March 7, 2023 • 10 mins
The saying "tell me who your friends are and I will tell you who you are" rings true even to this day. Today Dramos looks at quotes from Nipsey Hussle and Epictetus, and breaks down the importance of having a strong inner circle consisting of people who will elevate and inspire you.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:16):
Yes, Yes, I am Dramas and this is the Street
Stoic podcast, bringing you your daily dose a timeless stoic
philosophy remix for the hip hop generation. Now, with that
in mind, let's get things started with your daily shot
of inspiration. Now today we are going to be focusing
(00:40):
around the stoic idea of taking action and specifically when
it comes to the people that you surround yourself with. Right,
and for me, when I think about this concept of
thinking about your inner circle and making change is as
(01:00):
as needed to it. A quote that always comes to
my mind is from from the late great Nipsey Hustle. Now,
nipp said, if you look at the people in your
circle and don't get inspired, then you don't have a circle,
you have a cage. And I love the idea of
him calling it a cage. I think that that's such
(01:22):
a powerful metaphor for the point that we're trying to
get across today, right, because the reality is, you know
you are trapped by those around you if they, in
fact do not inspire you, you can't expect to make
waves in this world hanging around people who find it
hard to think of a world beyond their own. You know,
(01:43):
hometown or beyond their own little bubble. Right, Like again
that idea of the cage, you know it is, is
this this you know, aspect of having people around you
who maybe they only talk about local gossip or you know,
you share your ideas with them and they think you're
crazy that can't ever possibly happen. You know, they they
(02:03):
don't have any real big dreams for themselves, and it's
not just enough to kind of say, okay, well these
are my friends, but I'm the you know, the hardest
working one and of all of them, so I'm gonna
make things happen regardless, like sure that that may be
in fact the case. You may be the hustler out
of your group, but you're not going to be finding
the consistent inspiration that you need to keep ongoing when
(02:23):
times and nevitly get tough. Right. That's why you have
to have a salad crew of people around you, because
eventually their ideas and the way that they view the
world will begin to poison your mind in some sort
of way if you don't make the changes that are needed.
And this reminds me of the stoic quote from Epictetus
where he says the key is to keep company only
(02:45):
with people who uplift you, whose presence calls forth your
best and even beyond, like your friendships and your inner circles.
Like to me this also it also extends into our
romantic relationships as well. Right, Like everyone that is a
part of your life, they should be bringing out the
(03:06):
best in you in some sort of way. Like you
can't have a partner who doesn't believe in you, uh,
you know, being able to achieve your dreams and not
expect your road to be harder as a result. You know,
like if you are in a relationship with someone generally speaking,
when you are you know, romantically evolved in someone, that's
the person that you're sharing your deepest, darkest secrets, your desires,
(03:28):
you know, your your your goals, your views on the world,
what you want for your future. This is a person
that you are entrusting all that information and and if
they are continuously telling you that you're crazy, that you'll
never be able to do that to think realistically, um,
you know that that is only going to drag you
down with them. Right, you can't possibly grow by having
(03:49):
somebody who is constantly kind of being deadweight. That is
is putting doubt in your head. And at the end
of the day, we all have enough self doubt, you know,
more than enough, more than than is healthy, and to
have anybody else as a part of our lives, you know,
adding even more of that is just incredibly counterproductive towards
us actually being able to achieve all that we want
(04:09):
for ourselves in this life. And for me, I relate
to this on so many different levels. And I know
that we've we've talked a number of different times on
the show about the importance of the people around you
and being careful of of you know, your your peace
right essentially at the end of the day. But for me,
a story that stuck out that I haven't shared before
(04:29):
is something that I learned as a DJ. You know,
I was coming up in the New York New Jersey area,
primarily New Jersey, and I would look at the local
guys who were playing the you know, quote unquote big
clubs in the area, and I would be in all
of them, you know, and of course most of them
acted like they were the ship. They acted like they
were these uh, you know, big dogs. And then you know,
(04:50):
luckily for me, I began to get opportunities to start traveling,
and I got to go to places like Vegas and Miami,
and it opened my eyes to just how small that
bubble was back home, right and and quite honestly, how
insignificant that bubble was back home to the greater you know,
the bigger things that are happening outside in the world.
