Although there is something singular about the great minds and artists of history, it's interesting that most of them were not lone wolves or recluses. In fact, when you study most exceptional and wise minds, what you find is that they were often part of a scene.
A community, a collective, a culture, a movement full of other artists or writers or entrepreneurs or philosophers.
Think of the Scipionic Circle, a group of Roman politicians and philosophers who met at the house of Scipio—one of Rome's greatest generals—to discuss philosophy, share ideas and explore Stoicism. Think of the Transcendental Club Emerson started in Concord in 1836 or the "Lost Generation" who came of age together in Paris after World War I. Think of the Bloomsbury Group in 20th Century London, the Paypal Mafia in Silicon Valley, and countless other scenes that have transformed literature, music, politics and philosophy over the centuries.
The figures in them might have done their work alone, but they developed their ideas and their point of view with other people. Obviously, they did it with the right people too. As Seneca said, we must "associate with people who are likely to improve you," and "welcome those who you are capable of improving."
It's pretty rare that someone does not become better by surrounding themselves with great people. Socially. Professionally. Spiritually. It's also pretty common that a potentially great person to be is ruined by not-so-great influences. That was Epictetus's observation: If you live with a lame man, you will start to limp.
It's key then, in the pursuit of wisdom and the good life, that we cultivate the right influences, the right scene, the right partners and teachers and friends. Conversely, we must steer clear of the wrong ones, or we can end up foolish…or worse.
This is one of the key ideas in the new book, Wisdom Takes Work (preorder here!). Wisdom, like success, isn't a solo journey. It requires community, discourse, and the friction that comes from engaging with other minds. We must find (or make) a scene that inspires, challenges, and understands us. We must find a community that holds us accountable and pushes us to go beyond our limits.
It's through community that we truly learn, grow, and find our path to wisdom. This is where the rubber meets the road—where philosophy becomes practice.
At Daily Stoic, we consider anyone who reads this newsletter, listens to the podcast, or watches any of our online content as part of our community.
But for anyone who wants to go one step further, we'd like to ask…
Would you like to come to dinner to chat about all this?
Building out the Daily Stoic scene was part of the inspiration behind what has now become my favorite part of book launches (hey, Ryan here)—our Philosopher's Dinners we host at the Painted Porch Bookshop in Bastrop, TX. Unlike a typical event, these evenings are small, unhurried, and real—we sit together, eat together, and talk about the ideas that actually help us live better.
Usually when I meet readers of my books, it's at an event and I can only spend a few minutes here or there chatting. But these dinners are a rare opportunity to really sit down and get to know everyone. After the night's over, I feel very grateful and fortunate to be part of the Daily Stoic scene.
That's why I wanted to let you know you can still join us for our Wisdom Takes Work philosopher's dinner! Dinner invitations come as an exclusive bonus for anyone who purchases our 120-book Wisdom Takes Work bundle.
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