Demosthenes was a spoiled rich kid with issues and his health was poor. He also had a terrible stutter and was painfully shy. When his parents died, his relatives spent all the family fortune and left.
What did the author of an article on the management-issues.com learn from a lawyer in ancient Athens?
He identified what he had to do. To punish those who had ripped him off he needed to sue them in open court. The skills of oratory, legal argument, and networking were clearly the components he needed to succeed, but he possessed none of these skills inherently. So he learned them. Some things come easier to some people, but skills can be taught.
Work very hard and succeed
The exercises of Demosthenes are legendary. He developed volume and voice control by speaking into the wind. He overcame pronunciation problems by speaking with pebbles in his mouth. He became more courageous by approaching Athens’ best and brightest.
Eventually, he won. The publicity of his victory at court destroyed his uncles and made his reputation as a lawyer. He was widely recognized as the greatest public speaker in the city.
Like many of us, he assumed that his skills and success in one area naturally translated into others. He was a great lawyer, but a lousy general and it cost him. He also created political enemies, resulting in expulsion from Athens and suicide. That’s part of the lesson, too.
-jk-