I write what I think and always reserve the right to change my mind. I’m confident in my opinions, but folks challenge me all the time.

On 𝕏–Twitter (@BrianDOLeary), there are some folks that don’t really challenge me but, instead, tell me how stupid I am for holding eminently reasonable positions. The culture of the “drive by” is alive and well in the Twittersphere.

I also find it remarkable that people will take their time out of the day to insult me in all sorts of ways and then take the extra step of blocking me.

Don’t get me wrong, I am a liberal user of the block function, but I also don’t block people who interact with me. I think that is more than a bit cowardly.

Choosing not to interact with them and their toxicity, however, is a choice I usually make. But feel free to attack.

Most people who read these emails are not like that, though. If you take time to respond to what I write, I read those responses and try to reply to each one.

Sometimes, though, my responses will take the form of a “Q & A” in these pages. That’s what I’ve got for you today …

What are you talking about? You are a Stoic!

Not exactly, but I do see some value in what they talk about. Some of my objections were noted in the email I wrote the other day.

While I believe there are bigger principles at play than what the Stoics talk about, at the heart of every struggle, there is a “battle within.”

Some critics will talk about movies or novels—even the struggles in someone’s personal life—as “man vs. man,” “man vs. nature,” or even "man vs. God," but that is incorrect.

The Stoics have it right. Every struggle is, at its heart, a battle of “man vs. self.”

Furthermore, when understood this way, the best stories end up as the ones revolving around a character’s own choices, fears, and desires.

A shipwrecked sailor, for instance, fights raging seas and starvation, but the true battle is against despair, doubt, and the decision to persevere. In other words, Odysseus did not battle nature as much as he battled himself.

An antagonist can serve to move the story along, but the main character’s greatest rival remains himself—flaws, beliefs, limitations, warts, etc.

Those struggling with faith and morality aren’t “contending” with God per se. They must first reconcile their own human frailty with a sense of purpose or meaning.

Another way to put it is that the most profound wars aren’t contested on the battlefield but waged within the soul.

Give the Stoics a chance.

I think I’m getting there after all. Slowly. Incrementally. Correct me if I’m wrong.

You talk about sports a lot. Isn’t sports psychology just modernized Stoicism, specifically tailored to sports performance?

Okay. More on Stoicism. I’ll bite.

Stoicism emphasizes some qualities that are essential in competitive sports. For example, self-control, resilience, and rationality. Athletes should indeed train their minds to focus, like the Stoics emphasized, focus on what they can control—I call it “controlling the controllables”—and maintain composure under pressure.

However, pressure is something we put upon ourselves. It’s our mind playing tricks on us.

It becomes “man vs. self.” The 2025 Masters was a great example of this.

Of course, a golfer competes against others in the field, but the main competitor ends up being their own mind. The ball is sitting there and not moving, for crying out loud. “All you have to do is hit it.”

Visualization or mental rehearsal is also incredibly important in sports psychology. Golfers know this better than a lot of other sportsmen. The Stoics taught something similar.

The field of sports psychology has advanced far beyond the tools available in ancient Greece and Rome. They are now using all sorts of modern techniques tool, relying on technology that the Stoics never could have envisioned.

Bottom line, both Stoicism and sports psychology use actionable techniques to achieve or maintain peak performance through mental toughness and discipline.

If the Catholic Church speaks for the marginalized and the unborn, why don’t they endorse candidates who also do that?

It’s against the law in America. I’m unfamiliar with the laws elsewhere.

You write an awful lot about mental toughness without giving a whole lot of detail … Can you?

I have a short ebook for sale that goes into that in more detail. It’s less than 4 bucks. So far, I’ve only received positive feedback.

If someone feels like tearing it to shreds and points out where my arguments and strategy fail, I’ll figure out a way to give you your 4 bucks back (contrary to my stated refund policy).

Get it here:

As always,

Brian

P.S. – In addition to these daily (usually short) emails, we're cranking up the ol' Substack once again. Aiming for at least two posts per week starting next week.

We may have something in store this weekend for you, but it being the holiest of weeks, management reserves the right not to publish until next week. Stay tuned.

If you get these emails, you should be getting the Substack emails as well, but feel free to sign up again or make sure you are subscribed over there.

More to come on the content plan next week…