Rosani sitting in front of their house doors all the time, even though it exposes them to ridicule in their old age. People in high positions are triple servants: servants of rulers or the state, servants of fame, and servants of business. Therefore, they have no personal freedom, no freedom of action, no freedom of time. Indeed, people in high positions must borrow other people’s opinions to consider themselves happy because if they judge according to their own feelings, they do not see themselves that way; but if they think about themselves what others think of them and if others might like to be like them, then they are happy, so to speak, based on the stories of others, while they may feel the opposite inside; because they are the first to know their own sorrows, although they are the last to know their own mistakes. Indeed, people in high positions are often strangers to themselves, and while they are busy with the chaos of public affairs, they have no time to take care of their physical or mental health. Illi mors gravis incubat, qui notus nimis omnibus, ignotus moritur sibi. (Death weighs heavily on the one who dies known to everyone, but unknown to himself.) Position brings the privilege of doing good and evil, the latter being a curse: because it is best not to want to do evil, and immediately afterwards not being able to do it. But the power to do good is true and rightful purpose of aspiring upwards; because good intentions, although accepted by God, are little better than good dreams for people unless they are realized; and that cannot be done without power and position, from which a person can see and command better. Valuable and good deeds are the purpose of human activity, and awareness of this is the achievement of a person’s rest; for if a person can be a participant in God’s theater, he will likewise be a participant in God’s rest. And turned, God, to behold the works which his hands had made, saw that everything was very good. (And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good); and then came the day of rest. In the performance of your duty, have the best examples in front of you; for imitation provides comprehensive instructions: and after a certain time, set your own example before you and rigorously examine yourself if you were perhaps the best. In the beginning. Similarly, do not ignore the examples of those who have behaved poorly in the same position, not to condemn them while highlighting yourself, but to guide yourself on what to avoid. Therefore, make improvements without boasting or belittling the past and people, but determine for yourself that you will not only give good examples, but also follow them. Restore things to their original order and consider how and in what way they deviated from the original, while seeking advice from both past and present: ask the old what is best and the new what is most appropriate. Strive to be consistent in your actions so that people will know in advance what to expect; but don’t be too confident and unquestioning, and make it clear when you deviate from your principles. Maintain the rights of your position, but do not raise the issue of jurisdiction: rather, assert your rights quietly ide facto, rather than with noisy arguments and disputes. Similarly, respect the rights of those in subordinate positions and consider it a greater honor to lead what is main, rather than You meddle in everything. Accept and seek help and advice regarding the execution of your duties; and don’t push away those who bring you news like schemers, but receive it politely from them. It is true, as it was said in ancient times: Position reveals a man… There are four main vices of power: delay, bribery, rudeness, and compliance. As for delay: be easily approachable; stick to the appointed time; do the work that is on the agenda and don’t start another one before finishing the first one, unless necessary. As for bribery: don’t just tie your own hands and the hands of your officials not to accept bribes, but also tie the hands of those who offer it. For practical integrity does the former, but true integrity, which truly despises bribery, does the latter. And don’t avoid only guilt but also suspicion. Whoever is fickle and changes without clear reason arouses suspicion of bribery. Therefore, whenever you change your opinion or direction, do it openly and state the reasons that led you to do so. divljao, a ne nikoga.)
Differences, and do not hide it. An official or a favorite, if they are intimate with you – and there is no obvious reason for that intimacy – is usually considered a mediator in bribery. As for roughness: it is an unnecessary cause of dissatisfaction; because strictness breeds fear, and roughness breeds hatred. Even reprimands from authority should be serious, but never offensive. As for compliance: it is worse than bribery, because bribery comes from time to time; but if a person succumbs to attacks or empty considerations, they will never be free from them; as Solomon says:It is not good to look at who is who, because for a bite of bread, a person will do evil. It is truly said in ancient times:Position shows a man, and it shows some better, and some worse.Omnium consensu capax imperii nisi imperasset. (If he had never been an emperor, everyone would have declared him worthy of ruling the empire.) – Tacitus said about Galba; but about Vespasian he says: Solus imperantium, Vespasianus mutatus in melius. (Vespasian was the only emperor who improved, and not anyone else.) The exercise of power has improved.); although in the first case referring to ruling capability, and in the second case referring to behavior and goodwill. It is an undeniable sign of a valid and noble spirit if honor makes a person better. For virtue belongs, or should belong, to a position of honor; and just as things in nature move violently towards their place, and calmly when in their place, so virtue is fierce when ascending to power, but calm and tranquil when in power. Every ascent to power follows winding stairs; and if there are factions, it is good for a person to align with one while ascending, and when in their place, to be impartial. Be fair and gentle towards your predecessor’s memory; for if you do not, that debt will surely be paid when you depart. If you have colleagues, respect them and invite them to join you even when they do not expect it, rather than excluding them when they have reason to expect an invitation. Do not be overly aware of your position and do not mention it often in conversation and private responses. Moreover, people cannot withdraw when they want to, nor do they want to when it is reasonable, and they do not even tolerate withdrawal in illness and old age when shelter is needed, but they act like those old townsmen who always sit in front of their house doors, although they expose their old age to ridicule.
