The Stoics practiced doing without on purpose. Seneca suggested setting aside days to eat plainly and sleep rough, then asking yourself, is this really what I was so afraid of? The point isn't to suffer. It's to learn from the inside that you can handle more than your comfort tells you. Most of our fear is fear of discomfort we've never actually tested. When you choose a little hardship while you're strong, the cold shower, the skipped treat, the harder route, you take some of the fear's power. You discover that the floor is lower than you thought, and you're still fine standing on it.

Inspired by the old idea of voluntary discomfort. Written by Ugo Charles.