I Am Rising to Do the Work of a Human Being: Marcus Aurelius and Mornings When You Don't Feel Like Getting Up
Introduction
For nearly twenty years, Marcus Aurelius was the most powerful man in the known world. He ruled an empire stretching from Britain to Egypt, commanded armies, and decided over the lives of millions. And, according to his own notes, there were mornings when he did not want to get out of bed.
The fifth book of the Meditations opens with a dialogue between the emperor and his pillow. At dawn, when you have trouble getting up, he tells himself, keep this thought in mind: I am rising to do the work of a human being. Why then am I going to complain, if I am going out to do what I was born for? Or is this what I was made for—to lie under the blankets and keep myself warm? And right away comes the objection that anyone can recognize: "But it is more pleasant here."
Motivation rarely shows up before you start. Almost always, it appears once you are already in motion.
This passage is one of the most human in the Meditations, and it contains a practical lesson on motivation that modern psychology has studied under other names.
The Dialogue with the Pillow
What makes the text so interesting is that Marcus Aurelius does not answer himself with a command. He answers himself with questions, as if arguing with someone he knows well.
Were you born, then, to feel comfortable, and not to act and work? Don't you see the plants, the birds, the ants, the spiders, and the bees each doing their own task, each contributing in their own way to the order of the world? And after that, do you refuse to do your human work?
Then he acknowledges that rest is also necessary, and he does not deny it: nature has set a limit to rest, just as it has set a limit to eating and drinking. The problem, he says, is that when it comes to rest you go beyond what is enough, whereas when it comes to action you stop short of what you could do.
And he closes with a sharp observation: people who love their craft wear themselves out practicing it, forgetting to wash and eat. Someone who does not want to get up, he suggests, does not truly love themselves—because if they did, they would love their own nature and what it asks of them.
Human Nature as an Argument
For a Stoic, the question "why am I getting up?" had a clear answer: to do what is proper to a human being. And what is proper to a human being, according to the school, is to act with reason and for the good of the community. In another note, Marcus Aurelius presses the same point: when you find yourself unwilling to rise, remind yourself that it belongs to your constitution to perform actions useful to others, whereas sleeping is something you share with irrational animals.
You do not need to share the Stoic view of nature to make use of the argument. Simply translate it into a personal question: what work falls to me today that is worth doing? It might be caring for someone, finishing a project, training, or simply doing a job well that others depend on. Having that answer clear before going to sleep helps ensure it is waiting for you the next morning.
Action Produces Motivation
Many people wait to feel motivated before starting. The reasoning sounds logical: first the desire, then the action. Yet Marcus Aurelius's experience—and almost everyone else's—shows that it usually works the other way around. The desire appears after you begin, once the body has woken up and the task stops being an abstract idea.
Marcos Vázquez explains this in Invicto using the example of exercise: once you begin, resistance drops because acting through the body changes your state of mind. Action stops being the result of motivation and becomes its cause.
Clinical psychology has a treatment built on a very similar idea: behavioral activation. Instead of waiting for mood to improve before resuming activities, concrete activities are scheduled first, and changes in mood are observed afterward. Numerous studies, including meta-analyses, have found it effective for depression. That is not a proof of Stoicism, but it does show that acting before you feel like it is far from naive.
A Routine for Difficult Mornings
Inspired by Marcus Aurelius's passage, this sequence helps on days when getting out of bed feels hard:
1. The night before, define the day's work. A single sentence: "Tomorrow I am getting up to..." Having your purpose ready at hand spares you from debating it with your pillow. 2. Upon waking, say Marcus Aurelius's line. "I am rising to do the work of a human being," or your own version of it. 3. Put your feet on the floor before you think. The argument with the pillow is won more easily with the body than with reasoning. Sit up on the edge of the bed, plant your feet, turn on the light. 4. Do something physical in the first five minutes. Splash cold water on your face, open the window, stretch. Changing your physical state helps shift your mood. 5. Start with the smallest piece of your main task. Not the whole task—just the first step.
When It Isn't Laziness
There are difficult mornings that have nothing to do with a lack of discipline. Accumulated fatigue from too little sleep, shift work, pain, or illness are real reasons why getting up is hard. And if a lack of energy and drive lasts for weeks, accompanied by persistent sadness or a loss of interest in almost everything, it may be a symptom of depression, which calls for professional care rather than willpower alone.
Marcus Aurelius himself acknowledges that rest has its proper measure. The problem he describes is going past that measure, not resting itself.
Common Mistakes
- Waiting until you feel like it. That is the very mistake the passage dismantles.
- Arguing with yourself for too long. Every minute spent negotiating with the pillow makes the pillow stronger.
- Using the phrase as punishment. Marcus Aurelius speaks to himself firmly, but also with understanding: he acknowledges that comfort is appealing.
- Ignoring sleep. If you sleep five hours, no Stoic quote is going to replace the missing hours. Going to bed on time is part of getting up well.
Conclusion
The emperor argued with his pillow too, and he won by reminding himself what he was getting up for. Tonight, before going to sleep, write in one line the work that awaits you tomorrow: "Tomorrow I am getting up to..." When you wake up, read it, put your feet on the floor immediately, and take the first step on that task before checking your phone. Repeat this for seven days and note how long it took you to get out of bed each morning.
References
- Marcus Aurelius. Meditations, V.1 and VIII.12.
- Cuijpers, P., van Straten, A., & Warmerdam, L. (2007). Behavioral activation treatments of depression: A meta-analysis. Clinical Psychology Review, 27(3), 318-326.
- Hadot, P. (1992). La citadelle intérieure: Introduction aux Pensées de Marc Aurèle. Fayard.
- Robertson, D. (2019). How to Think Like a Roman Emperor: The Stoic Philosophy of Marcus Aurelius. St. Martin's Press.
- Vázquez, M. (2019). Invicto: Logra más. Sufre menos. Fitness Revolucionario.