The V.I.TA.L Fate Method of Stoicism and Business Life

Stoic business practices, the new business model.

It’s not a new concept; the stoic mindset has been around for centuries, at least since the days of ancient Greece and Rome. A mentor at work recently shared with me some insightful practices introduced by Marcus Aurelius, the famous Roman emperor known for his significant contributions to stoic philosophy and the stoic lifestyle he led so wisely.

He also mentioned the notable author Donald J. Robertson, whose works on Stoicism and its practical applications have now made their way onto my reading list. We can definitely delve into that topic later, as I'm eager to explore his ideas further.

The main focus of our conversation was the intriguing idea of control—particularly how a professional must recognize when circumstances are beyond our control. It’s essential to understand that we must learn to manage our responses in a way that aligns with the energy we receive from external situations and challenges.

A little before information, Marcus Aurelius is remembered as one of the Five Good Emperors, marking the culmination of an era known for its just and capable rulers. After his death, his son became the catalyst for a challenging period that deviated from that legacy. However, rather than discussing the historical downfall of governance of the Roman Empire, our goal is to explore the rich practices of Stoicism and how we can effectively apply these principles in our everyday business practices.

From my understanding, there appears to be several key components of Stoicism that we should consider: Virtue, Control, Emotions, Living Fate, and Acceptance.

"Don't sweat the small stuff... unless it's your morning coffee, then maybe sweat a little, but not too much."

Besides looking at this great image of a man that ruled a good chunk of world let’s play with acronyms V.I.T.A.L. Fate, and use this as our guide in this share.

Virtue is the first and most VITAL Fate - (man, this is getting cheesy a bit, sorry about that. I couldn’t resist). How we manage our day to days requires constant decision making. With each decision we have to analize each value we have with a critical comb and subconsciously it takes a toll. The mission here is to create a few rules that must always be followed. Constantine the Great “thinking is the great enemy of man”.

Invocations and/or Emotions follows the main rules to follow V.I.T.A.L Fate - I cannot say enough about emotions and the role they play in our lives. Understanding the triggers in every situation should is a basic covenance to having a real conversation. I feel when we run out of good arguments we revert to aggression to solve the debate.

Total Control, or controlled control, is next in V.I.T.AL. Fate - Understanding that control is an illusion and everything is really influence is the game changer. Because reality is constructed immediately before the next unknown moment control is out of our understanding and physical abilities. Influence is however in our abilities.

Understand Your Purpose! Live Your Life!

Acceptance, boy this one is the roughest. There is no easy way for this to happen. Without scientific research and going on a hunch, I’m betting that acceptance is tough because of the neuro pathways that have been written during the experience, so erasing the past cannot happen, and acceptance only writes new pathways, unless you get into government brainwashing techniques.

Living a V.IT.A.L. life is the best solution for the rest of your life. No hidden secret here, wait there is one.

Live to be happy. Mind you, being happy is no easy task. Being happy is the torture beholden to us for having a an evolved brain. Evolution or the creator decided the desire for free will means to pursue conflict and excitement, that excitement which causes neuro-pathways to develop, is doomed to need excitement and drama but we don’t want it. It’s cruel really. Then happiness is within the drama and excitement, so sitting still, idle, will solve nothing and reward us with nothing. Reflecting on your happiness will be the secret to your happiness.

Was that helpful, I guess not. Stoicism and all that. Is your happiness in my control? Nope. But I hope I can influence it.

Fate is the final gut punch of stoicism, if you believe in that. Or if you believe in the invisible hand involving itself in you life that’s cool too.

The important thing is that I believe in you.

Trade Words Like Cash

Lets Get Learning!

With making money on the minds of most people, knowledge is our only path to a bountiful secure future.  The great thing is that we have so much information at our fingertips.

But how do we choose the right knowledge to use to your advantage?

Do you listen to the media? Do you listen to social media? Do you try YouTube? Do you park it at the library?  Attend school?  There is no right answer. The cool thing is that there is no wrong answer either. Knowledge is knowledge.  In our business we need to have a process for knowledge gathering and use. 

As this is a topic on knowledge and making money, I’d like to share a piece of knowledge that is setting some groundwork for me.  In their book, Virtual Selling, by Mike Schultz, Dave Shaby, and Andy Springer (https://bookshop.org/a/93509/9781734883909) , is a prime example of learning something new, but not just for the newness of knowledge but to learn the lingo and skills for a new opportunity.  Pulled from their book a common quote that all business professionals and entrepreneurs should consider when introducing new information.  After all repeat business is our best friend.

“Change is not necessary, but neither is survival.” W. Edwards Deming

So, there lies the turmoil of what is next, what to act on.  What to move us from survival to revival.  Do you feel you have enough knowledge to support the proposed financial growth hypothesis?  How do you build the sellers/buyers relationship and not look the part of the fool?  The list of factors is too great to list here.  From day one we trade our knowledge in our lingo, our tech talk, and our jargon.  In the negative egotistical sense, you can see this as a pissing match.  However, in a true knowledge quest you see this trading in shared visions of workplace pride.

When listening, each trade has its own set of jargon.  For example, below are three different examples of industry lingo.

Plumbing                        Physical Science           Business

snaking lines                 gun spark                        Return on Investment

rough ins                         bias flow turbine          run to fail

water hammer              Hobbit Hole Door         Bleeding Edge

ballcock                           McClure Box                   Blue Ocean

You get the picture.  Once the lingo of an industry is understood a whole new world is opened to you.  Which opens new possibilities too. What possibilities are thinking up right now for your business?   The authors of Virtual Selling also provide key lingo to start learning to set you on YOUR next adventure financial gain.

Virtual Selling Lingo:

Engagement threshold

Cost impact model

Armageddon pitchman

Saccharin-sweetness

Bialys (admittedly this one is a flatbread – but I had to look it up)

NOTE – this is only a small example from the book.

Once the lingo is brought into the field the authors start working through their method for success, the R.A.I.N Method, which is a foundation to shift from F2F (face to face) selling to a virtual selling environment with an included ROI model to see the impact of delivering exceptional success. 

BUT that’s not all!  There are more tools like the Buyer Change Blueprint, review of the impact model, and more!  There is even a Star Trek mention from the old episodes if you can catch it.  The point is change is hard, but it’s harder without a system and without a good vocabulary.   Check out the book.

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