Wisdom Takes Work

Learn. Apply. Repeat.

By: Ryan Holiday

Narrated by: Ryan Holiday

In this much-anticipated final installment in the Stoic Virtues series, Ryan Holiday makes the case for the virtue on which all other virtues depend.

Of all the stoic virtues - courage, discipline, justice, and wisdom - wisdom is the most elusive. This is especially apparent in an age where reaction and idle chatter are rewarded, and restraint and thoughtfulness are unfashionable. The great statesman and philosophers of the past would not be fooled, as we are, by headlines or appearances or the primal pull of tribalism. They knew too much of history, of their own flaws, of the need for collaboration to do any of that. That's wisdom - and we need it more than ever.

Wisdom is Ryan Holiday's guiding principle, and Wisdom Takes Work is the culmination of all his work. Drawing on fascinating stories of the ancient and modern figures alike, Holiday shows how to cultivate wisdom through reading, self-education, and experience. Through the lives of Montaigne, Seneca, Joan Didion, Abraham Lincoln, and others, Holiday teaches us how to listen more than we talk, to think with nuance, to ruthlessly question our own beliefs, and to develop a method of self-education. He argues convincingly for the necessity of mental struggle and warns against taking shortcuts that deprive us of real knowledge. And he shows us how dangerous power and intelligence can be without the tempering influence of wisdom.

An absence of curiosity and prudence is a catastrophe for all of us, argues Ryan Holiday. This incredibly timely book both diagnoses the greatest problem of our current moment and offers solutions for the way forward. Wisdom is work - but it's worth it.

Critic reviews

“A deeply thoughtful yet entertainingly readable description of the journey to wisdom by a modern age philosopher. I wish Ryan Holiday had written it, and I’d read it, when I was twenty. Now I hope everyone does.” —General Stanley McChrystal, retired US Army and author of On Character

Love his story telling , his chapter about Elon Musk seemed to get a little out of character for Ryan

I have loved Ryan holiday’s work up to this point, have read all his books and enjoyed so many of them. I left them feeling uplifted and excited to work on my own personal gaps I have. This book, I didn’t walk away feeling that way. Once in awhile I did but not nearly as much. He seemed kind of angry throughout it.

His chapter of Elon Musk I felt was out of character for him. It was obvious he doesn’t like him 😂 and I felt it became very personal almost. In fact, he kept bringing Musk up all throughout the book. It started to become very clear that he is struggling having a stoics approach to Elon. Elon seems to take a lot of space in his mind.

Dong get me wrong, Musk is far from being beyond reproach, by any stretch of the imagination, but I felt like the words and positioning that Ryan took seemed out of character for him, stepping out of a stoic approach it seemed very personal and got to a point where I felt like it was excessive in the time spent pointing out every flaw over and over and over throughout the whole book, and I felt like the words he chose to express things just felt a little childish for a moment. I can only express it as it felt out of character for Ryan and his usual approach.

Not as nuanced as his other books

Overall, this is a solid book about wisdom and the philosophy that helps us grow intellectually and spiritually into wiser people each day. However, I am a bit disappointed in this book as somebody who has read many of Ryan Holiday's previous books and often highly recommend his work to friends and colleagues. He often uses historical figures as examples of the virtues he's discussing in his work, or sharing cautionary tales about. In this particular book, he spends a significant amount of time discussing Elon Musk and Abraham Lincoln. Both are significant figures and worthy of discussion in the book, but I wish it would have been handled with more nuance. Anybody with half a brain can tell you that Elon Musk has lost his mind and is not the embodiment of discipline and wisdom. Discussing him to such an extent in the book takes away opportunities for the reader to learn about other relevant figures, and to say that Musk is not the wisest is to say that water is wet. Again, its fine to discuss these people as they are worth reading about, but it boiled down to "Elon bad, Lincoln good." It wasn't until the epilogue that the author got into some real nuance. This was a missed opportunity and a disappointment for the readers/listeners, especially for the conclusion of what's otherwise been a great series.

Timeless Wisdom in a Timely Manner.

Like most of Ryan's work, this final book in the series presents old-school ideas in a framework for the present day.

Real enjoyment

I really enjoyed this book. I am also a fan of Robert Green, and was familiar with his stroke. I am a T. B. I survivor and am very aware that it takes a lot of work. Please send him my regards.
Now ask for you and this book: the words were fabulous . I even shared it with a friend!
Thanks again a fellow Texan

An incredible book

Ryan’s work is enthralling, humbling, and actionable all at the same time. Read this book.