People in high positions are triple servants: servants of rulers or the state, servants of fame and servants of business. Therefore, they have no personal freedom, nor freedom of action, nor freedom of time.
Indeed, people in high positions have to borrow other people’s opinions in order to consider themselves happy, because if they judge by their own feelings, they do not see themselves as such; but if they think about themselves what others think about them, and if others might like to be like them, then they are happy, so to speak, based on other people’s stories, while they may feel the opposite within themselves; because they are the first to know about their own sorrows, although the last to know about their own mistakes. Indeed, people in high positions are often strangers to themselves, and while they are busy with the confusion of public affairs, they have no time. not cared about physical or mental health. It’s like carrying a heavy burden, being well-known to everyone but unknown to oneself. (Death is hard on those who die too well-known to others, but unknown to themselves.)
Position brings the privilege of doing good and evil, of which the latter is a curse: because it is best not to want to do evil, and right after that, not to be able to do it. But the ability to do good is the true and ultimate purpose of striving upwards; for good intentions, although accepted by God, are no better for humans than good dreams, unless they are realized; and that cannot be done without power and position, where a person can see and command better. Worthy and good deeds are the purpose of human activity, and awareness of this is the fulfillment of a person’s rest; because if a person can be a participant in God’s theater, they will also be a participant in God’s rest.
And God turned to see the works which his hands had made, and saw that everything was very good. (And God saw everything that He had made, and behold, it was very good); and then day of rest.
In carrying out your service, have the best examples before you; for imitation provides comprehensive instructions: and after a certain time, place your own example before you and rigorously examine yourself to see if you were perhaps the best at the beginning. Similarly, do not neglect the examples of those who have behaved poorly in the same position, not to judge them, but to guide yourself on what to avoid. Therefore, make improvements without arrogance or devaluing the past time and people, but determine for yourself that you will not only give good examples, but also follow them. Restore things to their original order and consider in what ways they have deviated and how from the original, and seek advice from both times: ask the old for what is best and the new for what is most appropriate. Strive for your actions to be consistent so that people can know in advance what to expect; but do not be overly self-confident and unquestioning, and clearly indicate when you deviate from your principles. Preserve the integrity of your position, but do not provoke. Jurisdiction question: it is better to assert your rights in silence and de facto, rather than through loud proving and disputing. Also, respect the rights of those in subordinate positions and consider it a greater honor to manage what is important, rather than getting involved in everything. Accept and seek help and advice regarding the fulfillment of your duties; and do not push away those who bring you news as schemers, but accept it politely from them. p>
It is truly said in ancient times: Position shows the person… p>
There are four main vices of power: delay, bribery, rudeness, and compliance. As for delays: be easily accessible; stick to the appointed time; perform the task that is due and do not start another one unnecessarily before finishing the first one. As for bribery: do not just tie your own hands and the hands of your officials from accepting bribes, but also tie the hands of the beggars from offering bribes. For practical integrity does the former, but true integrity, which truly despises bribery, does the latter. And do not shy away from There is more guilt than doubt. Whoever is changeable and changes without clear reason, arouses suspicion of being corruptible. That’s why whenever you change your opinion or direction, do it openly and explain the reasons that led you to act differently, and do not conceal it. An employee or favorite, if they are close to you – and there is no obvious reason for this closeness – is usually considered a facilitator of bribery. As for harshness: it is an unnecessary cause of dissatisfaction; because severity breeds fear, and rudeness breeds hatred. Even reprimands from authorities should be serious, but never offensive. As for compliance: it is worse than bribery, because bribery comes from time to time; but if a person yields to solicitations or empty considerations, they will never free themselves from them; as Solomon says: It is not good to show favoritism, because for a piece of bread a person will do evil. It is true that it was said a long time ago: Status shows the person, and some show themselves to be better, and some worse. Omnium consensus. “If he had never been an emperor, everyone would have considered him worthy of ruling the empire,” Tacitus said about Galba. But about Vespasian, he says, “The only one of the emperors, Vespasian, who was changed for the better.” Although in the first case, it refers to ruling ability, and in the second case, it refers to behavior and goodwill. It is an undeniable sign of a noble and virtuous spirit if honor makes a person better. For virtue belongs, or should belong, to a position of honor. And just as things in nature move forcefully towards their place and remain calm when in their place, so too, virtue is fierce when ascending to power and calm when in power.
Every ascent to power goes up a winding staircase. And if there are factions, it is good for a person to align themselves with one while ascending and then be impartial when taking their place.
Treat your predecessor’s memory with fairness and kindness, for if you do not, that debt will certainly be repaid. You shouldn’t be paid when you leave. If you have colleagues, respect them and invite them to yourself when they don’t expect it, rather than excluding them when they have reason to expect they will be invited. Don’t be too aware of your position and don’t mention it often in conversation and private responses to those who seek your help, rather let it be said: When performing the duties of his office, he is a different person.