Courage is Calling

Ryan Holiday has been one of my favorite authors since 2018. I’ve written about his books before, and they are consistently in my Best Books lists. In 2019, Holiday released the last of three books written about Stoic philosophy in today’s world, Stillness is the Key. The other two are Ego Is the Enemy and The Obstacle is the Way. I also read a standalone of Holiday’s called Conspiracy: A True Story of Power, Sex, and a Billionaire’s Secret Plot to Destroy a Media Empire, which is still one of the craziest stories. Then, I discovered (well before a formal announcement) that Courage is Calling: Fortune Favors the Brave would be published in September 2021. I immediately ordered it and, once released, read it in one sitting. Courage is Calling is the first of four books on the four Stoic virtues: Courage, Temperance, Justice, and Wisdom. Holiday shares real stories of courage in it, but not always in the heroic, action-movie way. Holiday goes on to describe the many faces of courage. Yes, sometimes courage is six seconds of bravery from two young Marines giving their lives to stop a truck rigged to blow up the nearby base. However, sometimes courage is quietly pursuing a path and defying convention or your family. Courage is doing the right thing when no one is looking. Courage says, “If not me, then who?” I found myself highlighting something on nearly every page of this book. There are so many meaningful quotes to help keep you going in the face of tough choices, which is the other facet to this book: choice. Courage is a choice. You will have moments where you didn’t make the courageous choice, but the point of all of this – of life – is choice. Courage takes practice. It’s in the little moments that you think don’t matter, but those little moments train you for the big moments. Holiday discusses fear, and its relationship to courage, throughout the book. It’s no surprise that fear keeps us from courage. It keeps us in the dead-end job, the relationship you’ve outgrown, the city you don’t love. But, as Holiday discusses, fear isn’t the opposite of courage – it’s apathy. Doing nothing, being cynical, assuming your actions don’t matter – that’s the opposite of courage. Courage is a choice. You might make the right choice. You might make the wrong one. Regardless, choosing something holds power and takes courage. Just like Gandalf says, “All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.” Choose courage. Have hope. Go first. Leave the job. Ask that person on a date. Buy the book. Choose to do something. You’ll be happy you did something, but you’ll regret doing nothing.

A++ Wow, what a great start to learning about Ryan Holiday and the Stoics. I underlined, commented and starred the whole book. Read this is you want to change your life.....but you have to ACT. On to #2 ;o))

A good continuation of Ryan Holiday's works, and it follows the same methodology and small essays that one is used to. The focus on courage and bravery is a welcome change from the previous books which, while holding a theme, can jump from topic to topic.

This is a fabulous book written by Ryan Holiday. His writing is extremely noteworthy and comprehensive, giving you valuable tools for everyday life and making decisions. Steeped in stoicism, Holiday brings forth the most pivotal quotes that will resonate and possibly change your perspective in the most pleasant ways. This is the second copy of this book that I have bought as I recently sent a copy to a friend who absolutely loved this book!!

What do I mean by portable? This book does not require the reader to dedicate hours of contemplation to each chapter or page. I read most of this book in waiting rooms or on breaks at work. It's very digestible like that. Ryan Holiday really did an excellent job pacing the book and breaking up its chapters. It's not some deep treatise on the philosophical notions of courage. It's an evidence-based, historical approach to the Stoic virtue of courage. Courage is not the absence of fear -- it's moving forward in spite of your fear, or because of it. Others have been in worse situations than you. Others have done this task before. "What one man can do another can do" is a mantra from one of my favorite movies. You can have courage. You can do the right thing. Also, I really enjoyed the last chapter. Maybe I've missed it, but I've never heard Holiday go into depth about his life before Daily Stoic. I knew he was a marketing executive at American Apparel, but that was it. I knew there'd been some scandal with the CEO. But that was all I knew and all I cared to know. But Holiday opens up and writes about what happened, his role, and his regrets. He explains where he failed to have courage, and when he began to have it. It was a really honest look back, and one that I truly appreciated because we all have been there -- maybe not at a major company, but certainly all of us have been moral cowards at various points in our lives. While I've always appreciated Holiday's efforts at bringing Stoicism to modern life, that last chapter really made me love and respect him. It's what led me to write this review, in fact.

If Stoicism is new for you, this book is a wonderful introduction to one of the four virtues. So well written.

Readers of Holiday's previous books will instantly recognize the narrative style - hyper-caffeinated, short chapters that seem to keep repeating the same points, sprinkled with a curated set of quotes from various Stoic/eastern philosophy sources - all served with a generous tone of cheerleading. If you are a fan of that style, this book will not disappoint - can be a good companion of his book on obstacles. For those who will not enjoy pages and pages of the same tone, this will be a test of patience. There are gems of observations scattered in a few chapters. A few thought frames that can be used to start facing a "fear" are mentioned, but not necessarily in a easy-to-categorize and absorb manner. The book itself is organized into three parts - Fear, Courage and Heroism. Roughly, the emphasis of each segment is (at least how I felt useful to go through the book) - why we are fearful or lack courage, how to create the first moves/momentum to build courage, and what can sustain and build. Instead of trying to formulate a somewhat linear narrative of causes-diagnosis-treatments-management, the reader is left to own devices to develop a thought framework of one's own. Perhaps, the most original and useful section of the book is the discussion of his own experience at American Apparel (it is all the way at the end at "Afterword"). The self-appraisals and observations based on his experience there captures his views on courage very well - this chapter should have been the introduction, not the Afterword. That could potentially have set up the book much better. Having read all his books and continue to enjoy his weekly reading lists, the last two books (this one and Life of Stoics) have been underwhelming. I wish he expands on his American Apparel experience and use that as a foil to narrate almost all the themes from his books on ego, obstacles, and courage. Even with some poetic licenses, that will be a good book. This one, will engage and entertain you for a bit, but the constant haranguing of finding the courage gives the book the tone of a cliched motivation speaker.

Great examples of courage in many forms throughout the ages. Amazon service was great.

Livro indispensavel, Ryan Holiday é o papa atual do estoicismo, um filosofo dos tempos modernos, um autor da maior qualidade que tem um acervo inacreditavel. Recomendo todos os seus livros, diria que deveriam ser obrigatorios no ensino fundamental em todos os paises, principalmente no Brasil.

Nice size and quality book

Amazing book, really a great read if you need some direction in your life to own up to some situations

Hardcover olması ve uygun fiyata gelmesi çok iyi. Umarım Amazonda daha da fazla seçenegi uyguna bulabiliriz.

Une belle ode au courage dans une époque dévastée par la lâcheté humaine dans tous domaines.