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About Dale

  • Stoicism: Month 1 – Stoicism for Tranquility and Appreciation of the Present
  • Stoicism: Day 1 – My First Ice Bath
  • Stoicism: Day 2 – Contemplating the Impermanence of Everything
  • Stoicism: Day 3 – Travel and Escapism
  • Stoicism: Day 4 – On Becoming a Failure
  • Stoicism: Day 5 – Social Drinking
  • Stoicism: Day 6 – I want to work for Goldman Sachs
  • Stoicism: Day 7 – People Who Play Their Music Too Loudly
  • Stoicism: Day 8 – Should I take colder or longer ice baths?
  • Stoicism: Day 9 – What the Stoics think about your liberal arts degree
  • Stoicism: Day 10 – I relapsed
  • Stoicism: Day 11 – The Stoic Career Guide
  • Stoicism: Day 12 – The Stoics Would Not Instagram their Meals
  • Stoicism: Day 13 – Stoicism is Lonely
  • Stoicism: Day 14 and Week 2 Recap – Modern Tragedies
  • Stoicism: Day 15 – Is Stoicism Fun?
  • Stoicism: Day 16 – Were the Stoics Masters of Willpower?
  • Stoicism: Day 17 – On not being a pretentious ass to your friends
  • Stoicism: Day 18 – Stoic Fatalism and Goal Setting
  • Stoicism: Day 19 – Hosting a Houseguest is the Ultimate Stoic Exercise
  • Stoicism: Day 20 – Writing as Forced Reflection
  • Stoicism: Day 21 and Week 3 Recap – Stoic Relationship Advice
  • Stoicism: Day 22 – Don’t be a meathead
  • Stoicism: Day 23 – Stoicism and Godliness
  • Stoicism: Day 24 – Being Cynical About Your Job is Your Own Fault
  • Stoicism: Day 25 – Stoicism, the Absurd, and the Myth of Sisyphus
  • Stoicism: Day 26 – Overcoming Resistance when Pursuing Creative Projects
  • Stoicism: Day 27 – Watch Movies to Jumpstart Negative Visualization
  • Stoicism: Day 28 and Week 4 Recap – Don’t be a Victim
  • Stoicism: Day 29 – The Value of Repetition
  • Stoicism: Day 30 – Stoicism Month 1 Wrap-Up
  • Catholicism: Intro to Month 2 – Catholicism for Love and Clarity
  • Catholicism: Day 1 – My First Mass and Spiritual Exercise
  • Catholicism: Day 2 – Faith, Stoicism, and Confirmation Bias
  • Catholicism: Day 3 – The Shepherd and the Sheeple
  • Catholicism: Day 4 – Someone Farted at Mass
  • Catholicism: Day 5 – Coincidence or Signs from God?
  • Catholicism: Day 6 – You’re a mixed bag (and that’s ok)
  • Catholicism: Day 7 and Week 1 – Catholicism Week 1 Recap
  • Catholicism: Day 8 – Should you thank God for the weather?
  • Catholicism: Day 9 – Jesuit Decision Making
  • Catholicism: Day 10 – Everything is Amazing
  • Catholicism: Day 11 – God wants you be to be (a little) unhappy
  • Catholicism: Day 12 – Which is more comforting: God or protein shakes?
  • Catholicism: Day 13 – The Christian Perspective on Wealth and Poverty
  • Catholicism: Day 14 and Week 2 Recap – God as an Olympic Coach
  • Catholicism: Day 15 – God as Santa Claus?
  • Catholicism: Day 16 – Jesuit Career Advice
  • Catholicism: Day 17 – Accepting Love
  • Catholicism: Day 18 – Lent, the Ultimate Self-Help Program?
  • Catholicism: Day 19 – Sighs too Deep for Words
  • Catholicism: Day 20 – Calling on God to do great work
  • Catholicism: Day 21 and Week 3 Recap – The Path of Exploration
  • Catholicism: Day 22 – Lean In and the Hierarchy of Values
  • Catholicism: Day 23 – Disordered Love and Spiritual Freedom
  • Catholicism: Day 24 – Letting go of worldly ambitions
  • Catholicism: Day 25 – Love, Pain, and Indifference
  • Catholicism: Day 26 – The Correct Pursuits (1 of 2)
  • Catholicism: Day 27 – The Correct Pursuits (2 of 2)
  • Catholicism: Day 28 and Week 4 Recap
  • Catholicism: Day 29 – Stoic vs. Christian Detachment
  • Catholicism: Day 30 and Month 2 Wrap-Up
  • Intro to Month 3 – Judaism for Community
  • Judaism: Day 1 – My First Minyan and the Value of Language
  • Judaism: Day 2 – Daf Yomi , or Ancient Jewish Blog Comments
  • Judaism: Day 3 – The Unexpected Benefit of Standing Out
  • Judaism: Day 4 – Should you factor culture into your decision-making?
