Thomas Ricks' central argument in First Principles is that the American founders — Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Madison — were not simply talented individuals. They were the product of a specific intellectual formation: a classical education rooted in Greek and Roman thought that gave them a framework for thinking about power, virtue, history, and human nature. Washington studied the Stoics and modelled his character on Roman soldiers. Adams read Cicero and Thucydides. Jefferson was steeped in Greek philosophy. Madison studied the history of ancient republics to understand how democracies failed. The lesson for any builder or leader is not that you should read the same books. It is that the most consequential leaders are usually formed by something beyond their immediate professional skills — a broader intellectual tradition that gives them perspective, vocabulary, and a long view. What is forming you?