for? Some modern thinkers claim anger is...

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I pull heavily from Leonidas Konstantakos' "Stoicism and Just War Theory" doctoral dissertation in this episode. I encourage you to download it and read it yourself: ⁠https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/record/13724⁠

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In this episode, I take up a...

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The story is that my brother, Brian, was out with his friends ice fishing in Maine. He left on his snowmobile to get more bait, or supplies or something, and he hit a pressure pocket (that's how it was describe to me) on the lake and it sent him flying. His helmet came off, he smacked the ice pretty violently, he's broken his neck, a bunch of bones in his chest and abdomen, and a lot of bones in his face.

He's been unconscious and...

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In this episode, I respond to a short clip discussing incest as an example of emotivism in meta-ethics. Emotivism claims that when we say something is wrong, we are not stating a fact but expressing disapproval. The suggestion in the clip is that incest may ultimately be “...

I answer questions from a classroom of children about Stoicism and "the old times, when I was a kid."

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I am a public philosopher, it is my only job. I am enabled to do this job, in large part, thanks to support from my listeners and readers. You can support my work, keep it independent and online, at https://stoicismpod.com/members

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In this episode, I take up a question that seems settled, orthodox, and uncontroversial: can indifferents be preferred or dispreferred? Most Stoics would say yes and move on. But there is a serious ancient challenge to that...

I am a public philosopher, it is my only job. I am enabled to do this job, in large part, thanks to support from my listeners and readers. You can support my work, keep it independent and online, at https://stoicismpod.com/members

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Musonius Rufus Discourse 12: https://archive.org/details/MUSONIUSRUFUSSTOICFRAGMENTS

In this episode, I respond to a candid listener email asking about the Stoic position on sex work. The question is not framed with hostility or judgment...

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In this episode, I focus on the Stoic virtue of Justice and why it matters so urgently right now. Justice, in Stoicism, is not about legality or compliance with...

I am a public philosopher, it is my only job. I am enabled to do this job, in large part, thanks to support from my listeners and readers. You can support my work, keep it independent and online, at https://stoicismpod.com/members

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In this episode, I respond to a listener question prompted by the loss of a long-lived orchid. The plant did not die from neglect, but from care that was given in ignorance. What was meant to nurture...

I am a public philosopher, it is my only job. I am enabled to do this job, in large part, thanks to support from my listeners and readers. You can support my work, keep it independent and online, at https://stoicismpod.com/members

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In this episode, I revisit Seneca, a Stoic who often gets dismissed because of his wealth and his close relationship with Nero. I argue that these compromises do not disqualify him...

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In this episode I reset Practical Stoicism back to its foundations and begin a new chapter for the show by returning to the classical texts themselves. I explain why this version of the podcast will move deliberately across the Stoic corpus rather than reading a single work straight through, drawing from Marcus Aurelius, Seneca, Epictetus, Musonius Rufus, and, where...