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I did a guest post for Josh Hanagarne at The World’s Strongest Librarian, Heavy Hitting Ideas From Heavy Hitting Books, and one of the commenters, Carlon suggested Enchiridion by Epictetus so I decided to read and review it. You can get a free copy of Enchiridion on the internet and it’s a very short book so it’s easy to read. Enchiridion is simple wisdom about life.

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One of the things I wanted to do on this blog is to review books off the beaten path that contains ancient wisdom, books that make you think. But, I have been reading a lot of more contemporary works. It struck me to do both so that I could compare and contrast the contents of books from yesterday with those of today to enhance the learning and user experience.

Epictetus, a Greek Philosopher was born AD 55. In Enchiridion, there are 52 ideas that we can apply to life. Epictetus advocates self-responsibility and self-discipline and he explains the difference between the things that are within our control, and those outside our control, the uncontrollable.  “The things in our control are by nature free, unrestrained, unhindered; but those not in our control are weak, slavish, restrained, belonging to others. Remember, then, that if you suppose that things which are slavish by nature are also free, and that what belongs to others is your own, then you will be hindered.” Knowing that distinction, allows us to stop trying to control the uncontrollable. I liked the idea of “Don’t be prideful with any excellence that is not your own” because so many people brag about the accomplishments of others, as if they had a hand in it.

As I am reading Epictetus, I am being reminded of books such as the Analects of Confucius and The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, which are filled with laws and ideas to live by. Please read the posts A Review of The Analects of Confucius and Review of The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. Here are 10 ideas that I extracted from the book.

10 Great Ideas

1. Do not be averse to things not in your control because you will surely be disappointed
2. If you are going to perform a task, first think about the nature of the task and how you are going to perform it
3. People are disturbed by things because of the principle and ideas they have about those things. For example, some people are disturbed by death because of their ideas and beliefs about death.
4. “Sickness is a hindrance to the body, but not to your ability to choose, unless that is your choice. Lameness is a hindrance to the leg, but not to your ability to choose. Say this to yourself with regard to everything that happens, then you will see such obstacles.” This is important today in the way we often view people with disabilities, they have a disability, they are not a disability
5. “Don’t demand that things happen as you wish, but wish that they happen as they do happen, and you will go on well” is a good one for me because I have a tendency to want to control things.
6. View your possessions as things you have been given to take care of for a time. Never say of anything, “I have lost it”; but, “I have returned it.”
7. “For another will not hurt you unless you please. You will then be hurt when you think you are hurt.”
8. Don’t tell, demonstrate
9. It’s none of your business what others say or think about you.
10. “Don’t wish to be thought to know anything; and even if you appear to be somebody important to others, distrust yourself”

I would like to further explore the idea of viewing your possessions as if they were on loan to you. One example he gives is people losing their estates should view the situation as “I have returned my estate.” This is a tough one, but would viewing the loss of of a home, your shelter, be easier if you decided that it was time to return it? Would it hurt less? What are your thoughts? There is much wisdom within the pages of Enchiridion, and though I understand many of his ideas, some of them are difficult to take even though it would make life easier. Many of the ideas go against the grain, including viewing the loss of a house as it being returned.

I recommend Enchiridion because it is not only filled with wisdom, but it goes against the grain so it takes us out of our comfort zone which can lead to innovative thinking. What ideas can you use from Enchiridion?

Keep the conversation flowing please comment. Many readers read this blog from other sites, so why don’t you pop over to The Invisible Mentor and subscribe (top on the left side) by email or RSS Feed. I created a Mini Learning Toolkit and you can grab a copy by clicking here.

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In August my friend Lauren Huffman Morris posted on Facebook 15 Favourite Books Share. I posted the following books that I read, and really enjoyed, and some of them influenced my life. I am forever growing and changing and as I evolve so the books, I like change. For today, here are 15 books I’d like to share in no special order of influence:

1. How to Read a Book, Mortimer Adler & Charles Van Doren
2. The Art of Thought, Graham Wallas
3. Key to Yourself, Venice Bloodworth
4. The Magic of Thinking Big, David Schwartz… Read More
5. The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett
6. New Psycho-Cybernetics, Maxwell Maltz
7. Best-Loved Folktales of the World, Joanna Cole
8. Gilgamesh: A New English Version, ed Stephen Mitchell
9. The Tenderness of Wolves, Stef Penney
10. The Outcast: A Novel (P.S.), Sadie Jones
11. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin
12. The Richest Man In Babylon, George Clason
13. The Greatest Salesman in the World, Og Mandino
14. Animal Farm and 1984, George Orwell
15. How I Raised Myself from Failure to Success in Selling, Frank Bettger

What would your list of 15 books look like? Let’s keep the conversation flowing, please comment. If you found this blog post through a search engine, please consider subscribing.

The Analects of Confucius is a collection of the teachings of Confucius, the Chinese philosopher and great thinker who lived 551 BC – 479 BC.

Presented as a series of discourses and dialogues that Confucius had with his disciples, The Analects of Confucius was written by his disciples several years after he died. The Analects consists of 20 Books (Chapters) and is essentially a rulebook of life. While reading this rulebook, it reminded me of Benjamin Franklin’s 13 Virtues: temperance, silence, order, resolution, frugality, industry, sincerity, justice, moderation, cleanliness, tranquility, chastity and humility.

Just as it is in the case of  Franklin’s virtues, some of the rules in Confucius’ rulebook are no longer relevant today, but I also appreciated reading The Analects of Confucius the same way that I appreciated reading The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin because some gems of wisdom are scattered throughout both texts.

Below are some of the things which stood out for me. Though I was not always comfortable with the language,  I am very mindful of when The Analects of Confucius was written. I am sure that your list would be different.

1. Confucius said, “Those who are born with the possession of knowledge are the highest class of men. Those who learn, and so readily get possession of knowledge, are the next. Those who are dull and stupid, and yet compass the learning, are another class next to these. As to those who are dull and stupid and yet do not learn; they are the lowest of the people.”
2.  The philosopher Tsang said, “I daily examine myself on three points: whether, in transacting business for others, I may have been not faithful; whether, in intercourse with friends, I may have been not sincere; whether I may have not mastered and practiced the instructions of my teacher.”
3.  The philosopher Yu said, “When agreements are made according to what is right, what is spoken can be made good. When respect is shown according to what is proper, one keeps far from shame and disgrace. When the parties upon whom a man leans are proper persons to be intimate with, he can make them his guides and masters.”
4.  ”To see what is right and not to do it is want of courage.”
5.  The Master said, “Hold faithfulness and sincerity as first principles. Have no friends not equal to yourself. When you have faults, do not fear to abandon them.”
6.  Tsze-chang asked what were the characteristics of the good man. The Master said, “He does not tread in the footsteps of others, but moreover, he does not enter the chamber of the sage.”
7.  The Master said, “When internal examination discovers nothing wrong, what is there to be anxious about, what is there to fear?”
8.  The Master said, “Do not be desirous to have things done quickly; do not look at small advantages. Desire to have things done quickly prevents their being done thoroughly. Looking at small advantages prevents great affairs from being accomplished.”

 The Analects of Confucius is easy to read because it’s not very long. Click here to download an online version of the book. I am sure after reading it you will find your own gems of wisdom. So what did I get from reading The Analects of Confucius? Act with courage and integrity, be thorough, chart your own path and learn continuously, are a few of the gems I identified.

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Photo credit: Public domain photo of Confucius