“Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and others have greatness thrust upon them.” —William Shakespeare
I keep hearing Chevy Chase reading, “The Night Before Christmas”—yes, I know it’s August—just a fraction of it, really…
The children were nestled all snug in their beds; While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads; And mamma in her ‘kerchief, and I in my cap, Had just settled our brains for a long winter’s nap…
I don’t know. Maybe some kids had visions of sugar plums dancing in their heads. I had dreams of greatness dancing in mine—wild, audacious, and epic.
The children were nestled all snug in their beds; While visions of greatness danced in their heads.
And I know I’m not the only one.
Dreams of greatness. I don’t think everyone has them, or at least more people than not have the stuffing beaten out of them by the realities of life and circumstance before they get their running shoes tied.
But for some, the dreams persist.
Greatness is fickle. It embeds itself, as Shakespeare said, in the DNA of some; reveals itself in the achievements of others; and hunts down a few like a hound chasing a rabbit, then pounces on them.
History Stands Witness
“Some are born great…” 👉 Alexander the Great
Born into royalty as the son of King Philip II of Macedon, Alexander inherited a powerful kingdom and received an elite education under none other than Aristotle. From a young age, greatness was expected of him. He fulfilled those expectations spectacularly by creating one of the largest empires in history by age 30.
“…some achieve greatness…” 👉 Abraham Lincoln
Born into poverty in a Kentucky log cabin, Lincoln had little formal education and no powerful family ties. Through self-education, resilience, and moral vision, he rose to become the 16th U.S. President and a defining leader in American history. His face is etched in America’s most famous stone, along with three other significant American presidents—a giant among giants.
“…and others have greatness thrust upon them.” 👉 Winston Churchill
England had a love-hate, on-again, off-again relationship with the man who would become maybe the most important world leader of the 20th Century.
Though Churchill had a political career before WWII, and though he was born to a certain level of privilege, his greatness did no emerge organically. It was the unexpected crisis of Nazi aggression that thrust him into the role of Britain’s Prime Minister. His leadership during the darkest hours of the war defined his legacy. Oh, he had aspirations. And he had innate qualities. But his greatness was born in the fire of urgent necessity. He wasn’t built like a superhero, but he had the fire, the fortitude, and he possessed the keen mind, sharp wit, and golden tongue to make him one of history’s greatest leaders.
Fiction Follows the Example of History
“Some are born great…” 👉 Aragorn
(The Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien) Aragorn is born into greatness as the heir of Isildur, destined to reclaim the throne of Gondor. Though he lives in obscurity for much of his life, his lineage and birthright make him royalty by blood—“great” from the start, whether he embraces it or not.
“…some achieve greatness…” 👉 Jane Eyre
(Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë) An orphaned, impoverished girl with no social standing, Jane rises to the limelight through sheer integrity, intelligence, and perseverance. Her moral strength and tenacious self-respect win her both independence and love. Her greatness is entirely self-made.
“…and others have greatness thrust upon them.” 👉 Katniss Everdeen
(The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins) Katniss never seeks fame or power. She volunteers to save her sister and survives by instinct and grit. Her symbolic role in the rebellion is imposed upon her by others, and she becomes the reluctant face of a revolution. She achieves greatness she neither asked for nor desired.
Mythology Musters the Same Pattern
“Some are born great…” 👉 Hercules (Heracles)
(Greek Mythology) Son of Zeus and the mortal Alcmene, Hercules is born with divine strength and a heroic destiny. His entire life is marked by legendary feats (the Twelve Labors) and divine purpose. Greatness is in his blood. Even his struggles are epic.
“…some achieve greatness…” 👉 Odysseus
(Greek Mythology) A mortal king of Ithaca, Odysseus isn’t born with divine powers, but he achieves greatness through cunning, resilience, and leadership. His long, perilous journey home from Troy in The Odyssey solidifies him as one of mythology’s great human heroes.
“…and others have greatness thrust upon them.” 👉 Perseus
(Greek Mythology) Perseus is cast into danger from birth, hidden away to avoid a deadly prophecy. Later, he’s sent on a seemingly impossible quest to slay Medusa. This was not his idea! But! He rises to the occasion, performing heroic deeds because somebody had to do it.
Any Way You Get There is a Hard Road
Were you born great?
Are you little Alexander with royal heritage, the silver spoon crammed in your mouth, all of the comforts and advantages of privilege? Were you sent to the feet of the great instructors? Did you study in the halls where Ivy climbs the stone gates and Greek and Latin inspirations are etched into the iron gates exhorting you to greatness?
