“We spend most of our time and energy in a kind of horizontal thinking. We move along the surface of things going from one quick base to another, often with a frenzy that wears us out. We collect data, things, people, ideas, ‘profound experiences,’ never penetrating any of them… But there are other times. There are times when we stop. We sit still. We lose ourselves in a pile of leaves or its memory. We listen and breezes from a whole other world begin to whisper. Then we begin our ‘going down.'”
James Carroll, Sunbeams (Page 22)
Thich Nhat Hanh Quote on Inner Peace and Understanding The Nature Of Our Inner World
“We must look deeply into the nature of our volition to see whether it is pushing us in the direction of liberation from suffering and toward peace and compassion, or in the direction of affliction and misery. What is it that we really want deep in our heart? Is it money, fame, power? Or is it finding inner peace, being able to live life fully and enjoy the present moment?”
Thich Nhat Hanh, Savor
Beyond the Quote (244/365)
How to achieve inner peace? Eliminate all inner conflict. For what is peace but the absence of war? And who is less at peace than the person who is constantly at war within themselves? As is evidenced from throughout human history and in modern times, eliminating war is no easy feat. There are very real threats that, time and time again, have called for war under the context that the fight was (and is) for the greater good. And while the means for achieving peace in the external world are (and will forever be) up for debate because we all share this world together—achieving inner peace is something that is (and will forever be) up to only you.
Read More »Thich Nhat Hanh Quote on Inner Peace and Understanding The Nature Of Our Inner World
47 Ryan Holiday Quotes from Stillness is the Key To Help You Reclaim Your Full Power
Excerpt: Stillness is the antidote to the overwhelmed, modern mind. These quotes from Stillness is the Key will help you reclaim your full power.
Read More »47 Ryan Holiday Quotes from Stillness is the Key To Help You Reclaim Your Full Power
Ryan Holiday Quote on Leisure and Recharging Constructively
“[Leisure] is a physical state—a physical action—that somehow replenishes and strengthens the soul. Leisure is not the absence of activity, it is activity. What is absent is any external justification—you can’t do leisure for pay, you can’t do it to impress people. You have to do it for you.“
Ryan Holiday, Stillness is the Key (Page 237)
Beyond the Quote (120/365)
Too often we associate “replenishing” and “recharging” with shutting down and binging. We finish a long stretch of work and we immediately resort to plopping down in front of the TV and mindlessly zoning out for a few hours to “recover.” And while it is okay to do that every now and again, what might be worth exploring is the idea of recharging, not by checking out, but by checking in to activities that engage you.
Read More »Ryan Holiday Quote on Leisure and Recharging Constructively“Stillness is not an excuse to withdraw from the affairs of the world. Quite the opposite‚ it’s a tool to let you do more good for more people.”
Ryan Holiday, Stillness is the Key (Page 249)
“Breakthroughs seem to happen with stunning regularity in the shower or on a long hike. Where don’t they happen? Shouting to be heard in a bar. Three hours into a television binge. Nobody realizes just how much they love someone while they’re booking back-to back-to-back meetings. If solitude is the school of genius, as the historian Edward Gibbon put it, then the crowded, busy world is the purgatory of the idiot.”
Ryan Holiday, Stillness is the Key (Page 215)
“Somebody who thinks they’re nothing and don’t matter because they’re not doing something for even a few days is depriving themselves of stillness, yes—but they are also closing themselves off from a higher plane of performance that comes out of it.”
Ryan Holiday, Stillness is the Key (Page 189)
“There is no stillness to the mind that thinks of nothing but itself, nor will there ever be peace for the body and spirit that follow their every urge and value nothing but themselves.”
Ryan Holiday, Stillness is the Key (Page 137)
“Mental stillness will be short-lived if our hearts are on fire, or our souls ache with emptiness. We are incapable of seeing what is essential in the world if we are blind to what’s going on within us. We cannot be in harmony with anyone or anything if the need for more, more , more is gnawing at our insides like a maggot.”
Ryan Holiday, Stillness is the Key (Page 94)
“The world is like muddy water. To see through it, we have to let things settle. We can’t be disturbed by initial appearances, and if we are patient and still, the truth will be revealed to us.” ~ Ryan Holiday, Stillness is the Key (Page 47)
Pico Iyer Quote on Rethinking Travel and Exploring ‘Nowhere’
“In an age of speed, I began to think, nothing could be more invigorating that going slow. In an age of distraction, nothing can feel more luxurious than paying attention. And in an age of constant movement, nothing is more urgent than sitting still. You can go on vacation to Hawaii or New Orleans three months from now, and you’ll have a tremendous time, I’m sure. But if you want to come back feeling new – alive and full of fresh hope and in love with the world – I think the place to visit may be Nowhere.”
