This forum is about excellence! It is about the idea of describing and identifying excellence both in clinical practice but also in every facet of our lives for the purpose of living well before God, before others, and even before an audience of one - ourselves. This idea of what it means to pursue the good life is as old as mankind. The ancient psalmist penned the words, "So teach us to number our days that we may gain a heart of wisdom" (Ps 90:12, ESV). Aristotle continued the conversation by describing eudaimonia as our chief end and ultimate good. The authors of the Westminster Catechism add a theological spin by pointing to God as the chief source and goal of our happiness. Aristotle argues that a means by which we pursue eudaimonia is what he called arete - or excellence.
Now, when we talk about developing excellence it is initially hard to decide or define objectively what excellence looks like. We often are left with the idea that we know it when we see it. The semantic range of the word in English muddies our understanding as well. Often the way that we use the word excellence conveys some subjective valuation. We say, "That was an excellent steak." Meaning, I really enjoyed eating that steak. It was the perfect flavor and texture for my palate. But where I like a medium-rare ribeye, someone else may prefer a well-done filet. (I don’t understand the need to cook all of the flavor and texture out of a fine piece of meat.) To them, the pink-centered, marbled cut of meat can better be described as something abhorrent rather than excellent.
But the ancients had a different idea of excellence. Arete had the idea not just of quality, but of full-bodied fulfillment of purpose. Applied to people, it referred to virtue. So, when we talk about defining and developing excellence personally, we are entering the idea of ethics and morality - that is how do we determine the right thing to do. Excellence would be living and working in accordance with that ethic. It is the character and characteristics of right living.
The ideas of virtue and morality are the subjects of many books. It seems that philosophers from Plato to Jordan Peterson have been discussing these ideas of right and proper living for millennia. I will not attempt to pontificate here with some claim of new thoughts or revelation. But in the next few posts, I would like to discuss some basics of morality and virtue - namely what are the basic moral theories. And what are the basic virtues. I think that in exploring these ideas, we will better be able to understand what it means to live with excellence.
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