Leadership. Marcus Aurelius 1.16.1-4
A reprise of lessons from Marcus Aurelius' adopted father, the emperor Antoninus Pius. This treatment is more extensive than the earlier one (§ 1.5), which it echoes (cf. καὶ τὸ αὔταρκες ἐν παντὶ & μήτε περὶ ἀνθρώπους δημοκοπικὸν ἢ ἀρεσκευτικὸν ἢ ὀχλοχαρές below). You can hear me read it <here>.
Παρὰ τοῦ πατρὸς τὸ ἥμερον καὶ μενετικὸν ἀσαλεύτως ἐπὶ τῶν ἐξητασμένως κριθέντων· καὶ τὸ ἀκενόδοξον περὶ τὰς δοκούσας τιμάς· καὶ τὸ φιλόπονον καὶ ἐνδελεχές· καὶ τὸ ἀκουστικὸν τῶν ἐχόντων τι κοινωφελὲς εἰσφέρειν· καὶ τὸ ἀπαρατρέπτως τοῦ κατ̓ ἀξίαν ἀπονεμητικὸν ἑκάστῳ· καὶ τὸ ἔμπειρον ποῦ μὲν χρεία ἐντάσεως, ποῦ δὲ ἀνέσεως· καὶ τὸ παῦσαι τὰ περὶ τοὺς ἔρωτας τῶν μειρακίων·
καὶ ἡ κοινονοημοσύνη καὶ τὸ ἐφεῖσθαι τοῖς φίλοις μήτε συνδειπνεῖν αὐτῷ πάντως μήτε συναποδημεῖν ἐπάναγκες, ἀεὶ δὲ ὅμοιον αὐτὸν καταλαμβάνεσθαι ὑπὸ τῶν διὰ χρείας τινὰς ἀπολειφθέντων· καὶ τὸ ζητητικὸν ἀκριβῶς ἐν τοῖς συμβουλίοις καὶ ἐπίμονον, ἀλλ̓ οὐ τὸ (†) προαπέστη τῆς ἐρεύνης, ἀρκεσθεὶς ταῖς προχείροις φαντασίαις· καὶ τὸ διατηρητικὸν τῶν φίλων καὶ μηδαμοῦ ἁψίκορον μηδὲ ἐπιμανές·
καὶ τὸ αὔταρκες ἐν παντὶ καὶ τὸ φαιδρόν· καὶ τὸ πόρρωθεν προνοητικὸν καὶ τῶν ἐλαχίστων προδιοικητικὸν ἀτραγῴδως· καὶ τὸ τὰς ἐπιβοήσεις καὶ πᾶσαν κολακείαν ἐπ̓ αὐτοῦ συσταλῆναι (‡) καὶ τὸ φυλακτικὸν ἀεὶ τῶν ἀναγκαίων τῇ ἀρχῇ καὶ ταμιευτικὸν τῆς χορηγίας καὶ ὑπομενετικὸν τῆς ἐπὶ τῶν τοιούτων τινῶν καταιτιάσεως· καὶ τὸ μήτε περὶ θεοὺς δεισίδαιμον μήτε περὶ ἀνθρώπους δημοκοπικὸν ἢ ἀρεσκευτικὸν ἢ ὀχλοχαρές, ἀλλὰ νῆφον ἐν πᾶσι καὶ βέβαιον καὶ μηδαμοῦ ἀπειρόκαλον μηδὲ καινοτόμον· καὶ τὸ τοῖς εἰς εὐμάρειαν βίου φέρουσί τι, ὧν ἡ τύχη παρεῖχε δαψίλειαν, χρηστικὸν ἀτύφως ἅμα καὶ ἀπροφασίστως, ὥστε παρόντων μὲν ἀνεπιτηδεύτως ἅπτεσθαι, ἀπόντων δὲ μὴ δεῖσθαι·
From my father I learned how to remain civil while standing firmly on careful judgments. How to avoid putting on false airs over fake honors. How to love my work and be persistent. How to listen to those with something useful to offer for the common good. How to give each his due without undermining his worth. How to use experience as a gauge for when to hold, and when to release. How to put an end to affairs that arise from the passionate attachments of young men.
Empathy was another lesson of his, particularly in this, that he did not order friends to accompany him at table or on trips as a matter of course, so that he was taken always as a peer by those he left behind on account of some pressing need. He showed also how to pursue a matter thoroughly and relentlessly when taking counsel, without causing the discussion to derail―for he had always many cunning ideas ready to deploy. How to cultivate friends without tiring quickly of their company or chasing it too avidly.
Self-sufficiency in all things, and good cheer. How to consider actions from a distance and arrange even the smallest ones beforehand, to avoid tragedy. How to shut oneself off from applause and all flattery. How to keep constant watch on the necessities of power, acting as a prudent steward of the treasury and bearing patiently the accusations arising from such offices. How to approach gods without superstition, and men without haranguing, fawning, or courting favor. To remain sober and steady in every circumstance, never ignoring beauty anywhere or seeking novelty. How to make humble but unabashed use of any comfort fortune provides, so that you grasp it readily when it comes to hand, but never need it when it is unavailable.
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(†) ἀλλ̓ οὐ τὸ. Farquharson marks this reading as corrupt.
(‡) I read συσταλῆναι (aorist passive infinitive) with Farquharson rather than συσταλῆναν (?) with Leopold.
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(†) ἀλλ̓ οὐ τὸ. Farquharson marks this reading as corrupt.
(‡) I read συσταλῆναι (aorist passive infinitive) with Farquharson rather than συσταλῆναν (?) with Leopold.