Life Advice From A Roman Emperor
What could a Roman emperor from the 2nd century teach us about living life in the 21st century? Well, a lot.
Marcus Aurelius was not only the most powerful man in the world at one point, he was also a human being — a human being with flaws, insecurities, and a lot of stress. Most world leaders let their ego get to them, but Marcus was a student of philosophy, specifically the philosophy of Stoicism.
Stoicism is a school of philosophy that teaches one to pursue greatness via personal ethics and virtue, and to focus your mind solely on the things that are in your control to live in accordance with reality.
Marcus Aurelius was obsessed with becoming a courageous, kinder, more empathetic, and compassionate person and hence a greater leader. Everyday he would write in his journal, which later was published into what we know as Meditations. Here are 5 quotes from Meditations on how to live a successful life.
“You have power over your mind - not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.”
The central idea of Stoicism is to focus on the things you can control, and not things you cannot control. Things such as your perspective, actions, choices, and your response to what that life throws at you are in your control. Everything else that happens is external. Accept the world for what it is and do your best to become the best.
“The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.”
The Stoics believed that we must live according to nature. We must not only accept what happens to us, but rather we must love it and embrace it. 18th century philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche coined the term “Amor Fati”, meaning “a love of fate”. The idea of loving whatever happens to us allows us to be unaffected by things out of our control, and gives us the ability to focus on how we respond to said events/impediments.
“When you arise in the morning think of what a privilege it is to be alive, to think, to enjoy, to love.”
The chances of you existing, yes you, are 1 in 400 trillion. Nothing else in the world has odds like that. No matter how bad the situation you’re in may be, the fact that you woke up and are alive is such a blessing to the world and to the people in your life. That doesn’t mean you have to do a thousand things and be as productive as Elon Musk, but rather it is an opportunity to, at its most basic level, practice being a kind, caring, and loving person.
“Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one.”
The Stoics were more concerned with actions rather than words. They lived their lives by 4 cardinal virtues. Courage, Justice, Moderation, and Wisdom. Have the courage to do what is right even when it is difficult, pursue justice for those who are wronged including yourself, practice self-control so as to not do anything in excess, and keep an open mind to knowledge and wisdom as “You cannot learn that which you think you already know.”- Epictetus. It is our duty as humans to pursue these virtues in every situation we encounter.
“You could leave life right now. Let that determine what you do and say and think.”
“Memento Mori”. "Remember death." Stoics meditated on the idea that we all will die someday. It could be tomorrow, it could be 58 years from now. That’s not a meditation on “I’m gonna die anyways life is pointless”, but rather, if you were to die tomorrow or even today, are you proud of the work you have done to bring light into this world? Live today like a complete day, don’t sit around waiting to die.
Final Thoughts
The resurrection of Stoicism over the last decade hasn’t happened without good reason. As the world we live in becomes more hectic, diverse, and crazier, we must gather more tools in our toolbox to combat succumbing to our craziness. Stoicism provides just that, timeless wisdom that’s given from a higher-level of abstraction – relevant to the days of the Antonine Plague to the days of the COVID-19 plague.