  • Judaism: Day 5 and 6 – Resting is Hard Work
  • Judaism: Day 7 and Week 1 Recap – Judaism: Day 7 and Week 1 Recap
  • Judaism: Day 8 – Good things come to those who participate
  • Judaism: Day 9 – Anger Management
  • Judaism: Day 10 – The Four Types of Students
  • Judaism: Day 11 – My Shabbat Dinner Speech
  • Judaism: Day 12 and 13 – Shabbat vs. HR Work-Life Balance Policies (plus brisket photos)
  • Judaism: Day 14 and Week 2 Recap
  • Judaism: Day 15 – Community Obligations
  • Judaism: Day 16 – Jewish YOLO
  • Judaism: Day 17 – Coffee with the Minyan
  • Judaism: Day 18 – The Individual vs. the Community
  • Judaism: Day 19 and 20 – Orthodox Shabbat (or why you need to work at religion)
  • Judaism: Day 21 and Week 3 Recap
  • Judaism: Day 22 – Passover Seder, Part 1
  • Judaism: Day 23 – Passover, Part 2
  • Judaism: Day 24 – You should embrace rules
  • Judaism: Day 25 – My Double-date
  • Judaism: Days 26-28 and Week 4 Recap
  • Judaism: Day 29 – Being spiritual is about doing
  • Judaism: Day 30 – Love and friendship
  • Judaism: Day 31 and Month 3 Wrap-up
  • Intro to Month 4 – Islam for Humility
  • Islam: Day 1 – The inconvenience of prayer
  • Islam: Day 2 – I’ll turn in my homework…God Willing
  • Islam: Day 3 – The Three-Fold Journey
  • Islam: Day 4 – You should believe in heaven and hell
  • Islam: Day 5 – The Case Against DIY Religion
  • Islam: Day 6 – Islamic Stoics?
  • Islam: Day 7 and Week 1 Recap
  • Islam: Day 8 – Conference Room Prayer
  • Islam: Day 9 – Beyond the Confidence Gap
  • Islam: Day 10 – Detachment, Islam Style
  • Islam: Day 11 – Friday Prayer (Round 2)
  • Islam: Day 12 – Does humility signal strength?
  • Islam: Day 13 – Morning prayer boosts creativity?
  • Islam: Day 14 and Week 2 Recap
  • Islam: Day 15 – Should we all wage Jihad?
  • Islam: Day 16 – Is Sufi Mysticism the Solution to Worldly Excess?
  • Islam: Day 17 – Is your life coherent?
  • Welcome Study Hacks Readers!
  • Islam: Day 18 and 19 – Campground Mysticism
  • Islam: Day 20 – Were you really born for this?
  • Islam: Day 21 and Week 3 Recap – The real reason why we’re unhappy
  • Islam: Day 22 – On criticism and gossip
  • Islam: Day 23 – Slut Shaming: Moral Criticism Gone Awry
  • Islam: Day 24 – Dog Walk Mysticism
  • Islam: Day 25 – It’s risky to not be religious
  • Islam: Day 26 – Should we practice arranged marriages?
  • Islam: Day 27 – My workplace ethical dilemma
  • Islam: Day 28 and Week 4 Recap – Cynical Asshole Syndrome
  • Islam: Day 29 – The Company Staff Meeting Revisited
  • Islam: Day 30 and Month 4 Wrap-Up – What I Learned from Praying 5 Times a Day
  • Introduction to Month 5: Curing Monkey Mind with Buddhism
  • Is distraction the natural state of mind? (Do we all have ADD?)
  • Your Cravings are Making You Miserable
  • Is Running the Ultimate Meditation Exercise?
  • Lessons Learned from Meditating for One Week
  • The Palace of Ignorance
  • To avoid groupthink, become religious
  • Do religions have personalities?
  • Week 2 Recap: Meditation is Still Really Hard
  • Are we too obsessed with progress?
  • What going home can teach you about mindfulness
  • Does travel increase mindfulness?
  • Week 3 Recap: Is mindfulness more painful than electro shocks?
  • Should you believe in re-incarnation?
  • What you should want in life
  • What does it mean to have faith?
  • Why you should think about death
  • Buddhism: Day 30 and Month 5 Wrap-Up
  • On a short hiatus and looking for ideas
  • Six Ancient Ideas To Be Thankful For
  • Could you be happy as a slave?
  • Intro to Month 6: Hinduism – Understanding the Self through…Yoga?
  • I worshipped an elephant today
  • Should we view time cyclically?
  • To get more satisfaction out of your job, work late? Lessons from the Bhagavad Gita
  • Day 7 and Week 1 Recap – You can’t go home (to Portland) again
  • Hot Yoga – The Key to Understanding the Self?
  • Is employee detachment an alternative to employee engagement?
  • Don’t be a sheep
  • Incense: An ancient anti-depressant?