(05:10):
You know, like you had these guys who were thinking
that they were someone because they were playing a random
club in New Jersey, and they were missing out on
the fact that there was a far bigger world out there,
and they were actually giving themselves an incredibly small ceiling
by never thinking beyond their home base, you know. And
for me, that led me to to, you know, start
(05:33):
focusing less on being locally known and more so, you know,
on the the bigger picture, you know, like what things
did I need to do to break into the bigger markets,
you know, where the real action was, where the real
money was. And that's what began to happen, you know,
for me, as I really made that my focus, you know,
and even though I did eventually pivot from djaying being
(05:56):
kind of my main focus, I still did end up
getting to play in those big markets like Vegas and Miami.
You know, I got to play a festival, and when
I was back home, I was getting invited to play
you know, legendary clubs and concert halls in New York
City because I had created brand awareness, you know, about
what I did beyond my local bars, right. But had
I have just kept hanging around the same spots in
(06:19):
New Jersey and rubbing elbows with the people who ran
in those scenes, I would have stunted my own growth,
right because again, like back to what nip says, I
would have been trapped in the cage of that small
town thinking that was so prevalent in the people that
I met on my way up. And I think that's
just something we have to again keep in mind. It's
it's hard to not get poisoned by those around you
(06:42):
when they, in fact are telling you that anything beyond
what they are doing is impossible. And for me, luckily,
I was able to adapt something outside of that. And
that's what I'm hoping for you as well in listening
to this. So with that in mind, you know, we've
heard words from Nipsey Hustle, you've heard from one of
the Stokes. Epictetus talked about how this principle, this idea
has you know, really been applied in my life and
(07:05):
in my career. Now let's talk about how you can
make it your mantra for today. But first let's take
a quick break and then we'll be right back. All right,
So we have heard the words of Nipsey Hustle, one
of the stoics Epicteitis. I've talked about how I have
(07:27):
applied the idea of taking actions, specifically when it comes
to the people that you surround yourself with. Now let's
talk about how you can make this idea your mantra
for today. So I think, you know, first and foremost,
the big takeaway is to recognize just how big the
world is, right and as a result, just how many
opportunities are out there for those who dare to go
(07:48):
after them, you know. And you can't expect to be
inspired to dream big if the people you're surrounded by
don't have the same big picture view as yourself. Right,
I've talked about surrounding yourself with the right people before. Again,
I know we've covered this and how you need to
take control of this. But I think that the bigger
idea around this episode in the point I'm trying to
(08:10):
get across is to challenge yourself to think beyond what
you can see or touch right now. There are opportunities
that are beyond you know where you currently live, that
are beyond your current job or your career, and are
beyond the people that you grew up with. You know,
you just have to have the courage to take action
(08:32):
and go out in search of something new as well
as in search of people who actually inspire you to
do your best now. To recap you know, straight from
Nipsey Hustle, if you don't have people in your circle
that inspire you, you don't have a circle. You have
a cage. Right You are trapped within the limitations the
ceiling that these people have placed on life. It inevitably
(08:54):
will poison your mind and make you doubt what you
can actually achieve in this life. And the word epictetus.
The big takeaway from that is that you want people
in your life who bring out the best in you. Again.
You don't want friends that tell you can't do something,
a relationship where your partner is giving you shit every
time you have to do something for your goal or
(09:16):
your career that they don't quite believe in or understand. Again,
all of those people are not actually adding to your life,
nor are they bringing out the best in you. And
again from my story, you know, it's easy to get
caught up in being the big fish in a little pond.
And it's a concept we've talked about a bunch before
that I'm sure we've all heard growing up. But you
have to challenge yourself to think beyond your own little
(09:40):
bubble and recognize the gigantic world and the big opportunities
that are out there for you if you choose to
take action on your interests. And with that said, thank
you so much for checking out the Street Stoic podcast.
Do your best to apply these concepts that we've discussed
today and see everyday life, and I would catch you time.
