But the tyrant will chain …’ What? Your legs. ‘But he’ll cut off …’ What? Your head. What is he incapable, then, of chaining up or cutting off? Your … - Epictetus

We get angry because we put too high a premium on things that they can steal. Don’t attach such value to your clothes, and you won’t get angry with the thief who takes them.

So you wish to conquer in the Olympic Games, my friend? And I, too... But first mark the conditions and the consequences. You will have to put yourself under discipline; to eat by rule, to avoid cakes and sweetmeats; to take exercise at the appointed hour whether you like it or not, in cold and heat; to abstain from cold drinks and wine at your will. Then, in the conflict itself you are likely enough to dislocate your wrist or twist your ankle, to swallow a great deal of dust, to be severely thrashed, and after all of these things, to be defeated.

It is better to starve to death in a calm and confident state of mind than to live anxiously amidst abundance.