Wednesday, June 13, 2018

QUOTABLE

“The first method for estimating the intelligence of a ruler is to look at the men he has around him.” 
– Niccolò Machiavelli

“Men are so simple of mind, and so much dominated by their immediate needs, that a deceitful man will always find plenty who are ready to be deceived.”
– Niccolò Machiavelli

“The vulgar crowd always is taken by appearances, and the world consists chiefly of the vulgar.” 
– Niccolò Machiavelli

Garfield by Jim Davis for Jun 13, 2018 - GoComics

Garfield on aging

Garfield for Jun 13, 2018 Comic Strip

Tuesday, January 2, 2018

Marcus Aurelius on How to Motivate Yourself to Get Out of Bed in the Morning and Go to Work

Marcus Aurelius, Roman emperor and Stoic philosopher wrote in MEDITATIONS:
"At dawn, when you have trouble getting out of bed, tell yourself: “I have to go to work — as a human being. What do I have to complain of, if I’m going to do what I was born for — the things I was brought into the world to do? Or is this what I was created for? To huddle under the blankets and stay warm?"
"So you were born to feel 'nice'? Instead of doing things and experiencing them? Don’t you see the plants, the birds, the ants and spiders and bees going about their individual tasks, putting the world in order, as best they can? And you’re not willing to do your job as a human being? Why aren’t you running to do what your nature demands?"

"You don’t love yourself enough. Or you’d love your nature too, and what it demands of you."

"When they’re really possessed by what they do, they’d rather stop eating and sleeping than give up practicing their arts."
"Is helping others less valuable to you? Not worth your effort?"
"When you have trouble getting out of bed in the morning, remember that your defining characteristic— what defines a human being — is to work with others. Even animals know how to sleep. And it’s the characteristic activity that’s the more natural one — more innate and more satisfying."