Philotimo

George Koukis Speaks Personally on
Doing What Is 'Right' without Regard to Cost

While there are countless examples of Philotimo in business, for the purposes of making this relatively untranslatable concept crystal clear, I will use an illustration from my homeland Greece.

The year was 480 B.C. The enormous army of the Persian Empire—150,000 strong—under King Xerxes, supported by its immense navy, was approaching Greece’s eastern shore, planning to avenge its defeat at the hands of the Athenians at the Battle of Marathon during the first Persian invasion of Greece 10 years earlier. To advance into Greece, it would need to arrive through the narrow, mountainous coastal pass of Thermopylae.

Apprised of their attackers’ plans and knowing the great size of the enemy forces, Leonidas—King of Sparta—assembled an army of 6,000 to 7,000 soldiers en route to Thermopylae from an alliance of Greek city states—some with questionable allegiances—to thwart the invasion. Among Leonidas’ ranks, 300 of the soldiers were full citizens of Sparta—its most elite fighting corps—known both for their discipline and military prowess.

After two days of ferocious battle, Leonidas’ troops had dealt the Persians terrible losses, and the king’s plan to prevent the Persians from advancing through the pass at Thermopylae appeared successful—with  Greek victory imminent. Soon, however, the Trachinian traitor Ephialtes conspired with the Persians to guide the enemy forces through a narrow and treacherous mountain path that allowed them an entry point for their attack and invasion, outflanking the Greek forces.

Encircled by the enemy, Leonidas dismissed members of his force—allowing them to leave and seek safety—while reaffirming that he and his Spartans would stay and fight. While most of the allies ultimately fled, just over 1,000 remained to guard their retreat—and fight to the death. Virtually all ultimately perished at the hands of the Persians.

So if you ask the question, “Did Leonidas and his small band of defenders ‘win’ this battle?” the obvious answer would seem to be that they did not, as they met their deaths on the battlefield against a far larger opposing force. Yet it is my contention that the answer is not so nearly straightforward; rather, it is dependent on one’s mindset and how one frames the story.

In the moment, on this third day of battle, this fierce and noble group came nowhere close to beating the multitudes of Persians stacked against them from a military perspective.

Yet, the choices and actions of these few men defined for an entire nation the value of honor and sacrifice in the name of what is “right”—with a call to Philotimo that has been associated with Greek culture ever since. But they achieved more still—unimaginably more. They achieved true greatness.

The choices made in this moment in time have informed the thinking and moral compass of generations around the globe. The story is captured and retold in film even today, to audiences who are viscerally moved more than 2000 years later, to witness historic individuals choose what is right and honorable, knowing that this choice will almost certainly cost them their lives.

And what did Leonidas and his Spartan fighting corps stand against, in this dramatic illustration of Philotimo? They stood in opposition to a force bent on conquering and domination for its own sake, motivations identical to what we see in so many of the seemingly unsolvable tragedies we witness around the globe today.

So in light of what we see that this group actually accomplished by virtue of their selfless acts of honor, I am of the opinion that this concept of Philotimo must become part of the fiber of who we are. It must become so integral to our thoughts and actions that it pervades our lives and our cultures. Only then will we ensure that the honor, dignity, respect, protection, and compassion we strive to demonstrate—as individuals, communities, business, and nations—will be returned to us just as freely in a world that we—through our diligent efforts and cultivated habits—have transformed for the better.

 Practical Application for Ethical Leadership

Redefining Success with a Focus on 'Right' over Expediency or Gain

Seek integrity in your home, your work, your play, and your world and pursue honor, no matter the price. While easy to say and write about, living a life characterized by Philotimo in its truest sense is one of the most challenging, convicting, and demanding choices we can make as individuals, business leaders, and as citizens of a global society. It flies in the face of prevailing wisdom centered only on self interest and amassing wealth. It is a sober understanding of risk, coupled with the courage to act in all things with honor, even if that decision requires paying the highest of prices.

As illustrated in the story of Leonidas and his fierce warriors at Thermopylae, Philotimo is a concept with which Greeks—throughout much of history—have been inextricably linked. Often thought of as a uniquely Greek concept, Philotimo has been evidenced in much more recent times, and scenarios that more closely resemble—for most of us—the challenges and opportunities we face today.

So continuing in our use of Greek examples that demonstrate this powerful underlying concept, we fast forward to the turn of the century. In the early 1900s, more than 350,000 Greeks emigrated from their homeland to America in search of a world with richer opportunity. Most arrived at their destination penniless and uneducated. Yet unlike many, if not most, among today’s driven and “upwardly-focused” workforce, Greek immigrants during this moment in history were not working with the sole aim of advancing themselves.

