100 (Short) Rules for a Better Life - RyanHoliday.net
Curated from: ryanholiday.net
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Rules #1 - #10
1. Wake up early.
2. Ask: Am I using this technology, or is it using me?
3. Forget about outcomes—focus on making a little progress every day.
4. Say no (a lot).
6. Don’t watch television news.
7. Comparison = unhappiness
8. Journal.
9. Strenuous exercise every single day.
10. Character is fate.
Rules #11 - #20
11. Practice the law of action, not attraction.
12. Get up when you fall/fail.
13. Prove your philosophy more than you talk about it (and that’s not easy).
14. Don’t argue with reality (facts) you don’t like.
15. It’s not about routine but about practices.
16. Follow the canvas strategy.
17. Do a kindness each day.
18. Every situation has two handles—choose to grab the “smooth handle.”
20. Pick up trash when you see it.
Rules #21 - #30
21. If you want to be good and feel good, you have to do good.
22. Deliberately think about death. Every day, multiple times a day.
23. “Trust the process.”
24. Do your job well, because how you do anything is how you do everything.
25. Always choose “Alive Time.”
26. What’s a book that changed your life? is a question you can ask to change your life.
27. Forget “quality time”; embrace garbage time.
28. Do the verb, rather than being the noun.
29. Take walks.
30. The present is enough.
Rules #31 - #40
31. Fuel the habit bonfire.
32. Have a philosophy.
33. Don’t just read—you must read to lead.
34. Collect little sayings about how to live (keep a commonplace book).
35. Stop looking for shortcuts. Do the work.
36. Build an Inner Citadel.
37. Let it go—those who wrong you wrong themselves.
38. Spend time with old people.
39. When evaluating an opportunity, ask yourself: What will teach me the most?
40. Purpose, not passion. (It is about something bigger than you.)
Rules #41 - #50
41. Have kids.
42. Read biographies—the best way to study the lives of the greats.
43. Don’t try to beat other people, try to be the only one doing what you’re doing.
44. Know why you do what you do.
45. Be strict with yourself and forgiving of others.
46. Don’t post pictures of your kids on social.
47. Practice the art of negative visualization.
48. Cut toxic people out of your life.
49. Before starting any project, have a “draw-down period.”
50. “If you’ve been blessed, be a blessing.”
Rules #51 - #60
51. Don’t wait until later, do the thing now.
52. No day without some deep work.
53. Put yourself up for review (Interrogate yourself).
54. Ask yourself: How does this action I’m about to take affect other people?
55. Don’t take the money (see “success = autonomy”).
56. Always stay a student.
57. Break things down to see what they really are.
58. “If you see fraud and do not say fraud, you are a fraud.” — Nassim Taleb
59. Undersell and overdeliver.
60. You must tame your temper.
Rules #61 - #70
61. Never recline your seat on an airplane.
62. Belief in yourself is overrated. Generate evidence.
63. Never check the price on a book. Just buy it if you think you’ll read it.
64. Good things happen in bookstores.
65. See what you can learn from every person you meet—even people you don’t like.
66. Set a bedtime.
67. A successful marriage is worth more than a successful career.
68. “Go straight to the seat of intelligence.” — Marcus Aurelius
69. Human being, not human doing.
70. Amor fati.
Rules #71 - #80
71. Go the f*ck to sleep.
72. “Always say less than necessary.” — Robert Greene
73. Never take a phone call sitting down. Go outside and go for a walk.
74. Champion other people’s work.
75. Make commitments.
77. “Associate with people who are likely to improve you. Welcome those who you are capable of improving.” — Seneca
78. See the beauty in the mundane.
79. Print out good advice and put it right in front of your desk.
80. Remember: Nobody is thinking about you.
Rules #81 - #90
81. Don’t just read books, re-read books.
82. Make haste, slowly.
83. Don’t talk about projects until you’re finished.
84. Go into the wilderness.
85. Try to see opportunities where others see obstacles.
86. Inner scorecard vs. outer scorecard.
87. Have unrelated hobbies.
88. You don’t solve problems by running away. Travel will not make you happy.
89. Seek out challenges.
90. “Whenever you are offended, understand that you are complicit in taking offense.” — Epictetus
Rules #91 - #100
91. Think progress, not perfection.
92. “Ask yourself at every moment, ‘Is this necessary?’” — Marcus Aurelius
93. Lighten up. Relax. (Whatever it is, you’re probably taking it too seriously.)
94. Focus on what you can control.
95. Wrap up each day as if it were the end of your life.
96. Live an interesting life.
97. Value the Four Virtues.
99. Ego is the enemy.
100. Stillness is the key.
