Sometimes in life you have to make difficult choices. The best time to make those choices is before you're confronted with them.

When people are on the same page, when they agree wholeheartedly, when they see eye to eye, very little learning actually takes place. Insight and learning only occur when what we experience in the moment conflicts, clashes with, or expands our awareness beyond what we know or take for granted.

Don't follow the crowd until you are sure you want to be where they're going.

If it's the other guy's fault, you can't fix it. Don't blame other people for your problems. That gives them all the power. Own up to your mistakes.

Preserve history. Don't delete it.

If you're not focusing on becoming so good they can't ignore you, you're going to be left behind. This clarity is refreshing. It tells you to stop worrying about what your job offers you, and instead worry about what you're offering the world. This mindset–which I call the craftsman mindset-allows you to sidestep the anxious questions generated by the passion hypothesis—"Who am I?", "What do I truly love?"—and instead put your head down and focus on becoming valuable.