“I was curious. I wanted to improve, learn, and fill my head with the history of the game. No matter who I was with—a coach, hall of famer, teammate—and no matter the situation—game, practice, vacation—I would fire away with question after question. A lot of people appreciated my curiosity and passion. They appreciated that I wasn’t just asking to ask, I was genuinely thirsty to hear their answers and glean new info. Some people, meanwhile, were less understanding and gracious. That was fine with me. My approach always was that I’d rather risk embarrassment now than be embarrassed later, when I’ve won zero titles.”
Kobe Bryant, Mamba Mentality (Page 40)
“Contrary to popular belief, my experience has shown me that the people who are exceptionally good in business aren’t so because of what they know but because of their insatiable need to know more.“
Michael Gerber, The E-Myth Revisited (Page xiii)
“Most students, whether it’s in archery or yoga or chemistry, go into a subject with a strong intention. They are outcome-focused. They want to get the best grade or the highest score. They bring their previous ‘expertise’ with them. They want to skip the unnecessary steps and get right to the sexy stuff. As a result, they are difficult to teach and easily discouraged when the journey proves harder than expected. They are not present. They are not open to experience and cannot learn.” ~ Ryan Holiday, Stillness is the Key (Page 78)
“Find people you admire and ask how they got where they are. Seek book recommendations. Add experience and experimentation on top of this. Put yourself in tough situations. Accept challenges. Familiarize yourself with the unfamiliar. That’s how you widen your perspective and your understanding. The wise are still because they have seen it all. They know what to expect because they’ve been through so much. They’ve made mistakes and learned from them. And so must you.”
Ryan Holiday, Stillness is the Key (Page 66)
“There is no enlightened one. There is only the one who is seeking further enlightenment. Proper Being is process, not a state; a journey, not a destination. It’s the continual transformation of what you know, through encounter with what you don’t know, rather than the desperate clinging to the certainty that is eternally insufficient in any case. Always place your becoming above your current being. That means it is necessary to recognize and accept your insufficiency, so that it can be continually rectified. That’s painful, certainly—but, it’s a good deal.” ~ Jordan Peterson, 12 Rules for Life (Page 362)
“With any loss comes gain. If things don’t work out my way, the consolation prize is a lesson I can keep close to me for the rest of my life. Those lessons encourage more self-awareness, which in turn strengthens my most important relationship—the one with myself.” ~ Humble the Poet, Things No One Else Can Teach Us (Page 273)
“Our progress is paved with mistakes, failures, and defeats, and it’s our resilience that keeps us keeping on. Every misstep is a teacher, and not all the things and people we lose in life end up being losses. Our obsession with winning can cost us much more than losing a healthy outlook when life doesn’t go our way. There’s always a lesson, a nugget of wisdom or a jewel waiting when things look like they won’t be going in our favor; we just have to be willing to pay attention and do some digging if need be. Once we remind ourselves to find opportunity in any situation, there is no loss, just learning. Failure isn’t the opposite of success, it’s a path to it.” ~ Humble the Poet, Things No One Else Can Teach Us (Page 268)
“To live is to deal with challenges and setbacks. No one is immune to the bullshit life flings our way; but our actions can make that bullshit better or worse. If you look back at your life, the biggest lessons you learned didn’t come from a Tumblr quote or celebrity PSA; they came from harsh reality checks when the shit hit the fan. That process isn’t going to get any more enjoyable as you grow, but if you anticipate the learning, then the moments you have in life end up being that much more enriched.” ~ Humble the Poet, Things No One Else Can Teach Us (Page 84)
“All the experiences we go through in life are our lessons, all the people we meet are our teachers. What we learn is what we earn from those experiences. See, discover, and create the silver lining that’s always been there so you don’t discard the unpleasant moments as things you want to forget.” ~ Humble the Poet, Things No One Else Can Teach Us (Page 7)
“The more deeply we dive into our own stories, the more we feel like we’re going through it alone. But I’m here to remind you that you’re not alone, even though we each have to do the work ourselves. The deeper we dive, the more beauty we can discover as well. No on else shares our unique experiences, and therefore no one else can show us the light at the end of the tunnels we dig; we can only share our stories and remind ourselves that we already have everything we need to find that light. These are the things no one else can teach us.” ~ Humble the Poet, Things No One Else Can Teach Us (Page 6)
Things No One Else Can Teach Us [Book]
Book Overview: The rapper, spoken word artist, poet, blogger, social media influencer, and international bestselling author of Unlearn delivers unorthodox lessons for shifting our perceptions and learning to create silver linings from our most difficult moments. Every one of us endures setbacks, disappointments, and failures that can incapacitate us. But we don’t have to let them. Instead, we can use these events as opportunities for growth. In Things No One Else Can Teach Us, Humble the Poet flips the conventional script for happiness and success, showing us how our most painful experiences can be our greatest teachers.