  • Detachment is really, really hard (or I got in trouble with HR)
  • Is Meritocracy the New Caste System?
  • Hinduism: Week 3 Recap
  • Take this Hindu Personality Test in 3 Difficult Steps
  • Cure Impostor Syndrome with Hindu Philosophy
  • Practice Shopcraft to Understand the Self
  • Hinduism Wrap-Up – Three Things Hinduism Can Teach You About Your Self
  • Intro to Month 7 – Learning the Art of Pleasure via Epicureanism
  • How to make friends
  • Is flexibility the key to long-term pleasure (and losing 5 pounds)?
  • Become happier through subtraction
  • Is sex pleasurable?
  • Drunken vs. Mindful Hedonism
  • Is religion pleasurable?
  • Pleasure and Faith
  • Are we bad at vacations? The need for deliberate leisure
  • Mr. Money Mustache – The Modern Epicurean
  • Anna’s Taqueria: My Favorite Burrito Place (my thoughts on food and pleasure)
  • Wanting More From Life
  • Happiness versus Meaning
  • What I learned about pleasure and happiness from Epicurean philosophy
  • My advice to graduates and a question for you
  • Taoism – Learning the Art of Non-Action
  • Naps and Long Walks
  • Fast-forwarding through Tai Chi
  • I Quit My Job and Started My Own Business, Taoist Style
  • Don’t be smart
  • Taoism Week 1 Recap
  • The Taoist Manager
  • Disgrace and Misfortune are Normal
  • Re-Learning to Walk
  • Everything that has happened to you has led you to now
  • Dealing with Disappointment using Wu-Wei
  • Bring Café Culture to Work
  • The Uncarved Wood Theory of Productivity
  • Three Applications of Non-Action
  • Doing Nothing: The Taoist and Scientific Way of Generating Creativity
  • Welcoming Variability
  • Don’t be productive: Lessons from my Taoist experiment
  • My Stoicism Article in the New York Observer
  • Fighting the Good Fight
  • What You’re Meant To Do: Career Advice from Ancient Wisdom
  • Some (Islamic) advice on keeping your New Year’s Resolutions
  • The Freedom of Constraint
  • You are defined by your enemies
  • Reader Case Study: How a Skeptic Learned to Benefit From Organized Religion
  • Wonder
  • Case Study: How Stoic ice baths helped a student reduce anxiety and procrastination
  • Finding community at … McDonalds?
  • My favorite personal development blogs and how ancient wisdom makes them better
  • Marriage according to ancient wisdom (I got engaged)
  • Post-Election Advice: Love your enemy as your enemy
  • Trip Report: Ancient Wisdom Lessons from India
  • Is life going great or terribly?
  • The Ancient Wisdom of Thick Institutions
  • Are we all Frank Underwood?
  • Modernity: An Age of Disordered Love
  • My Jewish Wedding Program
  • Getting Married While the World Burns
  • Ancient Wisdom Paper 1: The Fundamental Flaws of the Personal Development Genre
  • Ancient Wisdom Paper 2: Why Ancient Wisdom Trumps the Personal Development Genre
  • The Soul Abhors a Vacuum: Why Deliberate Wisdom is the Cure for Hidden Religions
  • What is New is Old: Nuns and Nones
  • Acceptance, Not Escape: How to Stop Disappointing Yourself
  • AWP Podcast Episode 1: Ultralearning and Meaning with Scott Young
  • AWP Podcast Episode 2: Why Cal Newport Thinks Your Phone is Destroying Your Inner World
  • AWP Podcast Episode 3: Chuck Marohn on Building Strong Towns and Rich Lives
  • Critical Questions
  • Is everyone more successful than me?
  • Appreciate those who annoy you
  • When you are envious of your friend’s success
  • A letter to someone on the internet who is getting old and feels lost
  • Unnatural and unnecessary desires
  • Don’t reinvent the rich life
  • Pay attention
  • Don’t half ass your day off
  • Souls are like athletes
  • You already won
  • Make your suffering an offering
  • Strong ambitions, lightly held
  • Modern Trades: Freedom for Clarity
  • Your imperfections are an asset
  • Mindfulness is not (only) about stress relief
  • Children sleeping alone: a modern mistake?
  • Distraction is today’s default status
  • Some perspectives on work
  • Pursue a life, not a lifestyle
  • You don’t need to move to a cabin to be spiritually fulfilled
  • What life wants from you
  • Can you be a Stoic manager?
  • Knowledge by doing
  • Good luck or bad luck? You don’t know
  • You will never perfect yourself
  • Actions as commitments
  • The Genesee Diary: The Priest Who Needed to “Get Away”
  • Can you use ancient wisdom as a dad? (Podcast interview)
  • Being your “best self”
  • Ancient parenting techniques
  • A meaningful life requires flexibility and continuity
  • Ditch the schedule
  • Solve ‘wild problems’ with ancient wisdom
  • When to quit

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