Unlock the Secrets of Making the Most of Your Life: On the Shortness of Life

Zipporah: idk what’s its about but my husband reads it all the time, i assume it’s good, got it for his birthday since he wanted it lol.

United States on Sep 18, 2023

Gilly: For anyone seeking wisdom about life and the human condition, this book is essential reading.

The advice contained in it totally transcends time. It is a relevant today as it was when it was written in 49AD, possibly more so!

For anyone not used to the language of such old writings, the text may seem a bit confusing in places but it is well worth persevering with.

Most of it is very easily understood and, I found, a bit of a wake up call regarding what we do with our very limited time on earth.

United Kingdom on Sep 11, 2023

Kevin Castro López: Precise information and verbal cues

United States on Aug 24, 2023

Jean Pablo Sciacca: I find this topic very interesting, and I appreciate greatly the work behind this works of art, pieces of knowledge that everybody should consider reading, to reinterpret and reflect upon life. It is quite a challenge for me, its unique old-fashioned writing style can make you read twice before comprehending, so I advice everyone to do it with an online dictionary in front of them, not only you are going to read a complete masterpiece that will make you question in what you aim for in life but among the journey you will discover new, enrichened vocabulary.

Spain on May 10, 2023

Little problem with tracking but this company contacted me quickly, Thank You I Recommend this business.: Good book but ordered a new version. This one is old English.

Netherlands on Apr 06, 2023

D. I. Ivanova: If you have probs with procrastination you might find this book helpful.

Canada on Feb 19, 2023

A reader: Despite being written nearly 2000 years ago, Seneca feels as fresh and as relevant as any modern or recent philosopher, and a good deal more practical. Every page is studded with gems that defy expectation, and give the lie to any notions one might have about the ancients being somehow primitive (an easy intuition to fall into).

This is the book that, above all others, has marked, and continues to mark my life and thinking. Seneca is right, “the life we receive is not short, but we make it so, nor do we have any lack of it, but are wasteful of it”, and that many people are far too engrossed in others’ realities to do much of what one might truly call living.

Read this, and preferably while you are as young as possible, or else it will likely be painful when you do.

This is the best translation in my option, and the more modern ones lose some of the poetic beauty of his prose.

United Kingdom on Aug 05, 2022

Cori H.S.: You can find Seneca's work online, in the public domain, for free. Though, it isn't the same as this translation. Also, I love paperback books, and this "Great Ideas" series is excellent.

Essay 1: We will all die, and here are the many ways people waste what life they have. Do better.
Essay 2: A letter to his mother about his being exiled, and how he feels his life will still be richer than those who are wealthy
Essay 3: Peace of mind, and having confidence in the path one is leading based on introspection and action

Some of my favorite quotes:
“You act like mortals in all that you fear, and like immortals in all that you desire.” -- As in, people tend to avoid what makes them uncomfortable yet put off the things that they really wish to to and achieve as though they will live long enough to experience them eventually.

An extension of that:
“Can anything be more idiotic than certain people who boast of their foresight? They keep themselves officiously preoccupied in order to improve their lives; they spend their lives in organizing their lives. They direct their purposes with an eye to a distant future. But putting things off is the biggest...

United States on May 06, 2019

Max Seigel: I just started getting into reading philosophy and self help books. It's quite amazing how these people were so ahead of their time in terms of thinking. Seneca makes some great points. I like how he brings up the preoccupied people who are only concerned with the present, who don't realize how long they have until it's too late because they never realize how much time has passed and the uncertainty of the future. It's like pouring water in a cup with no bottom. How can you know how much water was poured when it isn't filling up but instead going right through the cup? At the same time, how do you know when the water will cease to flow? That's why it's so important to keep perspective of time. Don't just live in the moment. Understand the context of the moment. He stresses the importance of examining your past because it is solidified and unchangeable. There, you are able to observe those things you did well and those you didn't do well, so that you can make changes in the present to live a more productive and efficient life. He sums it up very astutely and simplistically with the little poem, "Life's finest day for wretched mortals here Is always first to flee."
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United States on Jul 07, 2015