Ryan Holiday

Ryan Clark Holiday is an American marketer and author. He became known for writing books and marketing them with non-traditional methods. He has become known for popularizing Stoicism, specifically, the philosophy advocated by Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius.

Holiday published hist first book in 2012, Trust Me, I'm Lying, detailing his marketing techniques. Since then, he has published a number of other famous books including The Obstacle Is the Way (2014) and Ego Is the Enemy (2016).

Ryan Holiday had the position of director of marketing for American Apparel. Early on, Holiday "earned a name for himself pranking several media outlets by posing as a fake expert for stories... a suffering insomniac for an ABC News story, an outraged customer... sneezed on at a Burger King for MSNBC, and a vinyl record collector for a New York Times piece, just to name a few... Holiday claims he was exposing flaws in journalistic vetting, but his pranks also led to a book deal." Holiday proceeded from that start to a role in helping marketing clients plan advertising campaigns with the aim of their coverage going viral.

While working at American Apparel, Holiday "grew disillusioned with his work as a hype man and decided to write a self-indicting exposé", receiving an advance for a book in 2012.

Holiday, through his books, articles and lectures, has been credited by Alexandra Alter of The New York Times with contributing to the increased popularity of Stoicism.

He is noted for his subsequent literary works, Courage Is Calling: Fortune Favors the Brave (2021) which explores the cardinal virtues, focusing on the importance of courage in personal and professional life. Discipline Is Destiny: The Power of Self-Control (2022) examines the role of discipline in achieving success and fulfillment. In 2023, Holiday published The Daily Dad, offering daily Stoic-inspired insights for fathers. His 2024 book, Right Thing, Right Now: Good Values. Good Character. Good Deeds, emphasizes the importance of ethical behavior and integrity.