Epictetus
"We cannot choose our external circumstances..."
Volatility is external. Your thesis is internal.
Stoicism
Seneca
4 BC ā AD 65 Ā· Roman Stoic Philosopher
Original Quote
"It is not that we have a short time to live, but that we waste a lot of it. Life is long enough, and a sufficiently generous amount has been given to us for the highest achievements if it were all well invested."
ā From "On the Shortness of Life" (De Brevitate Vitae)
Web3 Interpretation
The Reinterpretation
In the attention economy, every second you don't compound is a second that compounds against you. Time is the original scarce assetāthe one with true immutable supply. Unlike Bitcoin's 21 million cap, your hours are finite and non-recoverable. The ancient understood what modern traders often forget: the greatest alpha isn't in the chartsāit's in the hours you choose to invest wisely.
Seneca, if alive today, would look at endless Twitter scrolling and Discord notifications the same way he viewed Rome's gladiatorial gamesāspectacular distractions from the work of building lasting value. Your attention is your stake. Where you deploy it determines your yield.
Key Themes
More From Seneca
"Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity."
Web3 spin: Alpha is what happens when research meets liquidity.
"We suffer more in imagination than in reality."
Web3 spin: Paper losses only become real when you sell.
"Wealth is the slave of a wise man and the master of a fool."
Web3 spin: Leverage works both ways.