Well, that is a ton of pressure, isn’t it?
Failure sits atop those magnificent structures, a Gargoyle with a possum grin and long, razor nails ready to rip your dreams of living up to expectations to shreds.
More second-generation greats fall from grace than rise to the occasion. History is littered with the cautionary tales of the sons and daughters who squandered what the greatness of their parents bestowed upon them.
Before Israel’s King David welcomed a boy named Solomon to the world, he mourned the death of his foolish, ambitious, arrogant, and supremely beautiful and talented son Absalom.
The king was shaken and went up to the gate chamber and wept. And as he walked, he cried out, “O my son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! If only I had died instead of you, O Absalom, my son, my son!” —2 Samuel 18:33
Absalom, impetuous and impertinent, proud and impatient, led a rebellion against his father, the mighty King David. The arrogant upstart was killed in battle. King David’s dreams of greatness for his son—and Absalom’s dreams of glory for himself—died, swinging by the locks of beautiful hair from a tree, where Joab, one of David’s mighty men found him and, along with ten other warriors, killed him.
It is easier to live and die a disappointment, Absalom style, than it is to rise to greatness and establish your own legacy the way King Solomon did.
Will you achieve greatness?
But how???
I cannot tell you how disturbing it is to me, a writer, to read perfectly constructed articles with exquisite details, timely anecdotes, funny observations, and good structure—all written by Artificial Intelligence. It has everything but a heartbeat, and all the elements but soul.
It is hard to find your footing when every pink-haired kid with a tribal tattoo and a hubcap earring is reworking the entire concept of “influencer”—and doing so to great effect.
If achieving greatness were easy, it would be neither great nor an achievement.
Will greatness be thrust upon you?
This is my favorite of the three categories because it assumes no aspiration—just opportunity meeting fortitude.
It isn’t hard to imagine the opportunity for greatness thrust upon each of us at some juncture in life. The trouble of it is, it comes unannounced and unexpectedly, and most miss it because they weren’t prepared to accept the risk or the responsibility of it.
Let’s hear it for the ones who do!
👉 Malala Yousafzai
Malala was a Pakistani schoolgirl living in the Swat Valley when the Taliban banned girls from attending school. At just 11, she began anonymously blogging for the BBC about life under Taliban rule. When she was 15, she was shot in the head for speaking out.
Get this—She survived the gunshot!
Malala had no ambition to become a global icon. She simply wanted to go to school. But the attempt on her life—and her astonishing recovery and courage—thrust her onto the world stage. She became the youngest-ever Nobel Peace Prize laureate at 17, not because she sought the spotlight, but because history handed her the microphone.
👉 Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger
Background:Veteran airline pilot.
Then:On January 15, 2009, Sully safely landed US Airways Flight 1549 on the Hudson River after a bird strike disabled both engines.
Now: He was an ordinary professional doing his job…until crisis thrust him into extraordinary circumstances. He didn’t chase fame. But a flock of birds, calm under pressure, and a fawning public made him a hero.
A few things to consider in your pursuit of becoming a great leader:
#1: Never thank “the little people” who helped you achieve your greatness. There are no little people and thinking so is a sign you aren’t that great.
#2: Do not expect to receive from your followers what you must be ready to give to them; namely, empathy and encouragement. They don’t care how hard you worked to get there or how much it costs you to pursue your dreams. You may have been where they are. They will likely never be where you are. Shut up and soldier on. Give them what you have no right to expect in return—empathy and encouragement.
#3: Be honest with yourself. Don’t fool yourself into believing anything but the truth about your ambitions, intentions, motives, and means.
#4: Shut down the hype machine. Nothing spoils greatness quite so much as braggadocio. Beating your chest and flaunting your success won’t make anyone think better of you, and cannot possibly make you feel better about your achievements.
#5: Remember to celebrate your victories. Things change. Your achievements will be forgotten. Seriously. What percentage of the current population could give a comprehensive accounting of Winston Churchill’s achievements? Or Alexander the Great’s? Or Solomon’s?
“Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and others have greatness thrust upon them.”
Greatness is relative and only relevant for a time. Pursue it at your own risk. But pursue it.
Should you find greatness, or it finds you, or pulls you kicking and screaming to center stage, be great at being great.
I heard someone the other day refer to one of Mid-America’s adjusters this way: “He’s a great adjuster!”
I asked what they meant by that.
“Well, you never have to worry if he is on top of it. He always is. You don’t have to chase him down to see what is going on with a claim. His files are always up-to-date and his estimates are accurate. Plus, clients love him. They ask for assignments to go to him.”
“That is great!” I replied.