In 1513, Niccolò Machiavelli was out of a job and out of favor, writing at a small farm outside Florence.
In one short chapter of The Prince, he asked a question every leader meets sooner or later. Is it better to be loved, or feared?
The Prince · Part 2, Keeping it · Idea 5 of 12
Feared, Never Hated
Machiavelli on whether to be loved or feared. From The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli, 1513.
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In The Prince, written in 1513, Machiavelli argued that a leader should ideally be both loved and feared. Forced to choose, fear is safer, because love lasts only while it pays. He pointed to Hannibal, whose army never rebelled, and to Scipio, whose troops rose up in Spain.
Be firm enough to be respected, and fair enough never to be hated. Practical advice: set one clear limit at work, and keep it the same for everyone, every time.
Well established · checked against 3 sourcesMake it yours.
Make it your step
Pick one limit at work and say it plainly, once.
Ask your council
“I’m too easygoing with the people I manage, and they’ve started to take advantage. How do I get firmer?”
Sources.
- The Prince, translated by W. K. Marriott, Niccolò Machiavelli (Project Gutenberg), 1513The text
- The Prince, Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2026
- Niccolò Machiavelli, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2019
The Prince, in 12 ideas.
- 1See It As It IsMachiavelli on how people really live, not how they ought to
- 2Catch the Fever EarlyMachiavelli on dealing with trouble while it is still small
- 3Change Has Lukewarm FriendsMachiavelli on why change has fierce enemies and lukewarm friends
- 4Build Banks in Calm WeatherMachiavelli on fortune as a flooding river, and the banks you can build
- 5Feared, Never HatedMachiavelli on whether to be loved or feared
- 6Be the Lion and the FoxMachiavelli on the lion that misses traps and the fox that cannot fight
- 7Make the Decision StickMachiavelli on why leaders who waver end up despised
- 8Bad News All at OnceMachiavelli on doing hard things at once and good things slowly
- 9Judged by Your CircleMachiavelli on why people judge a leader by the people around them
- 10Ask Widely, Decide AloneMachiavelli on taking advice without losing your own mind
- 11Get Off the FenceMachiavelli on why staying neutral rarely keeps you safe
- 12Fight in Your Own ArmorMachiavelli on why borrowed strength lets you down
Read the rest in Counsel.
Feared, Never Hated and the other 11 ideas of The Prince, a minute at a time.
Download on theApp StoreEvery idea is drawn from the public-domain text, and its names, dates and quotes are checked against the sources listed with it. The paintings are made for Counsel; they show the scene, not a historical record.
