Croesus was the king of Lydia (part of modern-day Turkey) and was known for his riches (which is why the phrase “rich as Croesus” is used to describe a fabulously wealthy person). During the height of his wealth and power, he invited Solon, a philosopher-statesman and one of the “Seven Sages of Greece,” to visit him at his palace. After two days of showing off his riches to Solon, Croesus asked him, “Who do you consider the happiest man in the world?”

Solon, known for his integrity, answered that it was Tellus the Athenian, which disappointed Croesus because he expected Solon to name him the happiest. In a huff, he inquired who this Tellus person was and why he might be counted as the happiest. Solon replied, “Tellus was neither rich nor poor, and all of his children were good and noble; he lived to see them give birth to their children and died an old and respected man while volunteering to fight for his country.”

Perturbed, Croesus asked who the next happiest person was and then the next. Each time, Solon answered with everyday people who had lived normal lives and had died just deaths.

These answers stunned Croesus, so he asked Solon how he could not list him among the happiest, given all his wealth and power. Solon responded, “Often it befalls that a poor man is happier than a rich man. Call no man happy until he is dead.”

Croesus sent Solon away, thinking of him as a great fool, and thought no more of him for decades. Then Cyrus the Great, the Persian King, conquered Croesus’s kingdom. Croesus was captured and was tied to a stake to be burned to death. As the flames began to engulf him, Croesus cried out,

“O, Solon, you true seer! O Solon, Solon!”

Cyrus heard these words and, intrigued, ordered the flames extinguished and asked Croesus the meaning of his words. Croesus replied,

“I was just naming the name of a wise man,” replied Croesus, “one who revealed to me a truth worthier than all of our riches and glory.”

Croesus then told of his interactions with Solon and what is now known as “Solon’s Dictum”: “Call no man happy until he is dead” and how he now saw the wisdom that a person’s life can’t be judged until it is over. Cyrus was so moved by the story and Solon’s wisdom that he pardoned Croesus and spent the rest of his life as his friend.

What We Can Learn From Solon’s Dictum

The story of Croesus and Solon’s dictum highlights that the order of events in our lives affects our and others’ judgment of them. Consider two people: Robert Downey Jr. and Jeffery Skilling.

As you may be aware, Robert Downey Jr. struggled with addiction throughout his youth and early adulthood. His issues with drugs and alcohol led to numerous highly publicized arrests and stints in rehab throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, and his promising career and overall life seemed a bust.

But then, in the 2000s, he got his life together and landed the breakout role of Iron Man in 2008. Since then, he’s become one of Hollywood’s highest-paid actors, receiving critical acclaim and commercial success. His portrayal of Iron Man made him a global superstar, contributing significantly to the Marvel franchise’s enormous success.

He’s used his platform as an A-list actor to advocate for recovery and mental health awareness. His journey has inspired many, demonstrating the possibility of overcoming personal demons to achieve greatness.

Of course, according to Solon, we can’t wholly judge his life and happiness because Robert Downey Jr. is living. But if he died tomorrow, his legacy likely would be that of someone who overcame grave personal struggles to achieve greatness.

Compare that situation to Jeffery Skilling, who attended Harvard Business School and had a highly successful and lucrative career. He became a partner at McKinsey & Co. at a young age and became the CEO of Enron, earning annual pay over $100 million in some years. As you probably are aware, Enron spectacularly went out of business in 2002 (taking my then-employer Arthur Andersen down with it), and Skilling was convicted of fraud, insider trading, and other crimes related to Enron, sentenced to 24 years in prison and fined $45 million. Like Robert Downey, Jr., Jeffrey Skilling is still alive, so who knows, maybe he’ll go on to do something great that will overshadow his Enron misdealings.