The Stoic advice to focus only on what we can control sounds great in theory, but I've realized it can easily turn into an excuse for passivity. Last year, I stopped pushing for a promotion because I told myself the outcome wasn't in my hands—only my effort was. But looking back, I missed chances to influence the decision through networking and visibility, which were also within my control. If we interpret the dichotomy of control too narrowly, we risk never actually trying to shape the events around us. I'm now convinced that true Stoicism requires us to expand what we see as controllable, not shrink it.