Going With the Flow While Doing the Work
Six weeks into my Daily Stoic journal practice, and I finally understand what the ancient philosophers have been trying to tell me: the universe is constant change, and my job is to flow with it while doing the work.
No shortcuts. No hacks. Just consistent effort while adapting to whatever life throws at me.
This week crystallized everything I’ve been learning since Day 1. Let me break down what Week 6 taught me about building mental resilience and why the work is always the work.
The Paradox That Changes Everything
Week 6 opened with a mind-bending Stoic principle: let go of control. Day 36 reminded me that the most potent addiction isn’t substances or behaviors – it’s control itself.
I’ve been chasing control over:
- My schedule (demanding it go exactly as planned)
- My outcomes (measuring success by visible results)
- Other people (wanting my son to comply, wanting clients to behave a certain way)
- My business trajectory (trying to force the pivot on my timeline)
The breakthrough? Real power isn’t controlling external things. Real power is mastering your response to them.
Then Day 37 hit me with Seneca’s poem about Clotho spinning the thread of human life – mixing good with bad, pride with humility, fortune with adversity. The morning might see you proud, the evening might bring you low.
No one escapes the whirlwind. So prepare for it instead of being surprised by it.
That’s when it clicked: I need to go with the flow of change.
What “Go With the Flow” Actually Means
This isn’t passive acceptance. This isn’t “whatever happens, happens” and checking out.
Going with the flow means:
- Building systems that allow flexibility (schedule with buffer, not rigid blocks)
- Measuring by effort instead of outcomes (did I do the work, not did everything go perfectly)
- Adjusting without drama when reality intervenes (back to the calendar, move things forward, keep going)
- Staying in motion regardless of circumstances (1% better today, even if it’s a hard day)
The flow is going to flow whether I participate or not. The universe is constant change. My job is to flow with it while building a better version of myself.
The Real-World Test: When My Son Got Sick
Middle of the night, my 5-year-old threw up. Sick kid. Disrupted sleep. Morning routine completely derailed.
Old me (six weeks ago)? Would’ve spiraled. “Day’s ruined. Schedule’s shot. Might as well write it off.”
Week 6 me? It just is. What needs to be prioritized today vs. doing it all?
I moved my morning routine up. Adjusted the things I needed to do. Still got a workout in because movement daily is non-negotiable for me. Everything else? Moved forward on the calendar without drama.
Same external event. Different judgment. Different outcome.
Marcus Aurelius said it best: “When you are distressed by an external thing, it’s not the thing itself that troubles you, but only your judgment of it. And you can wipe this out at a moment’s notice.”
My son being sick is a fact. My judgment about what that means for my day? That’s mine to choose.
I chose: adapt, prioritize, keep moving. Not perfect execution of the original plan, but continued effort despite changed circumstances.
That’s flowing with change while doing the work.
The Work Is The Work (Stop Looking for Shortcuts)
Day 41 stripped away all the noise with one simple truth: human beings have been doing the same work for millennia.
Marcus Aurelius dealt with impatient kids. Epictetus struggled with wanting control. Every generation has faced the same battles – building character, mastering themselves, staying present, doing hard things when they don’t feel like it.
The work hasn’t changed. The tools change (I have a smartphone to avoid instead of whatever they had in ancient Rome), but the inner work is identical.
There’s no hack. There’s no shortcut. There’s no “new way” that makes it easier.
You either do the work or you don’t.
For me, the work is:
- Phone outside the door during work blocks
- Honoring my schedule with built-in buffer
- Pausing instead of spiraling with my son
- Opening up instead of isolating
- Measuring by effort, not output
- Going with the flow while building the ship
That’s it. Simple but not easy. And definitely not new.
Opening Up: The Unexpected Benefit
Since Week 4, I’ve been working on opening up more – to my wife, to others, to people who don’t necessarily do what I do (ultras, 75 Hard, business grind).
Week 6 brought a realization: when you open up to others, you’re being helpful, not weak.
I’ve noticed that everyone is going through something. People may not outwardly show it, but they’re struggling too. When I share what I’m working through, it gives them a new perspective into their own challenges.
Opening up isn’t about dumping problems on people. It’s about being human with other humans. Turns out, that’s what connection actually is.
The Six-Week Pattern: What I’ve Built
Looking back at 42 days of this practice, here’s what I’ve been building:
Week 1-2: Learning to pause, recognizing patterns, trying not to spiral
Week 3: Applying Stoic principles to real situations
Week 4: Admitting isolation, seeing where I was stuck
Week 5: “It just is” mindset + gaining energy from disruption
Week 6: Going with the flow while doing the work – no shortcuts, just consistent effort and smart adaptation
The Ship of Yves is being rebuilt board by board. Some days I replace major structural pieces. Some days just a small plank. But I keep building.
And here’s the truth: there’s no finish line.
I’ll never be “done” with this work. The flow of change continues. The whirlwind keeps spinning. My job is to keep choosing the right judgment, keep doing the work, keep building.
That’s not depressing. That’s liberating.
Because it means I always have agency – not over external things, but over the meaning I give them and the effort I put in.
What I’m Taking Into Week 7
The core lesson from Week 6: Push forward. Some days are good, some are bad, but they just are.
The meaning I give to events determines my experience. The work I do compounds over time. The flow will keep flowing regardless.
My job? Keep building the inner empire. Master myself, not circumstances. Honor the commitments. Adapt when reality intervenes. Stay in motion.
For any busy dad or professional reading this who feels like they’re constantly fighting everything: stop fighting. Start flowing. But don’t confuse flowing with passivity.
Flow with the change while doing the work. That’s where resilience gets built.
Six weeks down. The practice continues.
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