Epictetus on sucking up!


Epictetus was a stoic philosopher who lived in the 1st - 2nd century. He was a very wise man and as a freed man, knew much about how we enslave ourselves.

His views about sucking up to other people are well worth reading (and I paraphrase....):

When a man cringes before another, or flatters that person despite having holding other views he is a slave. 

If he holds a position of authority and sucks up to a more powerful person, then he is slave on a large scale. 

If he is a common man and does so for a paltry meal, then he is a slave on a small scale.

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