I’ve long been familiar with Marcus Aurelius, though have never taken the deep dive into his work. However, this statement captures a deep truth for me.
This quote reminds me of a Steven Covey concept: Focusing on your Area of Influence. When we focus our efforts and energy on what we can impact, we become effective. Add that to “…you have power over your mind…”, and I see the power of focusing on our thoughts. Controlling our attitudes, I guess.
That’s such an interesting quote and something I was just talking to my therapist about recently. I tend to have strong reactions to things and I try to control everything around me which is a really bad habit but I’m slowly learning that I can’t control everything that happens around me just how I react to it.
It’s a challenging lesson, to be sure.
Absolutely.