“In plain English, we might say that a Stoic must balance the following: what is useful to the world and society, and what your strengths and interests are.”

The idea of “duty” is brought up often in ancient Stoic texts. Marcus Aurelius spoke often of it, and, being the Emperor of Rome who would have clearly preferred to solely be a philosopher, it certainly would make sense why he felt compelled to regularly remind himself of the importance of duty. But why is duty so important to a Stoic? And what should a Stoic consider in choosing one’s duty?

What is “duty”?

We might think of duty as one’s work. Our day job is absolutely a significant part of what we contribute to the world. However, duty extends beyond your 9-to-5. It also includes all your relationships, including your personal relationships, work relationships, and relationships with all members of your community and the world. For most of us, our life is broken up into our work, partner, children, and relationships with everyone else.

Your work is your contribution to upholding the society that we have built, including all of the benefits that come with that. The relationships we have with our partner and children give us the opportunity to flourish, but equally as important, give us the opportunity to guide them in their flourishing. Finally, we owe it to the rest of the world to uphold justice on their behalf, treat them kindly, and live in harmony with them.

Duty from a Stoic perspective

Although we are fortunate for the most part in that we get to “choose” our duty, in a sense, our duty chooses us. Recall the main axiom of Stoicism: to “live according to Nature”. “Nature” can be broken down into “Mother Nature”, “human nature”, and “your personal nature”. In other words, we must be aligned with reality, fit in with the world around us, and feel good in our own skin.

“Live according to Mother Nature” just means that we must live in accordance with the laws of objective reality. This is science, broadly speaking. It is not Stoic at all to stop breathing, ignoring your need for oxygen!

“Live according to human nature” means to live according to our shared human psychology, existing harmoniously with the community and world around us. Human beings are social creatures, even the most introverted among us. A Stoic does not withdraw from the world to live alone in the woods while only serving themselves.

Finally, “live according to your personal nature” is where who you are as an individual is considered. We all have different personalities, strengths, and weaknesses. Computer programming may be a great job for an introvert, while it may make an extrovert deeply unhappy.

Choosing your duty

With the above inputs explained, we can now finally address the question of how to choose your duty as a Stoic. First, it must be aligned with objective reality. Second, it must contribute to the world around you, creating a better world for every citizen of the world. It must be useful to society; it cannot be considered a “duty” if it only benefits you. Third, it must align with your individual personality and preferably take advantage of your individual strengths.

Of course, it is very difficult to practically balance these three. One may be interested in something but incompetent in that area. In plain English, we might say that a Stoic must balance the following: what is useful to the world and society, and what your strengths and interests are. Perfect practice makes perfect, of course, and skills can be developed over time. But let’s circle back to Marcus Aurelius as an example.

He was raised from birth to be emperor of Rome. His skills were developed over the years by his mentors, and when it was time for him to step up and become emperor, he was well-prepared. Again, it was clear that his interests lay mostly in being a philosopher, but he understood that he was the best person to become emperor, even if it wasn’t exactly what he wanted.

And although he had a “9-to-5” duty, like the rest of us, he still found time to chase his interests in the way of philosophy. That is, we may not enjoy our work duties, but that does not mean that we can’t find time to chase our interests and passions on the side. Fortunately, a lot of times such “passion projects” don’t take away from the rest of your life, but rather add to it. Would Marcus Aurelius have been a better emperor had he not also been a philosopher?

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Brandon is most well-known for his podcast, The Strong Stoic Podcast, where he discusses philosophical ideas both solo and with guests. He also coaches individuals to help them be their best selves, writes articles, plays music, manages projects, and several other things.

 

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