Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven In this episode, Michael and I speak with Chris Fisher. We discuss traditional Stoicism: its religious aspects, the role of the Stoic God, and what modern Stoics miss from the ancient philosophy. You'll learn what Traditional Stoicism is and why it matters. https://traditionalstoicism.com/ (01:55) Chris's Background (09:17) What is Traditional Stoicism? (19:45) Defe...
Apr 11, 2023•1 hr 26 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven I speak with Scott Aikin , a philosopher at Vanderbilt University. This marks Aiken's third appearance on Stoa Conversations. During this episode, we delve into significant philosophical challenges to Stoicism, including the foundation of virtue, the impossibility objection, and issues arising from Traditional Stoicism. These topics hold theoretical importance, but ...
Apr 07, 2023•1 hr 1 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven “He gives his sole attention to how he might carry out his own activities, and attends continually to his own strand in the whole web; he makes sure that his own activities are done rightly, and he is convinced that his own strand in the web is good.” Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 3.4 Caleb and Michael do a close reading of Meditations 3.2 - 3.4. Chris Gill’s Transla...
Apr 04, 2023•43 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven "No, we have not picked all the low-hanging fruit yet." In this conversation, Caleb Ontiveros speaks with William Eden – a recovering economist turned biotech venture capitalist. They talk about a wide range of topics: the importance of history, whether Rome is a good analogy to today, Stoicism, voluntary discomfort, negative visualization, and Covid. Twitter Becomi...
Mar 31, 2023•1 hr 55 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven How can you remain Stoic when everyone around you has lost their head? Caleb and Michael discuss the problem of Non-Stoics. Often others can’t handle the stress of life and want to share Stoic techniques with them – when is that the right play? Luckily, Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius gave for this very issue. At the end of this conversation, we summarize 8 strategies...
Mar 28, 2023•48 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven Why do you want what you do? Are your desires even yours? In this conversation, Caleb Ontiveros speaks with Luke Burgis . Luke’s most recent book, Wanting: The Power of Mimetic Desire in Everyday Life , covers mimetic theory, as does this conversation. Mimetic theory is essential for Stoics to know because it explains why we end up wanting so many things that are ou...
Mar 24, 2023•50 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven What's the Stoic view on active euthanasia? In this conversation we discuss MAID (medical assistance in dying), Canada’s active euthanasia law. Warning: We’re discussing suicide. That’s what this episode is about. We discuss why this is an important issues, what the Stoic view on suicide is, and how that applies to the political issue of MAID. (01:18) Why Talk about...
Mar 21, 2023•45 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven What’s required for freedom? What does self respect demand? In this conversation, Caleb Ontiveros speaks with William Stephens about Epictetus’s Handbook. They discuss Epictetus’s conception of freedom, self-respect, and end with a discussion on his role ethics. We’ve had several conversations with William Stephens, he’s one of the foremost philosophical experts on ...
Mar 17, 2023•52 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven “Musonius used to say that it was the height of shamelessness to think about how weak our bodies are when enduring pain, but to forget how weak they are when experiencing pleasure.” In this podcast, Michael and I discuss the Roman Socrates, Musonius Rufus. Musonius Rufus was the teacher of Epictetus. He played a crucial role building Roman Stoicism. In this podcast ...
Mar 14, 2023•43 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven Stoics have a contemplative practice called The View From Above – it involves looking down on our life from a larger vantage point. An excellent way to do that is to zoom out and look at history, the rise and fall of civilizations. When we do that, the trivial falls away and what is important remains. This conversation with Dr Michael Bonner takes that larger perspe...
Mar 10, 2023•53 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven Why did the Stoics believe what you think is up to you? What are the components of thought? Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay discuss that in this episode. We start with the Stoic theory of mind and then move to how we can use their psychology to understand others and ourselves better. We then cover the radical Stoic ideas that no one does wrong willingly and the...
Mar 07, 2023•58 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven In this conversation, Caleb Ontiveros speaks with Nate Anderson, the deputy editor at Condé Nast’s Ars Technica . Nate is also the author of In Emergency, Break Glass: What Nietzsche Can Teach Us About Joyful Living in a Tech-Saturated World . We cover the philosophy of Nietzsche and how he challenges us to do better in this digital age. (00:27) Intro (01:19) Nate a...
Mar 03, 2023•45 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven Bryan Hill is a television, film, and comic book writer. His work in comics includes writing for Batman and Buffy's Angel and his work in television includes HBO Max's Titans, and Ash vs. The Evil Dead. He is a practitioner of Stoicism, and has incorporated Stoic ideas into his craft of writing. In this discussion, Michael Tremblay and Bryan cover using Stoicism to ...
Feb 28, 2023•1 hr 1 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven “We realized that Nietzsche’s approach represents a productive and healthy sequel to Stoicism, particularly for the disruptive entrepreneur.” Investor, entrepreneur, and researcher Dave Jilk joins Caleb to talk about Nietzsche and Entrepreneurship. With Brad Feld, Dave wrote The Entrepreneur's Weekly Nietzsche. They cover how Nietzsche challenges In this conversatio...
Feb 24, 2023•47 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven What's the best test of a business idea? Are we doomed by AI? Caleb Ontiveros talks with Liron Shapira about specificity, startup ideas, crypto skepticism, and the case for AI risk. Bloated MVP Specificity Sequence (02:19) Criticizing Crypto (04:31) Specificity (10:11) Intellectual Role Models (15:06) Insight from the Rationality Community (19:22) AI Risk (31:07) Ba...
