“When I was about twelve, I used to think I must be a genius, but nobody’s noticed. If there is such a thing as a genius…I am one, and if there isn’t, I don’t care.”

“It’s better to fade away like an old soldier than to burn out.”

” Evolution and all hopes for a better world rest in the fearlessness and open-hearted vision of people who embrace life.”

“As in a love affair, two creative people can destroy themselves trying to recapture that youthful spirit, at twenty-one or twenty-four, of creating without even being aware of how it’s happening.”

“I believe in God, but not as one thing, not as an old man in the sky. I believe that what people call God is something in all of us. I believe that what Jesus and Mohammed and Buddha and all the rest said was right. It’s just that the translations have gone wrong. “

“Part of me suspects that I’m a loser, and the other part of me thinks I’m God Almighty.”

“I don’t know which will go first- rock ‘n’ roll or christianity.”

“There’s an alternative to violence. It’s to stay in bed and grow your hair.”

“It matters not who you love, where you love, why you love, when you love or how you love, it matters only that you love.”

“Before Elvis there was nothing.”

“There are two basic motivating forces: fear and love. When we are afraid, we pull back from life.”

“If we cannot love ourselves, we cannot fully open to our ability to love others or our potential to create.”

“Authenticity is a collection of choices that we have to make every day. It’s about the choice to show up and be real. The choice to be honest. The choice to let our true selves be seen.”

“Vulnerability is the birthplace of connection and the path to the feeling of worthiness. If it doesn’t feel vulnerable, the sharing is probably not constructive.”

“We risk missing out on joy when we get too busy chasing down the extraordinary.”

“What separates privilege from entitlement is gratitude.”

“Only when we are brave enough to explore the darkness will we discover the infinite power of our light.”

“Healthy striving is self-focused: ‘How can I improve?’ Perfectionism is other-focused: “What will they think?”

“Talk to yourself like you would to someone you love.”

“Nothing has transformed my life more than realizing that it’s a waste of time to evaluate my worthiness by weighing the reaction of the people in the stands.”

“Nostalgia is also a dangerous form of comparison. Think about how often we compare our lives to a memory that nostalgia has so completely edited that it never really existed.”

“Perfectionism is a self-destructive and addictive belief system that fuels this primary thought: If I look perfect, and do everything perfectly, I can avoid or minimize the painful feelings of shame, judgment, and blame.”

“Everyone wants to know why customer service has gone to hell in a handbasket. I want to know why customer behavior has gone to hell in a handbasket.”

“Want to be happy? Stop trying to be perfect.”