Transcript
You know, I’m sure we’ve all heard the saying, “Necessity is the mother of invention,” which suggests that need itself actually has inherent value. “The harder you fall, the higher you bounce.” “We find our strength in the depths of despair.” “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” “It’s always darkest before the dawn.” “When one door closes, another opens.” “Every cloud has a silver lining.” “It’s a blessing in disguise.” All of these point in the same direction. It’s good for bad things to happen.
But the thing is, sayings like these live right alongside advice that’s just the opposite, promising that good times are in our control. “Where there’s a will, there’s a way.” “Nothing ventured, nothing gained.” “Keep your eyes on the prize.” “Fortune favors the bold.” “Quitters never win, and winners never quit.” “Slow and steady wins the race.” These also point in a unified direction. If we try hard enough, we can avoid difficult times and achieve our goals. The future is in our control because good things happen when we don’t give up.
Equally, though, we hear, “Don’t beat a dead horse.” “Quit while you’re ahead.” “Don’t throw good money after bad.” “Cut your losses.” “Discretion is the better part of valor.” That is to say, our future is in our control because good things happen when we do give up.
Taken individually, I would say each of these three categories has what seems like good advice. But we have to take them as a group, and then they present a clearer and, in my opinion, more accurate picture. Life operates largely at random: Sometimes we get what we want, sometimes we don’t. Sometimes what we want is good for us. Sometimes it’s not.
More to the point, these are not examples of ancient wisdom. Rather, they’re pithy aphorisms, the kind that people like to quote on the Internet but that have little depth or value. Some of them aren’t even old. The only merit of these sayings is that they are cleverly worded, so they resonate with people. They have the illusion of insight, but they’re so shallow that, as I’ve said, frequently they are no more accurate than their own opposite.
Another example. It may sometimes be true that, “Actions speak louder than words.” But the opposite is also true. “It’s the thought that counts.” Or, “The early bird catches the worm.” But also, “Good things come to those who wait.” And Malcolm Gladwell wrote a whole book about why people should sometimes metaphorically judge a book by its cover.
So I would say these common misrepresentations of ancient wisdom are like scam fortune teller observations. They’re easy to digest and they’re seemingly astute, but they’re vacuous, no more right than they are wrong, and certainly not of any lasting help.
Actual ancient wisdom is completely different. Its value doesn’t come from its style, but rather from its content. Ancient wisdom is informed by lengthy investigation and verified by even longer evaluation. It’s time honored and time tested and, often timeless.
