...when we help others become better, we can actually increase the available opportunities, instead of vying for them. Like the lightning bugs, once we learn to coordinate and collaborate with those around us, we all begin to shine brighter, both individually and as an ecosystem...
...If you want to achieve excellence, you can get there today—as of this second, quit doing less-than-excellent work...
...Flavor is much more than a distinctive smell or taste; it involves our emotions, and sometimes memories, intertwined with our sense of the sounds, colors, shapes, and textures of our food...
...The computer scientists found that a huge percentage of stories fit into one of six relatively simple structures. They are, borrowing a chart from Reagan’s team: Rags to Riches (rise) Riches to Rags (fall) Man in a Hole (fall, then rise) Icarus (rise, then fall) Cinderella (rise, then fall, then rise) Oedipus (fall, then rise, then fall)...
...Finding something you lost a long time ago after you already gave up looking for it...
...The more things we desire and the more we have to do to earn or attain those achievements, the less we actually enjoy our lives—and the less free we are...
...Speaking to Han, Obi-Wan came close to making the point: “In my experience there is no such thing as luck, my young friend—only highly favorable adjustments of multiple factors to incline events in one’s favor.”...
...You can ask them and discover the answers now, or not ask them and discover the answers later...
...You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems...
...What look like differences in natural ability are often differences in opportunity and motivation...
...Make friends with people who want the best for you...
...The people we love most should not be content getting whatever time is left over...
...The best diet is the one you don’t know you’re on...
...Things that never change are important because you can put so much confidence into knowing how they’ll shape the future...
Ed. Note - I swam with / competed against the author Mark Tewksbury
...If you think an awkward response to a friend’s crisis will make them feel bad, then you should know that if you say nothing, they will likely feel worse...
...The reward for a good habit is the habit itself...
...Each moment puts you in a better or worse position to handle the future. It’s that positioning that eventually makes life easier or harder...
...The happiest, healthiest, most productive people aren’t those from a particular Tendency, but rather they’re the people who have figured out how to harness the strengths of their Tendency, counteract the weaknesses, and build the lives that work for them...
...the risk we should most fear is not the risk we easily imagine. It is the risk that we don’t...
