Stoic Guidance is a program aimed to support modern people in learning and embodying the Stoic tradition, as a holistic philosophical and spiritual system to guide one's life.
While modern Stoic resources focus on reading the ancient texts, and studying in a more academic way, the Stoic Guidance program places an emphasis on making teachings real in the lives of students. This means working through real world situations in a mentorship relationship, while simultaneously working to understand and apply Stoic teachings.
What to expect:
One on one guidance and instruction from one of our mentors, over a 1-6 month period. Primary meetings over Zoom or Voice, secondary touchpoints over chat and email.
Receive individualized guidance specific to your life, and via a formal curriculum to learn Stoicism in a holistic, practical, and embodied way.
Get support in digesting aspects of your life, and in orienting helpfully to what's challenging.
Access to live groups and lectures hosted by other mentors in the project. Rub shoulders with other learners on the same path.
Access to any materials that make it into the private library (coming soon).
Limited free, and limited paid slots available each cycle.
There are two major components to the Stoic Guidance program - the personalized, specific guidance and support in your life, and the structured learning of the major principles and understandings of the Stoic tradition. This is an overview of what to expect with the structured learning component:
Three Areas of Focus:
The study of what is good, and the embodiment of this excellence.
The study of our own moment to moment experience, and the practice of working with it wisely.
Discovering a devotion to life as it is, and thus to what is truly life-giving.
Core Modules
Virtue (Excellence)
Impressions
The Cosmopolis (A Pro-Social Orientation)
True Inner Knowing (Daimon/Inner Sage)
Externals
Emotions and Value Judgements
Acting In Harmony with Nature
Work with a specific mentor over a period of months, getting individualized feedback, support, and instruction
Enjoy both personalization and a standard structured curriculum: All mentors teach from the same core curriculum summarized above, while working with mentees to give personalized guidance on what is going on in their life. Each mentor in the program brings their own unique strengths, style, and approach.
Choose a mentor you resonate with, or apply to be assigned the first available slot.
Inquire by filling out the inquiry form below. On the form we will ask you to provide details about what you're looking for, a bit about you, and if you are applying for a paid or scholarship (free) slot. This form is an inquiry, not a commitment. Afterwards you will be contacted by a mentor to discuss and structure the details.
Once you begin working with a mentor, you will have access to any other programming going on, such as group work. You will also have access to a private library of resources (coming soon).
Questions? Check out the FAQ, or email us here: ContactStoicGuidance@gmail.com
Alexander Maatje: Having a background in Business Administration, Alexander Maatje was first leisurely introduced to philosophy in early 2020. As a result of this, Stoicism came up on the radar later that year.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Stoicism brought many answers about how to deal with the consequences of the pandemic, how to view such drastic events, and even how to thrive. Alexander quickly began to notice how Stoicism also offered much more; Stoicism is not just a philosophy that can be useful during rough times, but gives a framework on how to live a fulfilling life in general and get the best out of life, even when things are going well.
Alexander now wants to share what he learned, not just based on the knowledge he gained over the last four years alone, but also on practice; the experiences that were the result of actively putting Stoicism to the test.
Taylor Share: Taylor's approach to Stoicism emphasizes embodiment and deeply understanding Stoic teachings in our lived lives. Taylor runs a project called Embodied Stoicism, which offers a vision of the Stoic path centered around genuine depth and actualization... a departure from a purely intellectual focus that is common in modern times.
He has studied and trained with many contemplative traditions and great teachers for over a decade, from Buddhist, to yogic, to modern somatic and therapeutic training, and more. He incorporates a wide range of inner work in his approach.
Taylor first picked up Meditations (Marcus Aurelius) in high school, and has felt a connection with the Stoic tradition throughout his life.
Tim Strackbein: Tim has spent a lifetime learning how to be in the moment and reclaim his ability to choose what he does in the here and now. The main tools he uses to do this are Stoicism, the Internal Family Systems model of therapy, and his understanding of systems from approximately 20 years spent doing IT, most recently as a DevOps engineer. He has a blog where he talks about using these tools to play the game of life, and to more consciously and rationally choose how we play our turns: Lifeasaboardgame.com. His passion is helping people improve their own systems, and in turn using that help to further understand himself and what makes him tick.