"Remember that you're an actor in a play, and the character is determined by the Playwright. Your job is to act well for your given part. But to choose it belongs to another."

In the year 41 AD, the Roman Emperor Caligula was assassinated, and the palace was in total chaos. The Praetorian Guard swept through the halls and found a man hiding behind a curtain.

It was Claudius, Caligula's uncle. Claudius was fifty years old, and he had a limp and a severe stutter. His family considered him an embarrassment. He didn't want to be emperor, he just wanted to sit in the library and write history books.

The guards pulled him out from behind the curtain and proclaimed him the new Emperor of Rome. Claudius was terrified. The role was forced on him. He had zero desire to rule, but the universe handed him the script, so he decided to read the lines.

He didn't sulk or quit. He took the job seriously, and he turned out to be a surprisingly effective leader. He built massive new aqueducts for the city, a major new port, and stabilized the empire after years of madness. He played the part the universe assigned him perfectly.

Epictetus tells us that life is a stage. You don't get to be the casting director. You don't pick your parents. You don't pick your genetics. You don't pick the macro-economic conditions you graduate into. The Playwright handles all of that.

Your job is incredibly narrow. You just have to hit your marks. If the universe casts you as a king, be a good king. If it casts you as a beggar, be a good beggar. If you spend your whole life standing on stage complaining that you wanted a different role, you ruin the entire performance.

Errors & Corrections

• Don't fight the casting. You want to be the CEO. The company needs you to be a junior developer. If you act like a bitter CEO, you fail. Act like the best junior developer in the building.
• Don't rewrite the script. We waste time trying to control things outside our power. You can't control the weather or the market. Learn your lines and control your own character.
• Don't phone it in. A supporting role is still a role. Even if your current job or situation feels small, it requires your full effort. The play doesn't work if the background actors quit.

Applications to Modern Life

Work

Your department gets restructured. You are moved from a creative project to a boring maintenance team. You feel insulted. The universe just handed you a new script. Read it. Fix the bugs. Write the documentation. Make that maintenance team run like a Swiss watch.

Leadership

Your company gets acquired. You go from being the founder and CEO to being a regional vice president for a massive corporation. Your ego is bruised. Drop the ego. You have a new role. Lead your specific region with total dedication.

Athleticism & Sport

You get injured. You go from the star forward to riding the bench for the rest of the season. Your new role is supporting the team. Bring water. Call out plays. Cheer for the rookie who took your spot. Be the best bench player in the league.

Politics

Your preferred candidate loses the election. You're now in the minority party. You don't get to pass your laws. Your new role is the loyal opposition. You audit the new policies. You organize your local community. You play the part you actually have, not the part you want.

Social Media

You want to be the main character. You want the viral tweet and the millions of followers. You're cast as a regular user with two hundred followers. That's fine. Add value to those two hundred people. You don't need an arena to do good work.

Interpersonal Relationships

A parent gets sick. You suddenly become a full-time caregiver. You didn't ask for this. It ruins your five-year plan. It's exhausting. But the Playwright handed you the script. It's your job now. Perform the duty with grace and patience.

Maxims

• Read the script.
• Hit your marks.
• Play the part you have.

In-depth Concepts

Hypokritēs (Actor)

In ancient Greece a hypokritēs was just someone who answered or acted on a stage. It didn't mean "hypocrite" in the modern sense. It meant a professional who knew how to interpret a script and deliver a flawless performance.

Oikonomos (The Manager)

The Stoics believed the universe was managed by a rational force. This force organizes the entire cosmos. It places everyone exactly where they need to be for the whole system to function. You trust the Manager's casting decisions.