Will

The driving force behind all of our actions, beyond even our mental or physical abilities, is our will. What is the difference between two people with similar abilities and situations? Their will to make progress towards an objective. Their will to stay focused and overcome obstacles that will come between them and that objective. If you look at those that are successful in life, to those that are able to recognize the good in life and stay on a path, you will see what makes them different: their will. I am not

referring to financial success although that could be part of it, but to that success that is based upon a pursuit of the good focusing on family, friends, work, education, philosophy, health, etc. If a person lacks perspective they will pursue money, fame, possessions, drugs, sex, power all for the sake of self-aggrandizement. Their will is not guided by the good, but by all that is superficial in life. The will must be directed towards the good and the pursuit of a meaningful life.  

Merriam Webster's Dictionary has one entry for "will," among many, that reads:

The power of control over one's own actions or emotions: a man of iron will.

When we can control our actions and emotions, we are in control of the direction we are taking our lives. After reading that statement, "we are in control of the direction we are taking our lives," I am left asking who is the "we" to which I am referring? When a person does things that feel out of control, they often feel they are an observer of those actions. If a person is overcome by their emotions and takes some action they later regret, they often feel as if someone else was controlling them, as if they were two people--the observer and the person taking the action. The objective here is to merge the observer with any actions and emotions and move towards the good. Remember, you don't wake up on Sunday morning regretting the good you did on Saturday night. When we are in control, when our actions and emotions are controlled by our will, we are no longer split, we are one, which leads to Stoic Freedom, Stoic Calm. 

Finally, we only control the direction we are taking our lives, we don't control the destination at which we will arrive. We can control our actions, opinions, emotions, and attitudes about events, but we can't control whether or not those events will happen. This isn't The Secret, the idea of visualizing something with the believe that will bring it to you. No, this is about staying on a path regardless of the outcome and with no guarantee of anything. The idea is to be in control of that which is in your control. Can you ask for anything more? Be well.