Epictetus and the Banquet of life

If you remain focused and really put in the effort to live a good life, then opportunities will present themselves to you. It is almost inevitable. Opportunities that you never imagined possible only months prior.

Sometimes it’s good to take advantage of every opportunity that presents itself. Other times it is important to take a step back, to see your overall dream picture, and realize that passing up on an opportunity is a better choice. It can be a difficult decision, but better for your overall goals.

For example, an awesome late night networking event may present itself to you, but you know that right now your overall goal is to perform well at a new and/ or current job. Staying out late, on a weekday, will definitely hurt your productivity the following day.

As awesome and fun as the networking opportunity sounds, the correct choice is to pass it by and wait for it to present itself to you at a later time. Preferably once you are accustomed to your job, and can afford to show up to work on 4 hours of sleep, because you already have the hang of everything.

On the other hand, if you’ve been at your job for years and know all the ins and outs, maybe it is a poor idea to pass on the awesome networking event. It could present more benefits to you than a regular well rested work day. Showing up with less than 4 hours of sleep, might be a reasonable trade off for one day.

It’s up to you to analyze your current circumstances and take into consideration the overall picture of what you are trying to do.

Here’s what Epictetus has to say about it:

“Remember to conduct yourself in life as if at a banquet. As something being passed around comes to you, reach out your hand and take a moderate helping. Does it pass you by? Don’t stop it. It hasn’t yet come? Don’t burn in desire for it, but wait until it arrives in front of you. Act this way with children, a spouse, toward position, with wealth – one day it will make you worthy of a banquet with the gods.”

-Epictetus