“A good reputation is more valuable than money.”
– Publilius Syrus
Even a poet and an actor from the 1st century BC, whose once-miserably fate could be avoided with intellect and wit (he was a slave who was later freed and educated by his master), knew early on that the substance of an individual lies in their talent and reputation and not their material worth.
After all, while one can accomplish a lot of things with a lot of money, even a humble slave could find escape from rampant civil war and a power-hungry emperor and will his words to last through millennia with nothing but wit, wisdom, and a good reputation.
It is true, to quote Publilius Syrus again, that “A rolling stone gathers no moss.”
