🎙️ Listen to the episode here: https://dailystoic.com/the-1-gift-you-can-give-your-future-self-former-marine-elliot-ackerman/ 📚 Grab signed copies of Elliot's books here: https://www.thepaintedporch.com/search?type=product&q=elliot+ackerman* Former Marine turned novelist Elliot Ackerman sits down with Ryan to talk about what discipline really looks like in everyday life. From 100-degree runs to cold plunges and daily writing routines, they discuss what helps them stay steady, focused, and consistent even when it’s hard. Elliot Ackerman is the New York Times bestselling author of the novels 2054, 2034, Halcyon, Red Dress in Black and White, Waiting for Eden, Dark at the Crossing, and Green on Blue, as well as the memoirs The Fifth Act: America’s End in Afghanistan and Places and Names: On War, Revolution, and Returning. 📖 Preorder the final book in Ryan Holiday's Stoic Virtues Series: https://store.dailystoic.com/pages/wisdom-takes-work ✉️ Want Stoic wisdom delivered to your inbox daily? Sign up for the FREE Daily Stoic email at https://dailystoic.com/dailyemail 🏛 Get Stoic inspired books, medallions, and prints to remember these lessons at the Daily Stoic Store: https://store.dailystoic.com/ 🤝 Join the largest community of Stoics ever in history and get exclusive bonuses at https://dailystoiclife.com Instagram: ​https://www.instagram.com/dailystoic X: https://x.com/dailystoic Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dailystoic TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@daily_stoic #Stoicism​ #DailyStoic​ #RyanHoliday​ In this episode: 00:00:00-00:00:58 Intro 00:10:39-00:19:47 How Being a Marine Prepared Elliot Ackerman to Be a Writer 00:19:47-00:25:56 Why Discipline Is a Gift to Your Future Self 00:31:34-00:33:14 The Wisdom Behind the Book 'Sheepdogs' Epigraph 00:33:14-00:35:30 The Wisdom Behind the Sheepdogs Epigraph 00:35:30-00:32:36 How Institutions Have Betrayed the Youth 00:32:36-00:45:33 Why Humor in War Is a Stoic Trait 00:46:36-00:48:30 The Danger of Playing It Safe and Repeating Yourself 00:48:37-00:53:20 Talking About Virtue While Abandoning Virtue 00:53:20-01:03:30 Living in a Post-Shame Society 01:03:30-01:07:11 History Ends Where It Always Begins