Recently, a Chick-fil-A owner temporarily closed his restaurant for five months due to renovation. Instead of laying off his workers, he surprised his employees by offering to pay them during the renovation period and even giving them a raise. In a conventional view of business, this would seem like a bad idea. However, could this display of generosity actually be a good thing? Similarly, Xenophon’s Cyrus often acts generously in situations where a typical leader might not. Cyrus’ actions demonstrate that he believes the long term benefits of generosity are better than any short term rewards obtained by frugality. Cyrus shows that generosity inspires one’s followers to greater devotion, gratitude, and ultimately love towards their leader. The Education of Cyrus stresses the importance of generosity with one’s time, wealth, and affections.
The first way Cyrus is generous is with his time. He is eager to listen to people and readily willing to explain himself to them. He gives his people an open invitation to come to him with their requests, saying, “…if anyone wishes to say something, let him speak.” By listening to his people, Cyrus is showing that he cares about what they think and has their interests at …show more content…
This is the area in which he excels the most. Cyrus delights in gaining the love of his people and is eager to please them, declaring that he is “thirsty-to do favors for [them].” Humans are naturally inclined to love those who love them. Cyrus takes advantage of this principle by making his love evident to his people, which in turn they reciprocate. Jesus Christ was a historical example of a leader who was generous with his affections. He is revered and followed by millions of people two thousand years later, because of the love they believe he showed to the world. By looking at the response elicited by the love these leaders show, one can conclude that greater generosity, produces love in one’s
The first way Cyrus is generous is with his time. He is eager to listen to people and readily willing to explain himself to them. He gives his people an open invitation to come to him with their requests, saying, “…if anyone wishes to say something, let him speak.” By listening to his people, Cyrus is showing that he cares about what they think and has their interests at …show more content…
This is the area in which he excels the most. Cyrus delights in gaining the love of his people and is eager to please them, declaring that he is “thirsty-to do favors for [them].” Humans are naturally inclined to love those who love them. Cyrus takes advantage of this principle by making his love evident to his people, which in turn they reciprocate. Jesus Christ was a historical example of a leader who was generous with his affections. He is revered and followed by millions of people two thousand years later, because of the love they believe he showed to the world. By looking at the response elicited by the love these leaders show, one can conclude that greater generosity, produces love in one’s