American author and entrepreneur Ryan Holiday writes in his introduction to The Obstacle Is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph,

I am unsure when philosophy became a tedious, pretentious field divorced from reality. Philosophy was originally designed to be a disciplined practice for thinking through the best possible solutions for everyday problems. This book is a return to these roots with stoic philosophers and their philosophies mentoring the reader on how to best manage seemingly disadvantageous situations and how to exploit rewarding situations. Perhaps this is desirable to you:

Start thinking like a radical pragmatist: still ambitious, aggressive, and rooted in ideals, but also imminently practical and guided by the possible. Not on everything you would like to have, not on changing the world right at this moment, but ambitious enough to get everything you need. Don’t think small, but make the distinction between the critical and the extra. Think progress, not perfection.

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