Success is more dangerous than failure. Lao-tzu c. 604 – c. 531 B.C. Read the above quotation again. It seems counter-intuitive; how can success be more dangerous than failure? If you really want the answer, just look at people all around you. I’ve observed hundreds of people who were moderately successful in their careers, and that success trapped them into a life of mediocrity. Countless people rise to a level of economic comfort in a particular company or job only to be caught there. They don’t enjoy what they’re doing, but a change would mean sacrificing their current level of …
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Tag Archives: learning
The ideal condition would be, I admit, that all men should be right by instinct; But since we are all likely to go astray, The reasonable thing is to learn from those who can teach. Sophocles C 495 – 406 B.C. How many times did you hear the phrase “practice makes perfect” when you were growing up? If your childhood was anything like mine, you heard it a few hundred times. I heard it enough that it’s burned in my memory. And you know what? It’s totally wrong. Practice does not make perfect. Let me share a story I heard …
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All who have meditated on the art of governing mankind have been convinced that the fate of empires depends on the education of youth. Aristotle 384 – 322 B.C. I really love this quotation from Aristotle because I believe it contains so much truth. Considering that it was written over 2,300 years ago, you’d think society would have learned to recognize the wisdom of these words and act accordingly. At first glance, you might think that the general population is far better educated today than at any time in history. But consider what constitutes an education. Are we truly educating …
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