Marcus Aurelius Meditations
Marcus Aurelius: Labour not as one to whom it is…
Labour not as one to whom it is appointed to be wretched, nor as one that either would be pitied, or admired; but let this be thine only care and desire; so always and in all things to prosecute or to forbear, as the law of charity, or mutual society doth require.
The passage follows a public-domain translation of Meditations. The reading beside it is ours.
Work can become a performance of suffering. We want people to notice how busy we are, how much we carry, how unfairly hard we have it. Or we work for admiration, hoping exhaustion will prove our importance. Marcus rejects both motives. Do the job because it is yours to do, and let concern for the common good decide when to push and when to stop. That changes the tone of an ordinary task. You answer the email because it helps the team move forward, not because you need to look indispensable. You rest because burnout makes you less useful, not because you have earned dramatic self-pity. There is dignity in effort, but misery is not a badge of honor. Before you begin today’s hardest task, ask who it serves and what a reasonable, humane effort looks like. Then work without needing an audience.
Related passages
- Marcus Aurelius A lamp keeps giving light until its oil is gone. Why should your truthfulness, justice, and self-command not shine…
- Marcus Aurelius As long as the foot doth that which belongeth unto it to do, and the hand that which belongs unto it, their labour,…
- Marcus Aurelius Be it so: yet there be many other good things, for the want of which thou canst not plead the want or natural ability.…