The next time you’re consumed by anxiety – which, given the headlines, is probably this minute – you might borrow a tip from the philosopher Massimo Pigliucci, author of the excellent new book How To Be A Stoic. But it does mean you’re almost certainly stressing about things that will, without doubt, remain majestically unaffected by your stress. The problems you’re experiencing today seem uniquely fraught and important, but that’s mainly because you’re so narrowly focused on the present. Because it’s an undeniable fact that every single problem you’ve ever had is currently solved, with the exception of today’s small handful. It’s easier to look back at previous forthcoming events, and ask if your anxiety proved justified.

Source: The Guardian September 15, 2017 13:52 UTC