A brief Heroic Plus One podcast by Brian Johnson arguing that people should choose meaning over pleasure. He references Viktor Frankl's claim that humans have a will to meaning (not merely pleasure), contrasts this with Freud, and aligns the point with Stoic ideas (virtue leads to the good life). Johnson links this lesson to his programs (Basic Training, Mastery Series, upcoming book) and closes with a call-to-action to Heroic.us.
Hey, hero, if you're enjoying these daily plus ones, make sure you head to heroic us to check out all of the other goodness we have to help you activate your best every day. And now, today's Plus One.
Hi, this is Brian. Welcome back to another Heroic Plus One. In our last couple 1s, we talked about some wisdom from Donald Miller's Hero on a mission. Note that hero would be you. We started by checking in on what roles you are choosing to play. It's always a choice to play the role of victim, villain, hero, or guide. And then we talked about how to ruin a good story. Hint, play the role of the victim hero. Today we're gonna spend another moment reflecting on some wisdom from Don's great book. He tells us, quote, viktor Frankl was right. All the good characteristics wife offers can and should happen. In fact, he had been a prominent neurologist and psychiatrist in Vienna during the 1930s, a couple decades after Sigmund Freud popularized psychoanalysis by espousing that the desire for pleasure motivated human behavior. Frankl disagreed with Freud. Frankl said, man did not have a will to pleasure, but a will to meaning. And when man couldn't find meaning, he distracted himself with pleasure. Don continues by saying, why are we so restless? Because ice cream is distracting but not fulfilling. Because alcohol offers a fabricated sense of peace. Because lust is not love. Frankl was right. We distract ourselves with pleasure when we can't find a sense of meaning. End quote. Now, in case it wasn't obvious, I too side with Frankl on his debate with Freud. And I love the way Don frames it. We try to numb ourselves with excessive pursuits of pleasure when we fail to create a life of deep meaning. This is why Objective 1 in basic training and Module 1 in our mastery series and the first objective in the heroic book that's coming soon are all about making sure we know the ultimate game we're playing. Because unfortunately, for the last 2,500 years, society has seduced us into playing the wrong game. Getting this fact and making the subtle but significant shift is the fastest way to change our lives. We need to shift from pursuing the extrinsic markers of success like fame and wealth and hotness and pleasure, and instead focus on the intrinsic goodness that ancient wisdom traditions and modern science say are the true basis of a good life, like personal growth, relationships, and making a contribution to your community. Get that right and create true meaning and voila, life is vastly improved. The Stoics talk about this as well. Ward Farnsworth puts it brilliantly in the Practicing Stoic where he tells us, and I quote, stoics regard virtue as sufficient to produce happiness on all occasions and also as necessary for it. The happiness centrally valued by the Stoic is eudaimonia, or well being, the good life rather than the good mood. But the Stoic believes that virtue gives rise to joy and to peace of mind as well. Virtue produces these good consequences as side effects. And the primary mission of the Stoics, in other words, is to be helpful to others and serve the greater good. And they don't do this to make themselves happy. They do it because it is right and natural way to live. But doing it in that spirit, as it turns out, makes them happy. And that's today's plus one. Pleasure versus meaning. The good mood versus the good life. Choose wisely. Hero Day one All in. Let's go.
We hope you enjoyed today's heroic plus one. For more ancient wisdom, modern science and practical tools to help you flourish in energy, work and love, head to Heroic US where you can get started on your heroic journey for free.
