“Stillness is the Key” by Ryan Holiday
The 3 domains we need to master.
I liked this book so much that I honestly don’t know where to start. I began following Ryan Holiday because he is a marketer who absolutely loves to read — just like me. I heard him talk about this book — his most recent one — in a couple of podcasts, and as someone who’s into meditation and mindfulness, I was intrigued by what he meant by “stillness”.
Even if you’re not into these topics, it is true that in this busy and noisy world we all need to be able to focus and think clearly at some point. We are constantly overwhelmed by the situations and challenges we face in our personal and/or professional lives, and it’s not easy to concentrate and find serenity without having our minds wander off in a million directions.
After having read the book, I would define stillness as the moment when a person reaches a state of quietness and peace in which they’re able to find the answer to that question they’ve asking themselves for some time, or the solution to that problem they’ve been dealing with. It is that exact instant in which they fully appreciate a beautiful scene or a meaningful moment with a loved one.
According to Holiday, stillness unlocks many positive things in our life and makes us better. It’s available to all of us — we just need to find it within ourselves. The goal of his book is to help us find and make the most of it.
Stillness is the Key is divided into three sections, or domains — mind, spirit and body. The three work together to achieve stillness. In each one of these sections, Holiday references significant figures in history who found stillness, how they did it, and how it helped them thrive. These references help us reflect on how we live our lives and aim to provide us with actionable advice that can bring us closer to uncovering the stillness within us.
John F. Kennedy, Seneca, Napoleon, Winston Churchill, Anne Frank, and Leonardo Da Vinci are only a few of the notorious historical figures that the author references in his book. It is evident that there was thorough research done behind each of these figures, and that Holiday manages to clearly illustrate his points and get his ideas and advice across to the reader.
It doesn’t mean that those who have found stillness are perfect and don’t make mistakes; they are as imperfect as everyone else, but have found the way to uncover the stillness within them. Tiger Woods’ story — as told by Holiday — is included to illustrate how, although he found stillness in his successful golfing career, he was unable to find the balance of the three domains.
There are many things in this book that resonate with me and really got me thinking. I found that Holiday’s advice and thoughts on how to work on the three domains in everyday situations got to me in many ways.
I don’t mean to give a lot of it away, but here are examples of advice that really resonated with me:
Mind:
Be present: we’re usually thinking about something in the past or hoping for something in the future and end up missing out on enjoying the present moment. Yes, I’m one of those.
Spirit:
Pursue virtue: we can all choose to be good or bad and how we want to feel about ourselves. We can succeed by cheating or lying, but eventually this can have an impact on our self-respect and peace of mind…which will stand in our way of achieving stillness.
Body:
Walk, but walk being present: enjoy the experience, see what’s around you, listen to the sounds and breathe. When you’re feeling stressed and overwhelmed just get up and walk.
I could keep going…
If you’re looking for a read that will help you reflect on some of your habits, or the way you get through your daily activities, this is definitely a great book for you. It is one that I’ll certainly keep on my bedside table for reference in my everyday journey to finding stillness.