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April 11th

IF YOU WANT TO LEARN, BE HUMBLE

“Throw out your conceited opinions, for it is impossible for a

person to begin to learn what he thinks he already knows.”

—EPICTETUS, DISCOURSES, 2.17.1

f all the Stoics, Epictetus is the closest one to a true teacher. He had a
school. He hosted classes. In fact, his wisdom is passed down to us
through a student who took really good lecture notes. One of the things that
frustrated Epictetus about philosophy students—and has frustrated all
college professors since time began—is how students claim to want to be
taught but really secretly believe they already know everything.
The reality is that we’re all guilty of thinking we know it all, and we’d
all learn more if we could set that attitude aside. As smart or successful as
we may be, there is always someone who is smarter, more successful, and
wiser than us. Emerson put it well: “Every man I meet is my master in some
point, and in that I learn of him.”
If you want to learn, if you want to improve your life, seeking out
teachers, philosophers, and great books is a good start. But this approach
will only be effective if you’re humble and ready to let go of opinions you
already have.