Cicero

Marcus Tullius Cicero warned us over 2,000 years ago—and we’re still making the same six mistakes. Maybe it’s time we finally paid attention.

The Roman orator, Marcus Tullius Cicero, lived from 106 to 43 B.C. I read the following quote by him and wondered if human beings ever learn their lessons. I wondered if we are condemned to continually repeat the past because we refuse to learn from the past. What applies on a much larger global scale also applies on a personal level. Do we condemn ourselves by refusing to learn from our past mistakes? When we begin to question ourselves, we open the door to change and improvement. It takes heaps of courage to dare to question oneself and what one believes. Often times that shakes our very foundation. Yet, in shaking aour very foundation, we may discover the truth.

Six mistakes mankind keeps making century after century: Believing that personal gain is made by crushing others; Worrying about things that cannot be changed or corrected; Insisting that a thing is impossible because we cannot accomplish it; Refusing to set aside trivial preferences; Neglecting development and refinement of the mind; Attempting to compel others to believe and live as we do. Marcus Tullius Cicero

Points to Ponder:

1. Which of Cicero’s six mistakes do you find most relevant in your own life today?
2. What “trivial preferences” might be keeping you from deeper self-awareness or connection?
3. What would it look like to truly refine your mind—not just fill it?
4. Is there a belief or habit you’ve never dared to question? What if you did?
5. Are you forcing others to believe or live as you do—even subtly? Why?