''Ut est rerum omnium magister usus'' (roughly "experience is the teacher of all things" or more generally "experience is the best teacher") is a
quote attributed to
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, and ...
in ''
De Bello Civili
''Commentarii de Bello Civili'' ''(Commentaries on the Civil War)'', or ''Bellum Civile'', is an account written by Julius Caesar of his war against Gnaeus Pompeius and the Roman Senate. It consists of three books covering the events of 49–4 ...
'', the
war commentaries of the
Civil War. Since then the
phrase has become a common saying regarding learning and leadership.
Commentary
John C. Maxwell
John Calvin Maxwell (born February 20, 1947) is an American author, speaker, and pastor who has written many books, primarily focusing on leadership. Titles include ''The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership'' and ''The 21 Indispensable Qualities of ...
stated that the only way of learning from personal experiences is to reflect on them, something he feels Caesar had done a lot of, which was the only way he was able to become successful and write down his thoughts.
[Thomas G. Reid; ''Sustained Leadership WBS: A Disciplined Project Approach to Building You and Your Team into Better Leaders''. Morgan James Publishing, 2017. ]
See also
* ''
Alea iacta est''
* ''
Veni, vidi, vici''
*
List of Latin phrases
References
External links
Is experience the best teacher?on ''
Association for Biblical Higher Education''
{{Julius Caesar
Latin quotations
Quotes by Julius Caesar