3 Insights
“Individuals who are focused on concerns of equity are likely to scan their environment for signs of potential injustice and to misread events as personal slights.” — Donald Meichenbaum, Stress Inoculation Training
“May God keep you away from the venom of the cobra, the teeth of the tiger, and the revenge of the Afghans.” — Alexander the Great
“What makes Heroic? To face simultaneously one’s greatest suffering and one’s highest hope.” — Friedrich Nietzsche
What I Learned this Week
The earliest world map dates back to 6,000 BC. The Babylonian world map, known as the Imago Mundi, is a flat representation of the world. The map was discovered in Sippar, Iraq, and is now housed in the British Museum.
In this map, the central feature is the city of Babylon, located along the Euphrates River, surrounded by a circular landmass including Assyria, what is now Armenia and several cities, in turn surrounded by a “bitter river.” There are eight outlying regions arranged around it in the shape of triangles, so as to form a star. The map isn’t meant to be geographically accurate by modern standards but rather a symbolic representation of how the Babylonians saw the world. As long as humans have been exploring, we have been utilizing maps as tools.
A Life Abroad
Philip II ruled Macedon from 359 BC until 336 BC. He fought in 23 years of military campaigns building one of the greatest armies of his time. Philip did grow up in a military culture. He learned military tactics and strategy from his time as a hostage in Thebes (c. 368–365 BC) when he was a teenager. Thebes at the time was the leading city of Greece after defeating the Spartans in 371 BC.
The power of perspective allowed Phillip to learn how to think differently about war, weapons, and men.
A few centuries earlier, Lycurgus, credited as the founder of Sparta, sought to transform Spartan society. During his travels to Crete, Egypt, and other parts of Asia, he learned valuable lessons in tactics and societal challenges.
Philip II made many improvements to the Macedonian army. The cavalry, which were the primary source of the army’s strength, went from a force of only 600 to 4,000. The discipline and training of the soldiers increased. He also created the Macedonian phalanx, an infantry formation that consisted of soldiers all armed with a sarissa, a spear about 16 to 23 feet long. Previously the Spartans and other Greeks used a pike (or Dory) that was only 9 ft long.
“To be prepared for war is one of the most effectual means of preserving peace.” — George Washington, First Annual Address, to both Houses of Congress, Friday, January 08, 1790
Too often we get stuck in our own ways. We forget that we are a small part in a much larger world. Working on a project in one city where you know everyone is different than if you end up in a place where you don’t speak the native language.
If you want perspective, travel. If you want to improve how you see the world around you, understand that what you read on a map or in a book or anywhere else is just the beginning. You must live it. You must experience it.
Sometimes the best solutions are found by getting outside your day to day. Step back. Look around. See who else you can learn from.
The best men and women throughout history are lifelong learners who turn every experience into their own advantage. Why can’t you do the same?
Reflections
Are you at war with your own perspective?
Are you traveling to improve how you see the world around you?
The Real Con 107