Our Need to Read the Iliad

When you read a classic more than once, you can come to realize in a new way why it's a classic. I just finished my second reading this year of Homer's Iliad, an ancient tale about the tenth year of the Trojan War. And it's actually all about ego and anger. Plus, it's really good and it’s full of lessons we need today.

An older Greek king, Menelaus, has a young and beautiful trophy wife, Helen. Ego. A handsome young prince from Troy named Paris visits them and seeks to seduce Helen. Ego again. She enjoys the attention from this gorgeous man and accepts his advances. Ego. They run away to Troy and Menelaus, rather than realizing his mistake in the mismatch, gathers a huge army to go and get Helen and bring her back. Big Ego and it's almost inevitable pal, Anger.

But this is all backstory. The real tale opens with Agamemnon, the brother of Menelaus, who has become leader of all the assembled Greek forces besieging Troy. The battle has lasted nine years. And Agamemnon, in his own ego and bloated sense of self entitlement, decides that he hasn't had enough of the spoils from this war so far for his own enjoyment. He's irritated. Ego and Anger. He's had his eye on a ravishing beauty earlier given to Achilles, the greatest of the warriors. And so he decides to take her for himself, apparently unaware that he's just repeating what Paris did to Menelaus with Helen. Unfortunate Ego. A god keeps Achilles from just killing the man on the spot and guides him to comply with his leader's demand. Agamemnon is the top commander, after all. So the great warrior goes along with the unjust order, but in a rage. Bad Anger to the Max. His rights and deserved glory have been violated. Ego all over the place. So he vows to fight no more, and allow his fellow Greeks to be killed en masse until they appreciate anew how great and needed he is.

Fast forward: Thousands die. Without Achilles, the Greeks and Trojans are evenly matched, and whenever they're not, the gods get involved on one side then the other. The balance keeps changing, yet always lives are lost. But Agamemnon won't relent and admit he was wrong. And neither will Achilles. It's a battle of the egos and their anger. That's the deeper war fought at Troy.

But when far too many of his favorites die and he feels the disaster's pain, Agamemnon finally decides he needs to bribe Achilles to come back and fight for the cause. He'll return the woman, and add in lots and lots of treasure to appeal to the ego needs of Achilles. The warrior refuses. But then his BFF, Patroclus, begs Achilles to let him put on the great man's armor and appear on the battlefield where the Trojans might think Achilles himself is back, and flee in panic. The charade takes place and after killing lots of the enemy, Patroclus is killed by Hector, chief warrior among the Trojans. And of course, Achilles has to take revenge and kill him, then dishonor his body in the most outrageous ways. Ego beyond the pale once more. And the band plays on.

Our lesson: The bloated egos of a few can create disaster for many. As further confirmation, check the daily news.

For one easily accessible version of the classic, click HERE.

Passion and Performance

Passion drives performance like nothing else, in business, and in life. What do you care about most deeply? What enlivens you? What awakens you? What form of work or service feels like play? What gives you a sense of mission or purpose? That's what you need to be doing. It's tough in life to settle for anything less.

Yeah, I know that the cynics will reply, "Passion can't pay the bills." And passionate mediocrity is just bad on a bigger scale. Sometimes, our greatest loves have to be hobbies. I get it. We all have limitations, commitments, and various other realities to deal with. But a truth still stands. When you can pick your passion as your primary purpose, you can often fly high.

This week I've written once before about a really nice book I've been reading, The Work: My Search for a Life That Matters, by Wes Moore. Today, I want to quote him again. On page 120, he writes:

One thing I began to realize in my travels was that everyone I met who was truly successful - whether in business, in philanthropic work,  in human rights, in government, or in raising a family - shared one common trait: they were fanatically passionate about the work they did. They breathed it. They needed it. It was their lifeblood.

He then goes on to challenge us:

Really, think about it: name one person in your own life who fits the description of unassailable success who is not driven by that kind of clarifying passion.

I'm not sure I would have used the word 'fanatical' but, that caveat aside, I agree wholeheartedly with what Moore says here. Tremendous passion tends to drive tremendous results. In the 1600s, Blaise Pascal wrote, "The heart has its reasons of which reason knows nothing." The heart, the core of our emotion, and passion, the metaphorical organ of enthusiasm and positive energy, has reasons and powers that intellect alone can't match.

The more heart we can bring to our work, the more passion and commitment and enthusiasm, the more likely we'll make that work into a masterpiece of service, or performance, and a real gift to those around us. Why should we settle for anything less?

Nerves and Performance

I was watching The Voice on NBC, and right before a commercial, there was a shot of one of the performers backstage and someone was messing with his microphone and his hair, and it made me remember all the many times I've been backstage, ready to step out in front of 2,000 or 3,000 or 5,000 or 10,000 people, and someone has been readjusting a microphone or straightening my jacket or otherwise tugging at me, and asking "Are you ready?" And I've said "Yeah, I'm ready" and I've thought, "I was born ready. I can't wait to do this." There may be flutters and an elevated heart rate backstage, but I'll only be getting ready to have a great time.

Years ago, when I felt my heart rate go up, I used to think "Uh, Oh. I'm getting nervous." Then, one day, it occurred to me to say to myself, "Good. I'm getting ready." There is an energy to being ready. Most interpret it as nerves. A few see it as preparation, readiness, the fuel of excellence. Good things can happen when we're ready. Sometimes, even great things.

So, the next time something big is about to happen, and everybody else is fluttering around and you feel your heart beat increase, smile within and say to yourself, "I'm getting ready. This is going to be great!" And, then, more likely, it will be.

Skill and Confidence

"Skill and confidence make an unconquered army." - George Herbert

Skill by itself may never accomplish much. Don’t you know very talented people who never manage to turn their talents into success? A skilled person with no self confidence will not likely try anything new and difficult. And every path to major success involves the new and difficult.

But confidence by itself can be downright dangerous. Confidence without skill is a recipe for disaster. It’s the combination of skill and confidence that makes for great achievements.

Make sure that the people around you understand this. Our skills and our attitudes are equally important for our overall success in life.