Pico Iyer, The Art of Stillness
Beyond the Quote (101/365)
In his book, The Art of Stillness, Pico Iyer writes about an unconventional approach to adventure that involves, not traveling to New Orleans or Hawaii, but to “Nowhere.” And yes, that’s exactly what he means. Rather than taking the time to venture off to far and distant lands, he makes an argument for the opposite—adventuring to nowhere in particular and taking that time to turn inward. This idea may not be what people want to hear—after all, who would want to give up the idea of going to Hawaii… to go Nowhere? But, when you look a little closer at the dynamics of far and distant travel, the notion of “Nowhere” may begin to make more sense.
Read More »Pico Iyer Quote on Rethinking Travel and Exploring ‘Nowhere’“We want to learn to see the world like an artist: While other people are oblivious to what surrounds them, the artist really sees. Their mind, fully engaged, notices the way a bird flies or the way a stranger holds their fork or a mother looks at her child. They have no thoughts of the morrow. All they are thinking about is how to capture and communicate their experience. An artist is present. And from this stillness comes brilliance.” ~ Ryan Holiday, Stillness is the Key (Page 28)
Ryan Holiday Quote on Cultivating Mental Stillness To Succeed In Life
“Each of us will, in our own lives, face crisis. A business on the brink of collapse. An acrimonious divorce. A decision about the future of our career. A moment where the whole game depends on us. These situations will call upon all our mental resources. An emotional, reactive response—an unthinking, half-baked response—will not cut it. Not if we want to get it right. Not if we want to perform at our best. In these situations we must: be fully present; empty our mind of preconceptions; take our time; sit quietly and reflect; reject distraction; weight advice against the counsel of our convictions; deliberate without being paralyzed. We must cultivate mental stillness to succeed in life and to successfully navigate the many crises it throws our way.”
Ryan Holiday, Stillness is the Key (Page 20)
Beyond the Quote (97/365)
It’s a fine line between reacting and responding; between acting then thinking versus thinking then acting; between needing to make a quick decision and not wanting to wait (or not having the self-control to wait) to make a decision. Crisis situations are going to call upon the full extent of our mental resources if we are to handle the crisis properly and in a way that is in complete alignment with our best intentions. The challenge, of course, is that most crisis situations have a strong sense of urgency attached to them that requires a quick decision to be made.
Read More »Ryan Holiday Quote on Cultivating Mental Stillness To Succeed In Life“Stillness is what aims the archer’s arrow. It inspires new ideas. It sharpens perspective and illuminates connections. It slows the ball down so that we might hit it. It generates a vision, helps us resist the passions of the mob, makes space for gratitude and wonder. Stillness allows us to persevere. To succeed. It is the key that unlocks the insights of genius, and allows us regular folks to understand them.” ~ Ryan Holiday, via Stillness is the Key (Page 2)
Stillness Is The Key [Book]
Book Overview: All great leaders, thinkers, artists, athletes, and visionaries share one indelible quality. It enables them to conquer their tempers. To avoid distraction and discover great insights. To achieve happiness and do the right thing. Ryan Holiday calls it stillness–to be steady while the world spins around you. In this book, he outlines a path for achieving this ancient, but urgently necessary way of living. Drawing on a wide range of history’s greatest thinkers, from Confucius to Seneca, Marcus Aurelius to Thich Nhat Hanh, John Stuart Mill to Nietzsche, he argues that stillness is not mere inactivity, but the doorway to self-mastery, discipline, and focus. More than ever, people are overwhelmed. They face obstacles and egos and competition. Stillness Is the Key offers a simple but inspiring antidote to the stress of 24/7 news and social media. The stillness that we all seek is the path to meaning, contentment, and excellence in a world that needs more of it than ever.
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Post(s) Inspired by this Book:
- 47 Deep and Insightful Ryan Holiday Quotes from Stillness is the Key
- Herbert Simon Quote on Attention and How Eyes Communicate Priority (Beyond the Quote 280/365)
- Ryan Holiday Quote on How Being Present May Be The Hardest Thing In The World (Beyond the Quote 138/365)
- Ryan Holiday Quote on Leisure and Recharging Constructively (Beyond the Quote (120/365)
- Epicurus Quote on What The Wise Will Accomplish in Their Life (Beyond the Quote 119/365)
- Anne Frank Quote on Reflection and Doing Better Each Day (Beyond the Quote 104/365)
- Epictetus Quote on Prioritizing What’s Important (Beyond the Quote 100/365)
- Ryan Holiday Quote on Cultivating Mental Stillness To Succeed In Life (Beyond the Quote 97/365)
“Glimpses of love and joy or brief moments of deep peace are possible whenever a gap occurs in the stream of thought. For most people, such gaps happen rarely and only accidentally, in moments when the mind is rendered ‘speechless,’ sometimes triggered by great beauty, extreme physical exertion, or even great danger. Suddenly, there is inner stillness. And within that stillness there is a subtle but intense joy, there is love, there is peace.” ~ Eckhart Tolle, The Power of Now (Page 29)
