Ryan Holiday

Don’t worry as much about disruption and chaos—it might simply mean interesting things are happening—fear stability and complacency because it means decay.

Today, in a society obsessed with content, outrage, and drama, it’s even easier to get lost in the echo chamber of the debate of what’s “better.”

Life is full of things that, technically speaking, we are able to do, but that reasonable, considerate people refrain from doing—because it negatively impacts the other people around us.

“Powerful people,” he writes, “impress and intimidate by saying less. The more you say, the more likely you are to say something foolish.” I think of this law when I am about to tweet, when I am considering an email, when I am coming up with marketing materials. Less is almost always more.

Even if they are serious opportunities, even if it will only take 15 minutes, even if it’s something that everyone else does, I’d like to avoid it.

A single book can unlock an idea, start a business, generate a change, seal a life decision, open you to a new perspective, prepare you for some unknown adversity that lies around a curve in the road.

Be inspired by the people who truly changed the world for the better, and learn lessons from the writers and thinkers who have deeply studied the topics and personalities and problems of the past.

I always thought online mobs were scary and dangerous. But this new normal seems just as scary.

Making money is easier than most people think—knowing why and what for, and not being driven in the wrong direction to get it? Much harder.

It’s never been easier to talk, to distract ourselves, to puff ourselves up.

To look at a sleeping baby, defenseless and pure, and think, ‘How many likes do you think this will get?’ struck us as particularly gross.

I am down on copycats and trend followers. I like podcasting too much and value my own sanity (and the sanity of other awesome people) too much to think that the world needs us to collectively waste time on other people’s self-indulgent personal brand building.