“Boundaries are a source of liberation. This truth is demonstrated elegantly by the story of a school located next to a busy road. At first the children played only on a small swath of the playground, close to the building where the grown-ups could keep their eyes on them. But then someone constructed a fence around the playground. Now the children were able to play anywhere and everywhere on the playground. Their freedom, in effect, more than doubled. Similarly, when we don’t set clear boundaries in our lives we can end up imprisoned by the limits others have set for us. When we have clear boundaries, on the other hand, we are free to select from the whole area—or the whole range of options—that we have deliberately chosen to explore.”
Greg McKeown, Essentialism (Page 169)
“Whoever it is that’s trying to siphon off your time and energies for their own purpose, the only solution is to put up fences. And not at the moment the quest is made—you need to put up your fences well in advance, clearly demarcating what’s off limits so you can head off time wasters and boundary pushers at the pass. Remember, forcing these people to solve their own problems is equally beneficial for you and for them.”
Greg McKeown, Essentialism (Page 169)
“Peace comes—but before it comes, as a prerequisite, you have to create a mental peace around you. The first peace will just be mental; it will be like an autohypnosis; it is created by you. Then one day you will suddenly see that the second peace has surfaced. It has nothing to do with your doing, or with you. In fact, it is deeper than you. It comes from the very source of your being, the unidentified being, the undivided being, the unknown being.”
Osho, Everyday Osho (Page 121)
“Instead of trying to budget your time on the basis of existing commitments, assume that all bets are off. All previous commitments are gone. Then begin from scratch, asking which you would add today. You can do this with everything from the financial obligations you have to projects you are committed to, even relationships you are in. Every use of time, energy, or resources has to justify itself anew. If it no longer fits, eliminate it altogether.”
Greg McKeown, Essentialism (Page 152)
“Instead of asking, ‘How much do I value this item?’ we should ask, ‘If I did not own this item, how much would I pay to obtain it?’ We can do the same for opportunities and commitment. Don’t ask, ‘How will I feel if I miss out on this opportunity?’ but rather, ‘If I did not have this opportunity, how much would I be willing to sacrifice in order to obtain it?’ Similarly, we can ask, ‘If I wasn’t already involved in this project, how hard would I work to get on it?'”
Greg McKeown, Essentialism (Page 149)
“Half of the troubles of this life can be traced to saying yes too quickly and not saying no soon enough.”
Josh Billings, via Essentialism (Page 145)
“When you say no, there is usually a short-term impact on the relationship. After all, when someone asks for something and doesn’t get it, his or her immediate reaction may be annoyance or disappointment or even anger. This downside is clear. The potential upside, however, is less obvious: when the initial annoyance or disappointment or anger wears off, the respect kicks in. When we push back effectively, it shows people that our time is highly valuable. It distinguishes the professional from the amateur.”
Greg McKeown, Essentialism (Page 138)
“Don’t try to fight with the darkness. There is no way, because the darkness does not exist—how can you fight with it? Just light a candle, and the darkness is gone. So forget about the darkness, forget about the fear. Forget about all those negative things that ordinarily haunt the human mind. Just burn a small candle of enthusiasm.”
Osho, Everyday Osho (Page 119)
“The best asset we have for making a contribution to the world is ourselves. If we underinvest in ourselves, and by that I mean our minds, our bodies, and our spirits, we damage the very tool we need to make our highest contribution. One of the most common ways people—especially ambitious, successful people—damage this asset is through a lack of sleep.”
Greg McKeown, Essentialism (Page 94)
“When I examine myself and my methods of thought, I come to the conclusion that the gift of fantasy has meant more to me than my talent for absorbing positive knowledge.”
Albert Einstein, via Essentialism (Page 87)
“How many of us are good at spotting the feedback that’s saying, ‘Hey this is not working for you?’ How many of us make the same mistakes over and over, have been stuck in the same unproductive patterns for years, refusing to be taught by experience? How many of us are actively looking at models (as Seneca said, choosing ourselves a Cato) and being instructed by their example as we face new situations? How often are our beliefs changing, being updated to fit new information as it is provided by what we witness and undergo? Learning is so much more than what happens in books, so much than just facts and figures. It’s more than just what we seek out or want to hear. Life is a classroom. Experience is a teacher. Are we willing to be taught?”
Ryan Holiday
“For the last ten years now I have kept a journal, using a counterintuitive yet effective method. It is simply this: I write less than I feel like writing. Typically, When people start to keep a journal they write pages the first day. Then by the second day the prospect of writing so much is daunting, and they procrastinate or abandon the exercise. So apply the principle of ‘less but better’ to your journal. Restrain yourself from writing more until daily journaling has become a habit.”
Greg McKeown, Essentialism (Page 78)
“The faster and busier things get, the more we need to build thinking time into our schedule. And the noisier things get, the more we need to build quiet reflection spaces in which we can truly focus.”
Greg McKeown, Essentialism (Page 68)
“The more you are in the head, the more the heart contracts. When you are not in the head, the heart opens like a lotus flower… and it is tremendously beautiful when it opens. Then you are really alive, and the heart is relaxed. But the heart can only be relaxed in trust, in love. With suspicion, with doubt, the mind enters. Doubt is the door of the mind; doubt is the bait for the mind.”
Osho, Everyday Osho (Page 117)
“There is a false association with the word focus. As with choice, people tend to think of focus as a thing. Yes, focus is something we have. but focus is also something we do.”
Greg McKeown, Essentialism (Page 65)
“We need space to escape in order to discern the essential few from the trivial many. Unfortunately, in our time-starved era we don’t get that space by default—only by design.”
Greg McKeown, Essentialism (Page 64)
“Essentialists see trade-offs as an inherent part of life, not as an inherently negative part of life. Instead of asking, ‘What do I have to give up?’ they ask, ‘What do I want to go big on?’ The cumulative impact of this small change in thinking can be profound.”
Greg McKeown, Essentialism (Page 56)
“I had always known logically that I could choose not to study law. But emotionally it had never been an option. That’s when I realized that in sacrificing my power to choose I had made a choice—a bad one. By refusing to choose ‘not law school,’ I had chosen law school—not because I actually or actively wanted to be there, but by default. I think that’s when I first realized that when we surrender our ability to choose, something or someone else will step in to choose for us.”
Greg McKeown, Essentialism (Page 34)
“One of the most unexpected gifts you can receive is an early loss: Missing out on a job you really wanted; Trying a business idea that fails; Suffering a heartbreak. An early setback can become the catalyst for a wonderful next chapter—if you channel the emotion effectively. Disappointment is a hot burning fuel. Let it light your fire to become better.”
James Clear