Robert Greene

Everything that happens to you is a form of instruction if you pay attention.

The truth is that creative activity is one that involves the entire self - our emotions, our levels of energy, our characters, and our minds.

You must understand the following: In order to master a field, you must love the subject and feel a profound connection to it. Your interest must transcend the field itself and border on the religious.

Our natural tendency is to project onto other people our own belief and value systems, in ways in which we are not even aware.

If we experience any failures or setbacks, we do not forget them because they offend our self-esteem. Instead we reflect on them deeply, trying to figure out what went wrong and discern whether there are any patterns to our mistakes.

It is in fact the height of selfishness to merely consume what others create and to retreat into a shell of limited goals and immediate pleasures.

The passive ironic attitude is not cool or romantic, but pathetic and destructive

The time that leads to mastery is dependent on the intensity of our focus.

No one is really going to help you or give you direction. In fact, the odds are against you.

The future belongs to those who learn more skills and combine them in creative ways.

Can you take criticism and use it constructively?

Concentrated practice over time cannot fail but produce results.

Real pleasure comes from overcoming challenges, feeling confidence in your abilities, and experiencing the power this brings.

Once an action becomes automatic, you now have the mental space to observe yourself as you practice.

Throughout your life you will encounter tedious situations, and you must cultivate the ability to handle them with discipline.

Too many people believe that everything must be pleasurable in life.

The pain and boredom we experience in the initial stage of learning a skill toughens our minds.

You are like a hunter: your knowledge of every detail of the forest and ecosystem as a whole will give you many more options for survival.

Do not theorize or generalize about what you are seeing until you amass enough information.

See your apprenticeship as a kind of journey in which you will transform yourself, rather than as a drab indoctrination into the work world.