Thoroughly instilled in them since childhood, Philotimo manifested itself in nearly everything they did. In both their industry and their work ethic, outsiders saw what appeared to be an almost innate need to uphold both personal and community honor as an integral component of working to better themselves. And this orientation—this “grounding,” if you will, in Philotimo—superseded and authored their unwritten rules of engagement in matters that remain familiar to us today—matters such as making money, “climbing a corporate ladder,” or becoming powerful in one’s own right.

And so it is examples like this one—and many that are similar throughout history—that bring to the fore what is for us a question of the greatest relevance today.

As we pursue ethical leadership, we must question and challenge both the assertion and the assumption that actions driven by a focus on what is “right,” over what is expedient, cannot (or are exceedingly unlikely to) also result in personal advancement or gain.

In other words, looking through the pages of history at this story of of Philotimo, we must examine this question: were these Greek immigrants, so thoroughly imbued with Philotimo—a concept entirely defined by choosing what is “right” over what is expedient or personally advantageous—also able to better their own situations?

And the answer to this fundamental question is a definitive and resounding—if surprising by today’s standards—”yes.”

For the entrepreneurial actors in this story, it required just one generation before they claimed the very top positions in both educational achievement and income in cities across the United States—which at the time was genuinely regarded as “the land of opportunity.” And they made these impressive—perhaps almost Herculean—advancements working first for what was “right”—working to ensure the safety, protection, well-being, and advancement of their families and communities in Greece.

So even with both feet physically planted in the land widely known as the place of greatest freedom and opportunity to better oneself personally, they maintained a moral and ethical center focused on something far greater than their own individual advancement.

In this historic demonstration of Philotimo—just one among many throughout history—their most powerful motivator was honor rather than self. In 1905 alone, this group sent more than four million dollars home to their families—a figure that equates to more than 103 million dollars today.

So as ethical leaders, history demands that we not overlook what so distinguishes this story and others like it from so much of what we witness today—namely, that the priority this group placed on what was “right” and honorable ultimately brought them substantial and varied material rewards and advancement in status—gains that were the byproducts, rather than the primary focus, of their efforts.

Though the exact definition varies, one underlying concept remains: do the right thing, regardless of cost.

So how is an ancient philosophy relevant today, as we face global blights that seem too intractable to dislodge? It is our contention that Philotimo has never been more relevant. We believe that beyond the scope of individual impact, businesses founded and run on the principles of honor and character and ethics as a first priority rather than an afterthought are those that will change the lives of the employees who work for them, the communities that house them, and ultimately, the ever-more connected global expanses brought together by today’s technology and our ability to move about the planet.

Tomorrow’s leaders must believe and act on the certainty that financial success can and will stand alongside ethical behavior and leadership. We believe as business and thought leaders it is incumbent on us to act as we know we should, and that when we do, “success” will come to be defined not only by financial and resource gain, but by the ethical and honorable means by which those gains were made.

With authority and influence come countless opportunities to direct change. We can build up, or burn out, our greatest resources—the people who depend on, look to, and trust us—in an instant. As long as our voracious appetites for power, material wealth, and gain dwarf all else and dictate our decisions, we will perpetuate discontent, fear, and acts of self preservation in our boardrooms. When we can look no farther than the next fiscal quarter, we will never see the real gains we could have made—the changes we could have brought about—in the world around us.

Leading businesses capable of world-changing impact based on the principles of Philotimo will require much of us. It will require our best as business leaders, which will inspire the best in the leaders around us. This fundamental change in paradigm has the power to uproot some of society’s most ingrained, intrinsic, and flawed ideas of progress and success. It is our moment, our responsibility, and indeed should be our honor, to shape the world for tomorrow, and for a thousand and a million tomorrows to come.

By changing the way we define success, we change both how we succeed and the magnitude of our success.

As leaders, we must have no excuses. If we feel the imperative to affect positive change in our world, we must reexamine how we’re living in it. Lead your business in a way that encourages honesty in each transaction. Reward integrity in the office and in the field. Take every opportunity to model and extend the principles of Philotimo to every employee, client, and partner—from C-suite executives to interns.

You will disrupt the seemingly unstoppable status quo and transform what has always been into what could be. Your “success” will not depend solely on amassing more money or racking up more awards, or on having your people higher on the corporate ladder than anyone else. You will know you are successful when your people tear down the ladder, build a bridge, and change the world.