Feb 23, 2023•46 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven “Is our life really so painful and burdensome that it would be advantageous for us to trade it for a fossilized Stoic way of life? Things are not bad enough for us that they have to be bad for us in the Stoic style!” Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay talk about how Nietzsche challenges Stoics. The Stoics and Nietzsche agree on the idea that we are self-sufficient...
Feb 21, 2023•56 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven How does Stoicism actually make a psychological difference? In conversation Caleb Ontiveros speaks with the author, researcher and psychologist, Tim Lebon on that very question. Tim shares how Stoicism has made a concrete difference to his life and how it has transformed the lives of others. He then discusses how Stoicism works and how it can help you shape you into...
Feb 17, 2023•52 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven In this episode we do a close reading of the first two chapters of Epictetus’s Handbook . Epictetus packages key theoretical and practical insights in the first two sections – read along! *** Stoa Conversations is Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay’s podcast on Stoic theory and practice. Caleb and Michael work together on the Stoa app. Stoa is designed to help you...
Feb 14, 2023•54 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven All ages will produce men like Clodius, but not all ages men like Cato.– Seneca Why did Stoics idolize Cato the Younger? In this episode Caleb Ontiveros speaks with Jimmy Soni , author of Rome's Last Citizen . We focus on what is admirable about Cato the Younger, his contradictions, and his legacy. We also touch on Soni’s book The Founders which is a deep dive on th...
Feb 10, 2023•54 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven Stoicism is apparently huge in Silicon Valley. Investors recommend Marcus Aurelius. Founders promote Stoic ideas like voluntary suffering. What’s up with that? In this episode, Caleb Ontiveros and Michael talk about how big Stoicism really is in Silicon Valley, how Stoicism helps build startups, and discuss criticism of Silicon Valley Stoicism. *** Stoa Conversation...
Feb 07, 2023•45 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven In this episode, Caleb Ontiveros speak with Dr. Massimo Pigliucci . Massimo is one of the key figures behind the Renaissance of modern stoicism. They discuss how Stoicism has made a difference to Massimo's life, Stoicism and politics, and end with a discussion of the proper attitude towards social media. This is an excellent conversation for thinking about how Stoic...
Feb 03, 2023•54 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven How Stoicism can improve our game and sport can make us better Stoics. Martial artist Michael Tremblay and marathoner Caleb Ontiveros discuss the relationship between sport and Stoicism. (00:12) Intro (02:07) Similarities Between Stoicism and Sport (14:19) Stoicism For Sport (32:49) Sport for Stoicism *** Stoa Conversations is Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay’s ...
Jan 31, 2023•54 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven Find out why Donald Robertson now calls Stoicism a fundamentally Socratic philosophy. In this episode Caleb Ontiveros speaks with Donald Robertson . Donald is the author of How to Think Like a Roman Emperor and The Philosophy of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and a number of other excellent books. He is trained as a psychotherapist and is one of the key players behind...
Jan 27, 2023•1 hr 11 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven Is the ultimate aim of life tranquility? Epicurus answered this question with a resounding "yes." The school he founded, Epicureanism, pitted itself against other ancient schools focused on virtue. Michael and Caleb go deep into the philosophy, explain why they think it is mistaken, but also talk about what it can teach us today. (00:41) Intro (02:16) History of Epi...
Jan 24, 2023•58 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven What lessons are hidden in ancient biographies? Alex Petkas is a former Classics professor who now works in the industrial coatings industry. Combining theory and practice. Modernizing Plutarch's Parallel Lives in his Cost of Glory podcast is one of his key projects. Plutarch was an ancient biographer, his most famous work, Parallel Lives, is a set of biographies of...
Jan 21, 2023•44 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven In this conversation Michael and Caleb discuss six different kinds of Stoicism: $toicism broicism stoicism (little s stoicism) Traditional Stoicism Academic Stoicism Modern Stoicism Some of these are misunderstandings, or at least incomplete, other's are much more meaningful uses of the philosophy. Michael and Caleb talk about each with the aim of correctly understa...
Jan 17, 2023•56 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven Stoicism is a philosophy that is ultimately geared towards attaining knowledge. Because of that it is crucial to know what kind of media environment we live in and how to navigate it. In this episode, Caleb speaks with philosophy professor Justin McBrayer. They discuss his most recent book Beyond Fake News: Finding the Truth in a World of Misinformation. Caleb and J...
Jan 13, 2023•55 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven ***Bonus episode*** In this conversation, Caleb and John Vervaeke talk about the nature of transformative experience and how Stoicism can deeply transform who you are. The discussion is deep and will repay multiple listens. John Vervaeke is an Assistant Professor in Cognitive Psychology and Cognitive Science at the University of Toronto. His work constructs a bridge...
Jan 11, 2023•48 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven In this episode, Caleb and Michael discuss why you should compare yourself to other people – but not just anyone. They discussion focuses on Caleb's recent article: You Should Compare Yourself to Other People Stoa Conversations is Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay’s podcast on Stoic theory and practice. Caleb and Michael work together on the Stoa app. Stoa is des...
Jan 10, 2023•51 min
Want to become more Stoic? Join us and other Stoics this October: Stoicism Applied by Caleb Ontiveros and Michael Tremblay on Maven In this episode, Caleb speaks with bestselling author Sharon Lebell. They discuss: - Why judgment is the beginning of connection - How Sharon thinks about role models - Key ideas in The Art of Living - The importance of clarifying and communicating values - Why optionality is overrated Sharon is the bestselling author of The Art of Living: The Classical Mannual on V...
Jan 06, 2023•47 min