(10:06):
The Street Stoke Podcast is a production of Ihearts Michael
Dura Podcast Network
Yes, Yes, I am Dramas and this is the Street
Stoic podcast, bringing you your daily dose a timeless stoic
philosophy remix for the hip hop generation. Now, with that
in mind, let's get things started with your daily shot
of inspiration. Now today we are going to be focusing
(00:40):
around the stoic idea of taking action and specifically when
it comes to the people that you surround yourself with. Right,
and for me, when I think about this concept of
thinking about your inner circle and making change is as
(01:00):
as needed to it. A quote that always comes to
my mind is from from the late great Nipsey Hustle. Now,
nipp said, if you look at the people in your
circle and don't get inspired, then you don't have a circle,
you have a cage. And I love the idea of
him calling it a cage. I think that that's such
(01:22):
a powerful metaphor for the point that we're trying to
get across today, right, because the reality is, you know
you are trapped by those around you if they, in
fact do not inspire you, you can't expect to make
waves in this world hanging around people who find it
hard to think of a world beyond their own. You know,
(01:43):
hometown or beyond their own little bubble. Right, Like again
that idea of the cage, you know it is, is
this this you know, aspect of having people around you
who maybe they only talk about local gossip or you know,
you share your ideas with them and they think you're
crazy that can't ever possibly happen. You know, they they
(02:03):
don't have any real big dreams for themselves, and it's
not just enough to kind of say, okay, well these
are my friends, but I'm the you know, the hardest
working one and of all of them, so I'm gonna
make things happen regardless, like sure that that may be
in fact the case. You may be the hustler out
of your group, but you're not going to be finding
the consistent inspiration that you need to keep ongoing when
(02:23):
times and nevitly get tough. Right. That's why you have
to have a salad crew of people around you, because
eventually their ideas and the way that they view the
world will begin to poison your mind in some sort
of way if you don't make the changes that are needed.
And this reminds me of the stoic quote from Epictetus
where he says the key is to keep company only
(02:45):
with people who uplift you, whose presence calls forth your
best and even beyond, like your friendships and your inner circles.
Like to me this also it also extends into our
romantic relationships as well. Right, Like everyone that is a
part of your life, they should be bringing out the
(03:06):
best in you in some sort of way. Like you
can't have a partner who doesn't believe in you, uh,
you know, being able to achieve your dreams and not
expect your road to be harder as a result. You know,
like if you are in a relationship with someone generally speaking,
when you are you know, romantically evolved in someone, that's
the person that you're sharing your deepest, darkest secrets, your desires,
(03:28):
you know, your your your goals, your views on the world,
what you want for your future. This is a person
that you are entrusting all that information and and if
they are continuously telling you that you're crazy, that you'll
never be able to do that to think realistically, um,
you know that that is only going to drag you
down with them. Right, you can't possibly grow by having
(03:49):
somebody who is constantly kind of being deadweight. That is
is putting doubt in your head. And at the end
of the day, we all have enough self doubt, you know,
more than enough, more than than is healthy, and to
have anybody else as a part of our lives, you know,
adding even more of that is just incredibly counterproductive towards
us actually being able to achieve all that we want
(04:09):
for ourselves in this life. And for me, I relate
to this on so many different levels. And I know
that we've we've talked a number of different times on
the show about the importance of the people around you
and being careful of of you know, your your peace
right essentially at the end of the day. But for me,
a story that stuck out that I haven't shared before
(04:29):
is something that I learned as a DJ. You know,
I was coming up in the New York New Jersey area,
primarily New Jersey, and I would look at the local
guys who were playing the you know, quote unquote big
clubs in the area, and I would be in all
of them, you know, and of course most of them
acted like they were the ship. They acted like they
were these uh, you know, big dogs. And then you know,
(04:50):
luckily for me, I began to get opportunities to start traveling,
and I got to go to places like Vegas and Miami,
and it opened my eyes to just how small that
bubble was back home, right and and quite honestly, how
insignificant that bubble was back home to the greater you know,
the bigger things that are happening outside in the world.
