Marcus Aurelius was the emperor of Rome in the second century and in his position became one of the most powerful people on the planet. But even in his position as emperor he was able to find ways to remain humble and to look at other men in a way that elevated them. He reminded … Continue reading A Dose of Self-Awareness
Month: January 2017
Forming Opinions
The power of the mind and our ability to control our mind as rational human beings is a central focus of the philosophy of Stoicism. Being able to look at the world from multiple perspectives and seeing events beyond our singular point of view combine with self-awareness to give us the ability to choose how … Continue reading Forming Opinions
Benevolent Toward All
Throughout Meditations Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius encourages us to maintain an even temperament, especially in our interactions with others. He focuses on the idea that we will see the world as we choose to see it, with positives and negatives projected onto the world by our own mind. Aurelius believes that our opinions shape the reality … Continue reading Benevolent Toward All
Growing Together
Marcus Aurelius believed in the power of mankind to unite and band together to build a better world and become more than we ever could be on our own. In this spirit he placed acting in the common good above acting in our own interest, and valued unity over individuality. “A branch cut off from … Continue reading Growing Together
Benefitting From the Negative
There was an aspect of Marcus Aurelius’ life that would seem incredibly foreign and difficult to most Americans today, the ability to live with uncertainty and accept ambiguity. For many people living in the United States today, unanswered questions are painful and challenging, and there is a clear preference for seeing the world as black … Continue reading Benefitting From the Negative
Recognizing Our Own Shortcomings
Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius wrote about the importance of turning inward and honestly judging our own character in a way that is intimate and helped us move our lives forward in a constructive manner. Throughout his book Meditations he wrote of the importance of being self-aware, and provided notes about being socially responsible by becoming more intentional … Continue reading Recognizing Our Own Shortcomings
The Ruling Faculty
Marcus Aurelius placed his ruling faculty, or the conscious and rational ability of his brain, above all else in his life. He focused on maximizing his rational ability and strove to bring a sense of awareness and intentionality to all aspects of his conscious being. To him, recognizing the power and control that he held … Continue reading The Ruling Faculty
Turning Words to Action
In Meditations, Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius shares his thoughts on how to live a meaningful and purposeful life. The book is his collection of self-reflections on not just how to succeed in life, but how to take advantage of the time we have on this planet, and how to live a life that lets us … Continue reading Turning Words to Action
Risk
Joel Achenbach explored what went wrong on the Deep Water Horizon oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico the night it exploded and left an open gusher at the bottom of the ocean. He found that there was never one major mistake or any serious oversight that catastrophically caused the collapse of the system and … Continue reading Risk
Bargains
In his book about the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, author Joel Achenbach explains the steps that were taken by both BP and the United States Government to solve the problem of the broken well leaking oil thousands of feet below the surface. Our government eventually established a think tank task force … Continue reading Bargains