Kingdoms which depend only upon the exceptional ability of a single man are not long enduring, because such talent disappears with the life of the man, and rarely does it happen to be restored in his successor.”īesides, princes have no monopoly on wisdom. “Kingdoms which depend only upon the exceptional ability of a single man are not long enduring,” Machiavelli writes, “because such talent disappears with the life of the man, and rarely does it happen to be restored in his successor.” That is only possible if the founder’s vision and talents result in an institution supported by stakeholders who can carry the venture into the future. Yet a single person cannot sustain an enterprise in the long run. A prudent founder, he writes, “must strive to assume sole authority.”
In Discourses, he firmly asserts the importance of an individual founder in establishing or renovating a republic-and by extension, for our purposes, a business. But the author was a brilliant student of human nature, and not one to underestimate the potential of a determined individual. Like The Prince, this is not a handbook for saints. Published posthumously in 1531, Discourses draws on the ancient Roman historian (among others) to analyze the nature of power in public life. Chances are, that includes your business.
Don’t be fooled by the academic-sounding title Discourses on Livy has a great deal to teach us about leadership in any organization resembling a republic.
That is why, in turning to Machiavelli for management wisdom, we would be well served to leave aside The Prince in favor of another of his works, one that is less known but perhaps more to the point. They are, in fact, more like republics, their leaders dependent on the support of directors, employees, customers, investors, and one another. But modern corporations aren’t principalities ruled by autocrats.
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