For the Stoics, the only real good was your own character—your honesty, your fairness, your courage. Everything else, including reputation, sat outside your control. Marcus reminded himself that another person's opinion of him was their business, not his. This is freeing. You can't make everyone approve of you, and chasing that approval often pulls you away from doing the right thing. What you can do is be the kind of person you'd respect. Today, if you feel tempted to perform for others, gently turn back toward simply being good. That's the part that's actually yours, and it's the part that lasts.

Inspired by the old idea of virtue as the only good. Written by Ugo Charles.