马可·奥勒留（Marcus Aurelius）既是罗马皇帝，也是斯多葛学派哲学家。图片来源：PAOLO GAETANO—Getty Images
在充满不确定性的时代，如今领导者面临的问题并非脚下的根基是否会动摇，而是何时会动摇。要驾驭这种不确定性，单凭战略规划与前瞻眼光是不够的，还需具备韧性、清醒的头脑和严于律己的内在品质。对于牛津大学商学教授、不确定时代的领导力一书的作者卡蒂克·拉曼纳（Karthik Ramanna）而言，这种思维方式在一种古老但日益重要的思想框架中得以体现：斯多葛主义。
拉曼纳表示，斯多葛主义曾是像马可·奥勒留和塞涅卡（Seneca）这样的古希腊政治家们奉行的思想，如今在企业董事会和高管层中重新受到关注。事实上，推特（Twitter）创始人杰克·多尔西（Jack Dorsey）、风险投资家布拉德·费尔德（Brad Feld）以及GoDaddy前首席执行官布莱克·欧文（Blake Irving）都是斯多葛主义的当代践行者。但正如拉曼纳在2025年《哈佛商业评论》领导力峰会上所强调的，斯多葛式领导绝非消极避世。它提供了一种保持脚踏实地的严谨方法，专注于可控之事，并在混乱中恪守原则做出理性决策。
斯多葛主义的核心在于倡导自我克制、韧性和理性——其要义并非情感抑制，而是以正念与正直为行为准则。领导者无法控制地缘政治动荡、经济周期或其他政治纷争，但他们能掌控自身的应对之策。在商业领域，这意味着在压力下保持镇定，选择道德而非权宜之计，并在关键时刻保持清晰的头脑。
拉曼纳敦促企业高管们切莫像消防员那样行事，而应像消防队长一样，对危机进行分级处理，集中资源，明晰哪些”火情”可任其燃烧。然而，这种克制之举势必要付出代价：无法取悦所有人。
他在峰会上说道：“在这个两极分化的时代，管理公司绝非博取好感的人气竞赛，要做出艰难的决策。”
这也意味着要掌握缓和局势之道。首要任务是建立沟通体系——打造一个由值得信赖的人组成的网络，他们能够拨开纷扰的迷雾，对各种想法进行严谨性验证，并在问题失控前发现隐患。目标不仅在于进行损害控制，更在于防患于未然。
这种斯多葛主义哲学长期以来一直指导着部分资历最深的商业领袖，比如伯克希尔-哈撒韦公司（Berkshire Hathaway）的首席执行官沃伦·巴菲特（Warren Buffett），他的领导风格以谦逊、着眼长远和简约为特点。他曾建议首席执行官们规避无谓失误，不为杂音所扰，始终如一地恪守诚信准则，将客户需求置于核心地位。
Brooks Running公司前首席执行官吉姆·韦伯（Jim Weber）回忆道，在因货币波动导致欧洲市场销量下滑期间，他也收到过同样的建议。巴菲特告诉他，不要理会那些无法控制的事情，而要专注于客户。
拉曼纳解释说，这种思维方式是斯多葛式领导力的精髓。其核心在于明白哪些事情值得关注，哪些事情可以不予理会。
这种清晰的认知并不能消除冲突。但拉曼纳表示，领导者若能践行斯多葛主义，便能在危机初显时主动出击、精准施策，而非在压力之下仓促行事、盲目应对。（财富中文网）
译者：中慧言-王芳
In an era defined by volatility, the question facing today’s leaders is not if the ground will shift beneath them, but when. Navigating that uncertainty requires more than strategy and foresight; it demands resilience, clarity, and inner discipline. For Oxford University business professor Karthik Ramanna, author of a book on leading through uncertainty, that mindset takes shape in an ancient but increasingly relevant framework: Stoicism.
Once the domain of Hellenistic statesmen like Marcus Aurelius and Seneca, Stoicism is now finding renewed relevance in boardrooms and C-suites, according to Ramanna. In fact, Twitter founder Jack Dorsey, venture capitalist Brad Feld, and the former chief executive of GoDaddy, Blake Irving, are among its modern adherents. But as Ramanna stressed at the 2025 Harvard Business Review leadership summit, Stoic leadership is far from passive detachment. It offers a disciplined way to stay grounded, focusing on what can be controlled and making principled decisions amid chaos.
At its core, Stoicism champions self-control, resilience, and rationality—not to suppress emotion but to act with intentionality and integrity. Leaders can’t control geopolitical turmoil, economic cycles, or any other political discord. But they can control their response. In business, that means keeping composure under pressure, choosing ethics over expedience, and maintaining clarity when the stakes are high.
Ramanna urged executives to act less like firefighters and more like fire chiefs, triaging crises, focusing resources, and knowing which flames to let burn. But that kind of restraint inevitably comes at a cost: not everyone will be pleased.
“Don’t try to run the organization in this moment of polarization as if it were a popularity contest. Make the hard decisions,” he said at the event.
It also means mastering the art of de-escalation. That begins with building communication systems—trusted networks of people who can cut through noise, pressure-test ideas, and flag issues before they spiral. The goal isn’t just damage control. It’s anticipation.
This kind of Stoic philosophy has long guided some of the most tenured business leaders, such as Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett, whose leadership hinges on humility, long-term focus, and simplicity. He’d advised CEOs in the past to avoid unforced errors, ignore the noise, and stay relentlessly focused on integrity and the customer.
Former Brooks Running CEO Jim Weber recalls receiving that same advice during a slump in European sales driven by currency fluctuations. Buffett told him to ignore what could not be controlled and to focus on the customer instead.
Ramanna explained this mindset as the essence of Stoic leadership. It is about understanding what deserves attention and what can be left alone.
That clarity will not eliminate conflict. But by leading with Stoicism, Ramanna said, leaders can confront crises early and with purpose rather than react impulsively under pressure.