If like me you spend a lot of time at leadership events, you’ll be used to hearing some familiar names over and over.
A quote from Brene Brown about vulnerability here. A line of Simon Sinek about purpose there. And once in a while an old classic from the earlier generation of the likes of Stephen Covey, Kenneth Blanchard or, to put a much-loved Brit among this roll-call of Americans, the late Charles Handy.
In the latest Leadership in Focus article, Simon Nash, Group Managing Director of Law at Work, explores how classical concepts of leadership can still offer powerful insights into today’s challenges – linking ancient wisdom with modern practices.
But if we were hanging out in the Acropolis of Athens a few thousand years ago, going to hear the latest talks about leadership would have been just as popular as today. Perhaps that’s a sign that we still haven’t unlocked the puzzle of leadership. Or perhaps, as good news for people like me who teach leaders, an indication that there is a perennial need for each generation to learn the lessons of power and ethics.
Classical antiquity’s superstars of the leadership speaking circuit were teachers like Plato and Aristotle. We might not be so familiar with their words these days. Not least because very few people are familiar with ancient Greek. But we are actually very familiar with their ideas.
Classical leadership theory was about two big ideas; akrasia and arete. And when we look below the surface its amazing how relevant they are today.
The work akrasia is sometimes translated as ‘weakness of will’. It describes the sense that we often fail to do what we know we want do. Or alternatively we end up doing the things we know are bad for us. Can’t finally give up the cigarettes or vapes – that’s akrasia. Abandon the couch-to-five-k after only six days – yep, akrasia again. Can’t seem to get the client service team to cross-sell the products that will make the customers’ lives easier and also deliver on the quarterly numbers – you got it, more akrasia. This seems to be a very old word for a very modern problem.
We can develop the character traits that equip us to achieve more of the things we want
Now your ancient sages had a different approach to dealing with akrasia. Go to one of Plato’s webinars and you’ll hear that your level of akrasia is pretty much stuck. If you’re Greek you’ll do better than if you have the misfortune to be born barbarian. And don’t get me started on his views on slaves or women. But go along to Aristotle’s TED talk and it’s a whole other story. Aristotle taught that akrasia can be overcome. Our preponderance for achievement is not set with the randomness of birth. We can develop the character traits that equip us to achieve more of the things we want, and to resist the doom-scrolling on TikTok that was keeping the Athenian kids from writing great plays or crafting inspiring works of marble. So maybe Aristotle has a thing or two for our youth as well?
The other big theme in the original leadership circuit was arete. This sometimes gets translated by the English word ‘virtue’, but that word now is associated with a much narrower sense of moral purity than arete originally meant. ‘Strengths’ is probably a better contemporary word to express what the Greeks were getting at, which is just as well as Strengths-based leadership development is a hot topic in the work I do with leaders.
According to Aristotle, arete can be developed, just as artisanal crafts or martial skills could be honed. He devoted one of his best known works, the Nicomachean Ethics to developing a theory of how a person could develop their practices of leadership and live the good life.
In the Nicomachean Ethics Aristotle wrote that we develop virtuous character by the cultivation and exercise of disciplined habits. But Aristotle was not some austere disciplinarian. For him the practises of enjoying nature and music were just as important as working on the moderation of our drives to excessive consumption. For him discipline was also a matter of balance.
What can we take from a Nicomachean approach to arete in our busy modern lives? Well according to the old guy, the pursuit of a virtuous life required three things – dedication, discipline and design.
Dedication is about the mental commitment to the good life. In days gone by we might have recommended reading ‘improving’ books of the lives of worthy characters. Nowadays people use tools like affirmation and visualisation to create a compelling vision of the life they feel drawn to. These are powerful techniques, and just another instance of where modern neuroscience and cognitive psychology has come full circle to the wisdom of the original academies.
Discipline is simply about the repeated practice of virtuous activity. The modern sport of weight training is a good analogy here. If you want to bench press one hundred kilos, you’re not going to start by loading up two plates on either side of a twenty-kilo bar and lying under it for your first go. No, you might even start by pressing an empty bar. Then you might add five kilos either side at a time. Pretty soon you’ll reach a point of failure. But when you can do a few sets of six to eight repetitions at that weight, you’ll load on a few more kilos and so you’ll progress. You will probably find you make rapid and noticeable progress in the early weeks and months, and the gains seem to take more effort and longer between each increase, but after a year of discipline, maybe sooner, perhaps later, you’ll be pressing the magic hundred kilos and wondering what goal to set next.
So, discipline, for Aristotle as much as for us today, was about the consistent repeated practise of virtuous activity, with the idea that the more you practise, the more challenging you can make the activities and the more ingrained the arete becomes. After a while, Aristotle said, the dedication and discipline combine to create virtuous habits – which is also precisely what modern science has found.
Design is the third element and this, if not exactly a short cut, is certainly a way to optimise the chances of your success with the dedication-discipline formula. Aristotelian design was recently ‘discovered’ by leading behavioural economists and popularised as ‘nudge theory’.
How can design help you to achieve the sort of personal excellence that Aristotle, Dale Carnegie and Tony Robbins were all selling on DVD box sets? Well, here are a few examples. First, if good quality sleep is your goal then adopt a few ‘sleep rules’ such as ‘no tech in the bedroom’; ‘no caffeine after lunch’ or ‘no arguments in the last two hours of the evening’. Perhaps fitness is the area you want to nudge, so put your trainers and running kit by the bedroom door at night, pay a whole year’s gym membership upfront and record daily progress. Maybe doomscrolling is the vice you want to crack, so design for better habits by removing all notifications, taking the app off the device for a while and having a list of more interesting short tasks you can use to fill the time.
Design, discipline and dedication are the steps along the path to a better life and better leadership. And that’s been true for a very long time…
Simon Nash is an experienced leader, speaker, and writer with over 30 years dedicated to examining the intersection of people and ethics in the workplace. Renowned for his innovative and disruptive perspectives on the dynamics of people and work, Simon has garnered numerous accolades throughout his career. His approach blends deep ethical considerations with practical strategies, enabling businesses to address growth challenges effectively and sustainably.
One way Simon fosters leadership growth is through board offsites, as they provide leaders with the opportunity to step away from the daily tasks and engage in open dialogue. This environment promotes the exchange of ideas, enhances coaching relationships, and underscores the organisation’s commitment to developing its leaders.
Law At Work plays an essential role in providing expert guidance to businesses, particularly in areas such as leadership development, coaching and mentoring, and organisational culture. With a focus on clear, commercial advice, Law At Work’s multidisciplinary team has extensive experience in all areas of people, safety, data, and leadership development, enabling businesses to propel forward.
