Seneca Moral essays
Seneca: He whose object is to be of service to his…
He whose object is to be of service to his countrymen and to all mortals, exercises himself and does good at the same time when he is engrossed in business and is working to the best of his ability both in the interests of the public and of private men.
The passage follows a public-domain translation of Seneca’s moral essays. The reading beside it is ours.
Work can be training for character when it is connected to service. The point is not to become a martyr to your inbox or to pretend every job is inspiring. It is to see that doing your part well develops qualities that travel beyond the job: reliability, patience, competence, fairness, and the ability to cooperate with others. A manager who gives clear credit, a cashier who treats tired customers with dignity, a designer who makes a product less confusing—each is improving the world in a real, if modest, way. When work is only about status or escape, it hollows us out. When it includes usefulness, it becomes practice in citizenship. Today, ask who is helped by your work and how you could make that help more deliberate. Excellence is not only personal achievement; it is a form of contribution.
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