Quotes. July 2013

“I trust those who are greedy for money a thousand times more than those who are greedy for credentials.”
-Nassim Taleb

“Let me tell you something about gods. No matter how smart or strong you are, there’s always someone smarter and stronger, and when you run into somebody who’s stronger and smarter than anybody, you think, This is a god.  This is perfection.  But I can promise you that there’s somebody else somewhere else who’ll make your god look like a maggot by comparison.  And somebody smarter or stronger or better in some way. So let me tell you what I think about gods. I think a real god is not going to be so scared or angry that he tries to keep other people down or want to stay in control. A real god doesn’t care about control. A real god already has control of everything that needs controlling. Real gods would want to teach you how to be just like them.”
-Orson Scott Card

“The first principle is that you must not fool yourself, and you are the easiest person to fool.”
-Richard P. Feynman

“The dirty little secret of every creative workshop or motivational seminar is simply this: The person who is going to change is going to change anyway. She has no choice. She is impelled by inner necessity. While the person who is not going to change is not going to change no matter how many seminars or retreats she attends or how much money she pays to those who promise to help her make the change.”
-Steven Pressfield

“Experience is what you get when you didn’t get what you wanted.”
-Randy Paush

“I know many folks who consider themselves intellectuals. I guess they think that in part because if you asked them “What have you been up to lately?,” they’d tell you about books, articles, blogs, or twitter feeds that they’ve been reading. Or perhaps TED talks they’ve watched. This is why I prefer the question “What have you been thinking about lately?” And I’ll usually be a bit disappointed if the answer isn’t about a question they’ve been trying to answer.”
-Robin Hansen

“Game killed by mouth cannot be loaded onto a horse. Game slaughtered by words cannot be skinned.”
-Genghis Khan

“Getting published is easy. Getting anyone to care? Well, that’s the hard part.”
-Ryan Holiday

“Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habit. Watch your habits; they become character. Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.”
-Lao Tzu

“We are here because one odd group of fishes had a peculiar fin anatomy that could transform into legs for terrestrial creatures; because the earth never froze entirely during an ice age; because a small and tenuous species, arising in Africa a quarter of a million years ago, has managed, so far, to survive by hook and by crook. We may yearn for a ‘higher’ answer — but none exists. This explanation, though superficially troubling, if not terrifying, is ultimately liberating and exhilarating. We cannot read the meaning of life passively in the facts of nature. We must construct these answers ourselves — from our own wisdom and ethical sense. There is no other way.”
-Stephen Jay Gould

“That academic, puritanical background didn’t stop her from enjoying herself. It just prevented her from respecting herself for what she had allowed herself to do.”
-Budd Schulberg