William B. Irvine
Modern life distracts us with endless desires, leaving us vulnerable to dissatisfaction and regret, but the ancient Stoics developed psychological techniques to prevent a misspent life and cultivate enduring joy.
Practicing negative visualization involves periodically imagining the loss of everything you value to combat hedonic adaptation and restore your appreciation for your current life.
Instead of worrying about outcomes beyond your influence, you must divide your concerns into things you can fully control, things you cannot control at all, and things you can partially control.
For situations where you only have partial control, you should internalize your goals by focusing entirely on giving your best effort rather than fixating on the final external result.