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All 23 learnings · one per slide
Meditations
Marcus Aurelius, in bytes
23 key learnings from the private notebook of a Roman emperor on calm, duty and living well.
23 learnings · ~40 sec eachSwipe →
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Meditations, in bytes
23 key learnings from Marcus Aurelius’ private notebook, written to himself while ruling Rome. References give the book and section so you can read the original. Each takes about 40 seconds to read. Swipe, use the arrows, or your keyboard.
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Learning 1 · Book 1
A Notebook Never Meant for Us
Background
Meditations was Marcus Aurelius' private journal, written in Greek while he ruled Rome and campaigned on its frontiers. He wrote to remind himself how to live, not to impress anyone.
Try this
Keep a private journal. Write to improve yourself, not to perform.
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Learning 2 · Background
Written in Hard Times
Background
Marcus wrote much of Meditations while campaigning against Germanic tribes on Rome's frontier, as a devastating plague spread through the empire.
Why it matters
His calm wasn't the calm of an easy life. It was practised in crisis.
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Learning 3 · Book 1
Start with Gratitude
The teaching
Book 1 lists what Marcus learned from family, teachers and friends: modesty from one, self-control from another, patience from his adoptive father.
Try this
List the people who shaped you, and what each one taught you.
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Learning 4 · Book 2.1
Expect Difficult People
The teaching
Each morning Marcus reminded himself he'd meet meddling, ungrateful or arrogant people, acting from ignorance of good and bad, and resolved not to be harmed or angered by them.
Today
Expecting resistance before a tough meeting makes it far easier to stay calm.
Takeaway
Expect friction, and decide in advance not to be thrown by it.
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Learning 5 · Throughout
Focus on What You Control
The teaching
Some things are up to us, our judgments and actions; most things are not. Peace comes from focusing on the first.
Today
You can't control a client's decision, but you can control the quality of your proposal.
Takeaway
Put your energy only where your choices make a difference.
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Learning 6 · Book 4.7, 8.47
Disturbance Comes from Judgment
The teaching
Things themselves don't trouble us; our opinions about them do. Remove the judgment, and the harm goes too.
Today
A blunt email stings only once you decide it's an insult.
Try this
When upset, separate what happened from the story you're telling about it.
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Learning 7 · Book 4.3
The Inner Citadel
The teaching
You can retreat into yourself whenever you like, and find no place more peaceful than your own mind.
Try this
Take a few quiet breaths in a busy day. Build a calm inner place you can return to anywhere.
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Learning 8 · Book 5.20
The Obstacle Becomes the Way
The teaching
What stands in the way of action can become the way forward. The mind turns obstacles into material for virtue.
Today
A cancelled project frees time to master a new skill.
Reflect
What is your current obstacle letting you practise: patience, creativity or courage?
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Learning 9 · Book 5.1
Get Up and Do Your Work
The teaching
Marcus scolded himself for wanting to stay in bed: he was made to work and serve others, not to lie under blankets.
Worth noting
Even an emperor struggled with getting up in the morning.
Takeaway
When motivation is low, remember what you're for, then start.
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Learning 10 · Book 2.5
Act Well Right Now
The teaching
Do each task as if it were the last of your life, with full attention, without pretence or complaint.
Takeaway
One task done completely beats ten rushed. Finish what's in front of you, then move on.
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Learning 11 · Book 4.17, 4.48
Time Is Short
The teaching
Life is brief, and even the famous are soon forgotten. Not gloom, but a call to live well now.
Today
Remembering that today won't come again makes trivial worries easier to drop.
Takeaway
Don't spend your life on what won't matter.
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Learning 12 · Book 4.3, 4.43
Everything Changes
The teaching
The universe is change; life is opinion. Rivers flow on, and nothing stays the same for long.
Today
The crisis that consumes a quarter is often forgotten a year later.
Takeaway
Hold things lightly. This, too, will change.
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Learning 13 · Book 6.13
See Things as They Are
The teaching
Describe things plainly to strip away false glamour: fine food is a dead animal; a purple robe is wool dyed with shellfish blood.
Try this
Before a luxury purchase, describe it to yourself in plain words, and see if the urge survives.
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Learning 14 · Book 3.4
Ignore Others' Opinions
The teaching
Don't waste your remaining life thinking about what others are doing or saying, unless it serves the common good.
Takeaway
Mind your own conduct. Others' opinions are theirs to manage.
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Learning 15 · Book 10.16
Be Good, Don't Debate It
The teaching
Stop talking about what a good person should be, and be one.
Takeaway
Act on your principles today, rather than describing them.
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Learning 16 · Book 6.54
Work for the Common Good
The teaching
Humans are made for cooperation, like hands and feet. What doesn't benefit the hive doesn't benefit the bee.
Today
A professional who helps the whole team succeed usually rises with it.
Reflect
How does your work serve others, not just yourself?
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Learning 17 · Book 7.26, 11.18
Respond to Wrongs with Kindness
The teaching
When someone does wrong, consider what led them there. Understanding brings pity rather than anger. Genuine kindness is invincible.
Today
Calmly asking why someone acted badly often defuses conflict faster than retaliation.
Takeaway
Understand before reacting. Kindness is strength.
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Learning 18 · Book 6.6
The Best Revenge
The teaching
The best way to get even is not to become like the person who wronged you.
Takeaway
Don't let others' behaviour lower your standards.
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Learning 19 · Book 5.16
Correct Yourself First
The teaching
Marcus was hardest on himself, asking whether he lived up to his principles before judging others.
Today
Before criticising a team's mistake, check whether your instructions were clear.
Takeaway
Look at your own faults before pointing out others'.
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Learning 20 · Book 7.7
Accept Help Without Shame
The teaching
Like a soldier storming a wall, if you can't climb alone, accept a hand. The goal matters, not who reaches it.
Takeaway
Asking for help is good judgment, not weakness.
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Learning 21 · Book 5.16
Your Mind Takes the Colour of Your Thoughts
The teaching
The soul is dyed by its thoughts. What you dwell on shapes who you become.
Today
Dwelling on grievances makes people bitter; dwelling on gratitude makes them generous.
Reflect
What do you think about most, and is it shaping you the way you'd like?
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Learning 22 · Book 2.17, 9.3
Meet Death Calmly
The teaching
Death is natural, part of the same nature as birth and growth. Accepting it frees you to live without fear.
Takeaway
Let the fact that life ends make today count.
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Learning 23 · Throughout
Live by Nature and Reason
The teaching
Living well means living by nature and reason: just, honest, self-controlled and courageous, whatever happens.
Worth noting
An emperor with absolute power still held himself to a strict standard of character.
Takeaway
Let reason and virtue guide you, whatever your position.
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All 23 learnings complete
That’s all 23 learnings.
Marcus wrote these notes to himself. Which one would you write on your own wall?
Abhay Kumar JaiswalFCA · PMP® · Workday Financeabhayjaiswal.com
Summaries in my own words. Read Meditations itself; it is short.
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Summaries are written in my own words for learning, with book and section references (numbering varies slightly between translations). Meditations is in the public domain; many free translations are available. More Books in Bytes