Editor’s Note: This page documents previous Stoic Weeks, and its contents, while still informative, are therefore out of date. Please don’t fill in the questionnaires here. Instead, go to the to find everything you need, and the  to fill them out.

Stoicism in a Week: Stoic Philosophy as a Way of Life

Stoicism Today has a free, guided day-by-day, week long course you can take at anytime, as an introduction to Stoic philosophy as a way of life. This is the Handbook which was followed by over 2,000 people worldwide during Stoic Week 2013 (November 25th-December 1st). It comes in the form of a downloadable PDF booklet or in EPUB format. There are also psychological wellbeing scales you can take before and after the week. 

Each day of the course takes a specific Stoic theme, such as cultivating the art of focussing on what is in our power, Stoic mindfulness, or cultivating affection towards others. There are guided audio meditations to support you in practising these key ideas. There is also a set morning meditation (philosophical preparation for the day ahead) and evening meditation (philosophical review of the day that has passed) to practise, as well as morning and evening quotations for reflection, taken from the works of Marcus Aurelius, Seneca and Epictetus. The course also guides you through the key ideas of Stoicism, key Stoic philosophers and ideas for further reading and practice.

The course is especially helpful for:

- building resilience

- approaching normally stressful or difficult daily situations wisely

- cultivating a more purposeful and meaningful life

- understanding what you cannot change whilst flourishing in what you can do, including in your relationships with others

- developing greater self-awareness of thoughts and emotions, and making wiser choices

More information about the effectiveness of this course will be released here shortly, following analysis of Stoic Week 2013 data. 

To take the course:

1. Download the free :

You can also read it in your web browser, or download it in EPUB format as a free ebook from .

2. The guided audio meditations (mp3 format) are strongly recommended to accompany this course.

You can download them onto your computer .

3. You will probably also find it helpful to take the following surveys in psychological wellbeing before and after the week, and to compare the difference. To do so will take about 10 minutes altogether. You might want to have a calculator to hand to add up your scores.

We also ask you to register for the course. In the surveys below, there is a space for you to input your email address (or a pseudonym, if you prefer). Please use the same email address (or pseudonym) when you return to do these scales having done the course. This will be very helpful for us in continuing to analyse the effectiveness of the course.

Links for Scales before you take the course:

Links for scales after you have taken the course:

Please use the same pseudonym or email address that you used in the pre-week scales

And that’s all you need to get started! Everything else you need to know about the course is contained within the Handbook.

Questions or Reflections?

Always feel free to with any questions as you do the week.

We hope the course proves beneficial in your own life.

to let us know how it goes and to share any ideas or suggestions you might have.

N.B. 1. The contents of this course are not intended as a substitute for medical advice or treatment. Any person with a condition requiring medical attention should consult a qualified medical practitioner or suitable therapist. This experiment is not suitable for anyone who is suffering from psychosis, personality disorder, clinical depression, PTSD, or other severe mental health problems. Undertaking this course shall be taken to be an acknowledgement by the participant that they are aware of and accept responsibility in relation to the foregoing. 

N.B. 2. This course is the same as the one which was followed by over 2000 participants for Stoic Week 2013 (November 25th-December 1st). With some modifications, it was also used for Stoic Week 2014.