“In order to keep their minds virtuous, the Stoics practiced something like negative visualization: They imagined the worst thing that could happen in order to be prepared if certain privileges and pleasures were taken from them.”
Héctor García and Francesc Miralles, Ikigai (Page 168)
Preparation Quotes
“[Stoicism] is not a philosophy for the weak or the cowardly. Stoicism is about facing the truth, about thinking about the unthinkable. Not just as it’s happening, but long before. Keep all the possibilities before you, including—especially—the bad ones. Keep your eyes open. Beware.Think it. Because you might be able to prevent it. And if you can’t, at least you’ll be able to handle the reality of its existence and then respond to it accordingly.”
Ryan Holiday
“The ultimate form of preparation is not planning for a specific scenario, but a mindset that can handle uncertainty.”
James Clear, Blog
“If you do anything at the last minute that takes more than a minute, you’re not organizing your project properly. The last minute is not a buffer zone, nor is it the moment to double-check your work. The last minute is simply sixty seconds to enjoy and to remind yourself that you successfully planned ahead.”
Seth Godin
“We shouldn’t be cramming the night before a test, or frantically looking for advice once a crisis has arrived. We need to be prepared. We need to be so on top of our work—and the knowledge required—that everything we need is right there, already in our hands and in our heads. If you’re rushing, you’re already too late. If you’re looking for your weapons, you’re already beaten.”
Ryan Holiday, Daily Stoic Blog
“You can never invite the wind, but you must leave the window open.”
Bruce Lee, Striking Thoughts (Page 13)
“The art of war teaches us to rely not on the likelihood of the enemy’s not coming, but on our own readiness to receive him; not on the chance of his not attacking, but rather on the fact that we have made our position unassailable.”
Sun Tzu, The Art of War
“Being unexpected adds to the weight of a disaster, and being a surprise has never failed to increase a person’s pain. For that reason, nothing should ever be unexpected by us. Our minds should be sent out in advance to all things and we shouldn’t just consider the normal course of things, but what could actually happen. For is there anything in life that Fortune won’t knock off its high horse if it pleases her?”
Seneca, via The Daily Stoic (Page 286)
“Today, you can hope that good fortune and good luck magically come your way. Or you can prepare yourself to get lucky by focusing on doing the right thing at the right time—and, ironically, render luck mostly unnecessary in the process.”
Ryan Holiday, The Daily Stoic (Page 158)
“Build before you have to. Build knowledge before you have to. Build strength before you have to. Build an emergency fund before you have to. Let internal pressure drive you today, so you can handle external pressure tomorrow.”
James Clear, Blog
Winston Churchill Quote on Being Prepared and Ready When Your Special Moment Comes
“To each there comes in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique to them and fitted to their talents. What a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that which could have been their finest hour.”
Winston Churchill
Beyond the Quote (135/365)
Rather than wait for the opportunity before you start to prepare—start preparing for the opportunity that is going to come. Too many people wait for their golden ticket, their lucky break, their big moment—when really, all they’re doing is waiting. Golden tickets aren’t given to people who aren’t even in the competition. Lucky breaks might happen, sure—but luck has more to do with preparation meeting opportunity. Don’t base your life plan on the lottery—it’s not an admirable way to the top anyway. Big moments come and go all of the time. The tragedy, as Sir Winston Churchill points out, is when those big moments come and you’re unprepared, unqualified, or just plain too passive to step into it.
Read More »Winston Churchill Quote on Being Prepared and Ready When Your Special Moment ComesHumble the Poet Quote on Managing Expectations and Going From “High” to “Low” to “None”
“Jumping into anything with low expectations is the best way to exceed expectations, so keep that in mind when deciding your next move.”
Humble the Poet, Things No One Else Can Teach Us (Page 131)
Beyond the Quote (79/365)
Rather than low expectations, try no expectations. When you hold a stance that maintains expectations, you are putting energy into a future result that will distract you from your present task. Once you have made up your mind about what your next move will be, do just that. And focus all of your resources on doing that task to the best of your ability—not into acquiring a certain result. Maintain the mindset of now and empty your mind of what might happen in the future. This is how you will produce your best work and this is how you will best take care of the tasks you set out to do. And as the saying goes, taking care of this moment is the best insurance you have for the next moment.
Read More »Humble the Poet Quote on Managing Expectations and Going From “High” to “Low” to “None”“The sole reason I work out like I do isn’t to prepare for and win ultra races. I don’t have an athletic motive at all. It’s to prepare my mind for life itself. Life will always be the most grueling endurance sport, and when you train hard, get uncomfortable, and callous your mind, you will become a more versatile competitor, trained to find a way forward no matter what. Because there will be times when the sh*t life throws at you isn’t minor at all. Sometimes life hits you dead in the f*cking heart.” ~ David Goggins, Can’t Hurt Me
“In the military we always say we don’t rise to the level of our expectations, we fall to the level of our training.” ~ David Goggins, Can’t Hurt Me
“Life is not going to pick us up when we fall. There will be forks in the road, knives in your f*cking back, mountains to climb, and we are only capable of living up to the image we create for ourselves. Prepare yourself!” ~ David Goggins, Can’t Hurt Me
“I believe the world is chaotic and destiny favors the prepared. Unfortunately, sometimes chaos just refuses the harness, no matter how well you bulletproof your mission and how committed you are to finding a way. Moving forward despite chaotic conditions—and sometimes because of them—is inherently risky, and since we don’t shy away from risk, you will inevitably experience failure, probably more often than you succeed, actually.” ~ Mark Divine, The Way of the Seal
“The only thing you really control in life is your preparation. You may be up against more devious, more intelligent, or more excitable people, but you can’t control their conduct, steal their skills, or tranquilize their emotions. You can’t control external events. But if you prepare yourself and your team fully, you know that you will have done all you can do to achieve an optimal result.” ~ Ronald Shapiro, Dare to Prepare