This episode of The Philosopher's Compass podcast features a conversation with Benny Voncken, the co-founder of Via Stoica and the Via Stoica Podcast. His organization offers Stoic life coaching, corporate training, motivational speaking, and workshops to help people live better lives by applying a philosophy of life. Benny and I have met online and this summer, in Athens, at my seminar co-taught with Massimo Pigliucci, focused on our book Beyond Stoicism / Live Like a Philosopher. Benny and I talked about Stoicism (of course!), existentialism, coaching, and what's really important in life. Thanks for listening! You can find Benny at https://viastoica.com/benny-voncken or YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ViaStoicaCheck out my Substack: https://thestoicmom.substack.com/

In this episode of The Philosopher's Compass podcast, I talked with Massimo Pigliucci and Gregory Lopez - both co-authors with me of the 2025 book Beyond Stoicism: A Guide to the Good Life with Stoics, Skeptics, Epicureans, and Other Ancient Philosophers (in North America) and Live Like a Philosopher: What the Ancient Greeks and Romans Can Teach Us About Living a Happy Life (in the UK). Massimo and Greg shared their journeys into philosophy, the practical applications of Stoicism in modern life, and the importance of ethics. Our conversation also explored other philosophical schools, how philosophy can help bring us meaning and purpose, and the nature of joy in Stoic practice. Watch until the end and you will hear Massimo and Greg share their recommendations for reading and resources for those interested in exploring Stoicism further. Thanks for listening!Our book: https://theexperimentpublishing.com/catalogs/winter-2025/beyond-stoicism/ andhttps://geni.us/LiveLikeAPhilosopherFollow my work at The Stoic Mom Substack:https://thestoicmom.substack.com/Follow Massimo at the Figs in Winter Substack: https://figsinwinter.substack.com/Greg's website:https://greglopez.me/

Welcome to The Philosopher’s Compass podcast!I’m your host, Meredith Alexander Kunz. I’m the creator of The Stoic Mom Substack, helping parents and kids benefit from Stoic philosophy, and the co-author of the books Beyond Stoicism, and Live Like a Philosopher. I launched this podcast to focus on how people are using practical philosophy, especially Stoicism, in their everyday lives, and how they turn to philosophical thinking to find purpose and meaning.In this episode my guest is Donald J. Robertson. Donald is a psychotherapist and author, and one of the founders of the Modern Stoicism nonprofit. He’s also the founder and president of the Plato’s Academy Centre in Athens. He is the Author of Stoicism and the Art of Happiness, How to Think Like a Roman Emperor, Verissimus: The Stoic Philosophy of Marcus Aurelius, and How to Think Like Socrates. In addition, Donald is the creator of numerous courses,. He was the first person I interviewed for The Stoic Mom blog, back in 2017! And I learned so much from him about anger, resilience, and perfectionism and Stoicism, and more. Every time I speak with him or listen to his interviews, I learn so much - and I think you will too! Follow my Substack at: https://thestoicmom.substack.com/

Welcome to the second episode of The Philosopher’s Compass podcast! I'm your host, Meredith Alexander Kunz, creator of The Stoic Mom Substack and co-author of Beyond Stoicism: A Guide to the Good Life with Stoics, Skeptics, Epicureans, and Other Ancient Philosophers (North America), and Live Like a Philosopher (UK). In this episode, I have a guest who's deeply immersed in this work: Gregory B. Sadler, a speaker, author, educator, consultant, and philosophical counselor who brings philosophy into practice. Greg is a faculty member at the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, as well as president of the philosophical consulting firm ReasonIO. He hosts a highly successful YouTube channel on philosophy and is co-host of the Wisdom for Life radio show. We had an awesome conversation about Greg's teaching on a huge range of philosophical topics and thinkers on YouTube and beyond, bringing philosophy to wider audiences and working against the gatekeeping of philosophical thinking, the importance of ethics and how we apply it today, using Stoic philosophy at the gym, how Greg became tops on Google searches - and his special role as a "cat whisperer"! Follow Greg on YouTube, and follow me on Substack: https://thestoicmom.substack.com

Welcome to the first episode of The Philosopher's Compass podcast, with your host Meredith Alexander Kunz (creator of The Stoic Mom Substack and co-author of Beyond Stoicism and Live Like a Philosopher)! Thanks for joining me in this exploration of meaning and purpose through practical philosophy.

In this episode, I talked with philosophical writer Brittany Polat, co-author of Stoic Ethics: The Basics and Journal Like a Stoic, to explore the benefits of applying Stoicism in everyday life. Brittany and I are both mothers and independent writers/scholars who care about living by our philosophy - which has helped create real change in how we think about our actions and choices.

This wide-ranging discussion touched on what we, as 21st century people, tend to misunderstand about Stoic philosophy and ancient philosophy in general, and about Brittany's interest in Confucianism. We also delved into the sense of purpose that Brittany has gained from pursuing practical philosophy, and the work we've done to build our own life's purpose statements. Hope you'll enjoy this free-flowing conversation with one of our great modern Stoics!

Edited by Shannon Kunz