I’m pretty secure in my job right now. I’m helping a lot and making myself useful in critical conditions at the restaurant. I’ happy to have a little time off from it right now to write this reflection.

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Spaced Repetition

Notes

Foucault, Prime minister

• Kings had ultimate power to revoke the innocence of anybody in their court. One nobleman was sentenced to imprisonment in the most isolated prison in France. Essentially, the king had the reserved right to “get rid of” individuals who outshined their master.
• Outshine the king, and you get imprisoned.
• Stay in your lane, and avoid that pitfall.
• Foucault, prime minister of France under Louis IVX, was imprisoned for having made the kind insecure after a lavish party was thrown in his honor. The prime minister was replaced the next day by another person.

Galileo

• Galileo became much more powerful by focusing his discovery about jupiter on the medicis. Because their name was tied with jupiter’s power, he offered them the discovery and recieved huge recognition from them for linking them with the discoveries he made.

The consequences of vanity

• Outshining the master by displaying talents and skills and increasing your own reputation is the worst mistake to make of all.
• Vanity can cause problems because elevated skills and charm can cause insecurity in your superiors.
  • This becomes crucial in cases where you’re being promoted — you still have superiors over you, and being overly confident and vain can be your undoing.
  • Consider the Japanese peasant-promoted-to-politician who placed a statue of himself wearing sandals — a sign of nobility. He was sentenced to death and took his own life as a consequence of his hubris.

The Benefits of Humility