Ambition is Neutral

The way to gain a good reputation is to endeavor to be what you desire to appear. – Socrates We all want* a good reputation, to be well-regarded in the eyes of others. Wanting a “good” reputation is not enough though. You need to have a clear picture. You need a plan for creating and…

Knowing thyself is the height of wisdom. – Socrates People have heard some version of the Socrates quotes above many times. But, by and large, people don’t give it much thought because they think that “knowing yourself” is some grand, mystical thing reserved for monks and and navel-gazers who don’t have jobs. That is a…

It just occurred to me that maybe I’ve never really understood “motivation.” Oh sure, I’ve learned that it’s better to be inspired than motivated and better to motivated than coerced. But what is motivation, really? Motivation isn’t something real or actual. It’s a word that describes what happens when one puts a motive into action….

“Wealth without work Pleasure without conscience Science without humanity Knowledge without character Politics without principle Commerce without morality Worship without sacrifice.” – Mahatma Gandhi

If being hard on yourself was going to work, it would have worked by now. – Jamie Smart This reminds of something I’ve heard: if you talked to other people the way you (sometimes) talk to your self, you’d have no friends. Sometimes people think that if they’re easy on themselves they won’t accomplish anything. That…

Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go. – T.S. Eliot What we can do and what we think we can do are so often far apart. The problem is 1) we are (generally/overwhelmingly) so wrong about what we’re truly capable of and 2) we take our…