Regard as your most faithful friends, not those who praise everything you say or do, but those who criticize your mistakes.
IsocratesRead
Abhor flatterers as you would deceivers; for both, if trusted, injure those who trust them. If you admit as friends men who seek your favor for the lowest ends, your life will be lacking in friends who will risk your displeasure for the highest good.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Beware of those who flatter you, as their motives may be insincere and harmful.
Isocrates emphasizes the importance of discerning genuine friendships versus superficial relationships. He warns that those who seek your favor for their own selfish ends can lead to a lack of true friendships, as they may prioritize their own interests over your well-being. Genuine friends are those who are willing to challenge you and put your best interests at heart, even at the risk of discomfort or disapproval.
Themes
FriendshipTrustFlatterySincerityWisdom
In practice
Example use cases
During a motivational speech about building authentic relationships.
More from Isocrates
All quotes →But I marvel when I observe these men setting themselves up as instructors of youth who cannot see that they are applying the analogy of an art with hard and fast rules to a creative process
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Spend your leisure time in cultivating an ear attentive to discourse, for in this way you will find that you learn with ease what others have found out with difficulty.
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And let no one suppose that I claim that just living can be taught for, in a word, I hold that there does not exist an art of the kind which can implant sobriety and justice into depraved natures. Nevertheless, I do think that the study of political discourse can help more than any other thing to stimulate and form such qualities of character
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It is more important to know where you are going than to get there quickly. Do not mistake activity for achievement. Remember that there is nothing stable in human affairs, therefore avoid undue elation in prosperity or undue depression in adversity.
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Of all our possessions, wisdom alone is immortal.
IsocratesRead
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