(05:10):
You know, like you had these guys who were thinking
that they were someone because they were playing a random
club in New Jersey, and they were missing out on
the fact that there was a far bigger world out there,
and they were actually giving themselves an incredibly small ceiling
by never thinking beyond their home base, you know. And
for me, that led me to to, you know, start
(05:33):
focusing less on being locally known and more so, you know,
on the the bigger picture, you know, like what things
did I need to do to break into the bigger markets,
you know, where the real action was, where the real
money was. And that's what began to happen, you know,
for me, as I really made that my focus, you know,
and even though I did eventually pivot from djaying being
(05:56):
kind of my main focus, I still did end up
getting to play in those big markets like Vegas and Miami.
You know, I got to play a festival, and when
I was back home, I was getting invited to play
you know, legendary clubs and concert halls in New York
City because I had created brand awareness, you know, about
what I did beyond my local bars, right. But had
I have just kept hanging around the same spots in
(06:19):
New Jersey and rubbing elbows with the people who ran
in those scenes, I would have stunted my own growth,
right because again, like back to what nip says, I
would have been trapped in the cage of that small
town thinking that was so prevalent in the people that
I met on my way up. And I think that's
just something we have to again keep in mind. It's
it's hard to not get poisoned by those around you
(06:42):
when they, in fact are telling you that anything beyond
what they are doing is impossible. And for me, luckily,
I was able to adapt something outside of that. And
that's what I'm hoping for you as well in listening
to this. So with that in mind, you know, we've
heard words from Nipsey Hustle, you've heard from one of
the Stokes. Epictetus talked about how this principle, this idea
has you know, really been applied in my life and
(07:05):
in my career. Now let's talk about how you can
make it your mantra for today. But first let's take
a quick break and then we'll be right back. All right,
So we have heard the words of Nipsey Hustle, one
of the stoics Epicteitis. I've talked about how I have
(07:27):
applied the idea of taking actions, specifically when it comes
to the people that you surround yourself with. Now let's
talk about how you can make this idea your mantra
for today. So I think, you know, first and foremost,
the big takeaway is to recognize just how big the
world is, right and as a result, just how many
opportunities are out there for those who dare to go
(07:48):
after them, you know. And you can't expect to be
inspired to dream big if the people you're surrounded by
don't have the same big picture view as yourself. Right,
I've talked about surrounding yourself with the right people before. Again,
I know we've covered this and how you need to
take control of this. But I think that the bigger
idea around this episode in the point I'm trying to
(08:10):
get across is to challenge yourself to think beyond what
you can see or touch right now. There are opportunities
that are beyond you know where you currently live, that
are beyond your current job or your career, and are
beyond the people that you grew up with. You know,
you just have to have the courage to take action
(08:32):
and go out in search of something new as well
as in search of people who actually inspire you to
do your best now. To recap you know, straight from
Nipsey Hustle, if you don't have people in your circle
that inspire you, you don't have a circle. You have
a cage. Right You are trapped within the limitations the
ceiling that these people have placed on life. It inevitably
(08:54):
will poison your mind and make you doubt what you
can actually achieve in this life. And the word epictetus.
The big takeaway from that is that you want people
in your life who bring out the best in you. Again.
You don't want friends that tell you can't do something,
a relationship where your partner is giving you shit every
time you have to do something for your goal or
(09:16):
your career that they don't quite believe in or understand. Again,
all of those people are not actually adding to your life,
nor are they bringing out the best in you. And
again from my story, you know, it's easy to get
caught up in being the big fish in a little pond.
And it's a concept we've talked about a bunch before
that I'm sure we've all heard growing up. But you
have to challenge yourself to think beyond your own little
(09:40):
bubble and recognize the gigantic world and the big opportunities
that are out there for you if you choose to
take action on your interests. And with that said, thank
you so much for checking out the Street Stoic podcast.
Do your best to apply these concepts that we've discussed
today and see everyday life, and I would catch you time.
(10:06):
The Street Stoke Podcast is a production of Ihearts Michael
Dura Podcast Network
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