The Eye, the Obsession, and a Flawed Syllogism
He had no motive. No passion. He loved the old man. And he killed him because of an eye. Jimmy analyzes the obsession at…
Perception
The Brain Surgeon or the Bullet Points?
The NCTE said book reading is out. Jimmy asks: would you rather be operated on by the surgeon who read the books or the…
Can You Be a 100% Listener?
A room full of executives said you can’t be a 100% listener. Marcus Aurelius wrote five words that say you can. Jimmy’s analysis of…
Three Kinds of People — and Marcus Aurelius Knew Which One He Was
Jim Lovell said there are three kinds of people. Machiavelli agreed. So did Marcus Aurelius — from a battlefield, without a spacecraft. Jimmy's analysis…
Erase Your Blackboard
Marcus Aurelius wrote that a limit of time is fixed for thee to clear the clouds from thy mind. John Locke said the mind…
Faust Doesn’t Want Knowledge. He Doesn’t Want Power. So What Does He Want?
Most people assume they know what Faust is after. He makes a deal with the devil, so the assumption is that he wants something…
What a Rubber Band Has to Do With Marcus Aurelius
Marcus Aurelius wrote in Meditation I that the same man can be both resolute and yielding. Jimmy explains what that means with a rubber…
Everything Is Opinion — Including This
Marcus Aurelius wrote that life is opinion. Jimmy explores what that means through colorblindness, the sun problem, and Meditation IV.3 — the most radical…
Five Ways You Are Doing Violence to Your Own Soul
Marcus Aurelius listed five ways the soul harms itself in Meditation II.16. Not what others do to you — what you do to yourself.…
Kiss Your Child Like It’s the Last Time
Epictetus wrote: when you kiss your child, remind yourself they are mortal. A BBC professor called it stupid. She missed the point. Jimmy’s analysis…
Marcus Aurelius Figured Out What Einstein Proved
In Meditation V.13, Marcus Aurelius wrote that matter cannot perish into non-existence. Einstein proved it eighteen centuries later. Jimmy's analysis of atoms, change, death,…
The Man on the Corner Said One Word
A homeless man in San Francisco said one word: Amnesty. Marcus Aurelius wrote about it eighteen hundred years earlier. Jimmy's analysis of cooperation, kinship,…
