Epictetus Stoic teachings
Epictetus: Once standards are established, things can be…
Once standards are established, things can be tested against them. Philosophy examines and protects those standards; the good person applies them when they understand them.
A paraphrase of a teaching associated with Epictetus, written for modern readers. Not a transcription of a copyrighted edition.
Values are easy to endorse in the abstract. Their real test arrives in the ordinary moments that seem too small to count: replying to a difficult message, choosing how to describe a coworker, deciding whether to keep a commitment when no one is watching. If we have no working standards, convenience will quietly make these decisions for us. Choose a few principles that can direct your behavior—perhaps honesty, fairness, courage, and restraint. Make them specific enough to use. Instead of saying “I value respect,” decide that you will not mock someone who is absent. Instead of saying “I value responsibility,” complete the task you promised before adding a new one. Today, take one routine decision and hold it to a standard you endorse. Philosophy becomes useful only when it reaches the hands, voice, and calendar.
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