Epictetus once said that we ought to stand up to our equals, defer to our superiors and act with moderation towards our inferiors. I’m not sure I agree with that.
In fact, I think I’d change it to learn from your inferiors, ignore your equals and spar with you superiors — parry but be ok with losing. It’s certainly harder and will tie your stomach in knots but the best part of waking up sore and stiff, I’ve found, is knowing that the quickest way to loosen up is to do it some more.
