There is a certain power in wanting little

“As Alexander the Great was passing through Corinth, he sought our Diogenes and finally found him sitting under a tree, dressed in rags, with not a drachma to his name. When the most powerful man in the world asked the philosopher if he could do anything to help him, Diogenes replied, ‘Yes, if you could step out of the way. You’re blocking the sun.’ Alexander’s soldiers were horrified and steeled themselves for the inevitable outburst of their commander’s famous anger. But he only laughed and remarked that if he wasn’t Alexander, he would certainly like to be Diogenes.”
–Alain de Botton, Status Anxiety (2004)