10 strategy maxims from the 1600s

La Rochefoucauld wrote tweet-y aphorisms 340 years ago. His book Maxims is on my top 10 ever. Here are some of its core lessons.

Clarity over intellect

"An enthusiastic simpleton is more persuasive than a silver-tongued orator."

If you can't master your words, master the clarity attached to them. Powerful if you're not a native speaker. Simplicity always wins.

Gut over mind

"A spontaneous expression is often more accurate than the most studied effort."

When reviewing work, don't ask what you think. Ask how it feels. Bodily responses speak volumes. Your mind rationalises them. It's human nature.

Craft takes stamina

"Mind cannot play the part of heart for long."

Which parts of the job do you like? End product? End result? Process? Whatever it is, stamina is how you get to the good stuff. Build yours.

Choose your influences

"It is harder to avoid being influenced than to influence others."

Culture shapes influences. Influences shape you. Some clients glorify EBI. Others, differentiation. Effectiveness can take many shapes. Embrace this.

Flaws are advantages

"Some bad qualities make great talents."

Accepting your flaws helps you grow. Distraction can lead to creativity. Control can lead to reliability. This takes self-awareness. Humility. Time.

Unforgettable over irreplaceable

"The man person who thinks he they can do without the world errs. The man person who thinks the world can do without him them is in still greater error."

You can feel like an island. Never behave like one. Be unforgettable instead. Show up. Add value. Make people feel good. Consistently.

Boredom is a signal

"We can forgive people who bore us, but never those whom we bore."

If audiences don't respond to our work, we don't blame them. We say the work needs work. We rarely think of our clients this way. We should.

Adversity unlocks trust

"Prosperity or adversity discloses our virtues and our vices, as a candle reveals various objects."

Culture is how we deal with extremes. Good and bad. Victories. Failures. Curve balls. Mistakes. Intense times can build trust. Use them effectively.

Diversify your vanities

"What we dislike in the vanity of others is that it wounds our own."

Vanity is not evil. It's a tool. It breeds mental variety. Divergence. Distinctiveness. Don't fight vanity. Collect as many as possible.

Find an enemy

"Our enemies judge us more accurately than we judge ourselves."

Counter-points are a gift. They sharpen your mental knife. AI doesn't let you grow. It always agrees with you. Enemies are the exact opposite.