An Introduction to PRSPCTV

Philosophy, according to Mirriam-Webster, is a search for wisdom; a search for a general understanding of values and reality by chiefly speculative rather than observational means. Philosophy comes from the Latin term philosophia, meaning love of wisdom. 

Stoicism is the practice of knowledge and wisdom in action. A Stoic endures hardships without letting it affect their lives; they show no display of feelings and do not complain. More specifically, it's not to completely rid someone of their emotions or complaints. Stoicism is in place to help one transform their way of thinking and not allow one's emotions take control. It's about standing strong in the face of adversity, no matter what type of external events one is going through. Philosophy for a Stoic isn't just about having a set of principles to live by; it's about a way of life. Stoicism is about having self-control, discipline, morals, principles and practicing these every day. 

Stoicism began as a philosophy school in ancient Greece founded by Hellenistic philosopher Zeno of Citium (334 BC-262 BC). Zeno was heavily influenced by Cynicism, which was a school of thought of ancient Greek philosophy. Cynics believed that the purpose of life is to live in virtue, in accordance with nature. In a sense, they were modern day minimalists; to live life without desires such as fame, wealth, and power. Through these ideals and many others derived from Zeno's experience and schools of philosophy that he attended (such as the Megarian school), Zeno opened the Stoic school of philosophy. Stoicism has brought a lot of great philosophers together such as Epictetus, Seneca, Marcus Aurelius and others. The rest is history!

PRSPCTV (short for perspective) is a monthly blog series that delves deep into philosophical quotes; breaking them down, word-for-word in order to gain a true understanding of the underlying message and be able to apply it to your lives and thrive. An acronym for PRSPCTV is Profound Reflection of Self; Philosophical Comprehension of Thought in Variations. Our words of affirmation for PRSPCTV is Positive, Resilient, Successful, Powerful, Conscious, Thoughtful, Valiant. Throughout this blog series, I'll be sharing quotes from many different philosophers of different cultures and different periods of time. However, it is Stoicism that has had the most influence on me which is why I felt the need to share a little bit more about it than any other form of philosophy or way of life.  

For those that are unaware, I share one quote every Wednesday on the Elevated Thoughts' Instagram. After doing so for years, I've noticed for quite some time that due to Instagram's platform that relies solely on photo and video content, these quotes don't reach out to the people who need or want them the most. I don't blame anyone; who the hell is going to read a long post on Instagram? A lot of us are just there for the pictures and videos. Instagram also has a text limit that stops me from breaking down quotes the way I want to break them down. About a month ago though, I shared a poll on who would read a blog series based on discussing philosophical quotes; the feedback I received was that 100% of those that voted would read the blog series. If you were one of the voters from that poll, thank you for your support! 

In the beginning of every month there will be a new PRSPCTV blog (which I'll announce on social media platforms as well). These blogs will be readily available on our website and on Pinterest as well. If you believe we should make it available on other platforms, let us know in the comments below! A quote will be chosen based on the highest number of likes and/or comments it received during the previous month on the Elevated Thoughts' Instagram. For example; if I share five quotes in any given month, whichever of those five quotes that received the most likes and/or comments will be the one selected for me to decipher on the PRSPCTV blog series.

I'll be honest; I don't know much about the history of Stoicism, nor do I know all of their values by heart. But I do know that I love philosophy, puzzles, riddles and wordplay. Another passion of mine is helping people. This is where PRSPCTV comes into play in my life; I break down philosophical quotes from my perspective (pun intended), and if I find them uplifting, I apply them to my life. If I found those quotes truly remarkable and life changing, I'll share them with you, break down the quote and explain how they helped me. I truly believe this blog series has the potential to help people, especially with the hardships a lot of us are going through from the COVID-19 pandemic. A lot of us have lost guidance, support, and hope. Let's regain what we've lost and gain knowledge, wisdom, focus, discipline and more. The ultimate goal of PRSPCTV is to help uplift people's state of minds. Are you ready to uplift your state of mind? Let me know in the comments below; until then, stay tuned and stay elevated.