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Post(s) Inspired by this Book:
- 17 Humble the Poet Quotes about Comparing Yourself to Others (and How To Stop)
- Humble the Poet Quote on Emotional Intelligence and How To Deal With “Less Desirable” Emotions (Beyond the Quote 237/365)
- Humble the Poet Quote on Reducing Social Media Usage (Beyond the Quote 86/365)
- Humble the Poet Quote on Managing Expectations and Going From “High” to “Low” to “None” (Beyond the Quote 79/365)
- Humble the Poet Quote on Comparing Ourselves To Others (and Why That Can Be Dangerous) (Beyond the Quote 77/365)
- Albert Camus Quote on The Invincible Summer Inside (Beyond the Quote 65/365)
- How To Separate Actions from Identity—An Important Excerpt from Things No One Else Can Teach Us.
Robert Kiyosaki Quote on The Importance Of Learning In Today’s Fast-Changing World
“In today’s fast-changing world, it’s not so much what you know anymore that counts, because often what you know is old. It is how fast you learn. That skill is priceless.”
Robert Kiyosaki, Rich Dad Poor Dad (Page 212)
Beyond the Quote (57/365)
And to that point, even more important than the speed in which you learn is whether or not you are actually still learning. The world is changing at an incredible pace and as Kiyosaki points out, more often than not, what you know from what you’ve been taught is likely outdated and old. Thankfully, with the internet and Google, we don’t have to worry about memorizing new material or about having access the latest ideas—they are readily available to us with a couple of quick thumb taps. But with that access and organization still comes responsibility on our part.
Read More »Robert Kiyosaki Quote on The Importance Of Learning In Today’s Fast-Changing World
W. B. Yeats Quote on Looking At Education Like Lighting A Fire (Not Filling A Bucket)
“Education is not the filling of a bucket, but the lighting of a fire.”
W. B. Yeats
Beyond the Quote (26/365)
The mind does not have confines like the walls of a bucket nor does it have a maximum limit like that of a bucket—it is unbounded and is of unlimited potential. The mind needs to be thought of like a fire. Not only is a fire wall-less, topless, and without a maximum limit, but it has an insatiable appetite that will continue consuming for as long as you continue to feed it—like that of the mind. This is an important distinction because when we change the way we view our minds, we change the way we treat our minds (and the minds of those we’re treating).
Read More »W. B. Yeats Quote on Looking At Education Like Lighting A Fire (Not Filling A Bucket)“Reading is like a software update for your brain. Whenever you learn a new concept or idea, the “software” improves. You download new features and fix old bugs. In this way, reading a good book can give you a new way to view your life experiences. Your past is fixed, but your interpretation of it can change depending on the software you use to analyze it.” ~ James Clear, Blog
“In Tibet people don’t seem to worry as much about aging. When I hear my mother and her generation of Tibetans talk about getting old, the tone in their voice is proud. They’re proud to have lived so long. They’re cheerful. They have young minds. They’re continuously curious, always learning. One of my favorite Tibetan saying is ‘Even if you’re going to die tomorrow, you can learn something tonight.’ With this attitude we don’t feel so old.” ~ Sakyong Mipham, Turning the Mind Into An Ally (Page 152)
“There is an answer to the age-old question of whether leaders are born or made. Obviously, some are born with natural leadership qualities, such as charisma, eloquence, sharp wit, a decisive mind, the willingness to accept risk when others might falter, or the ability to remain calm in chaotic, high-pressure situations. Others may not possess these qualities innately. But with a willingness to learn, with a humble attitude that seeks valid constructive criticism in order to improve, with disciplined practice and training, even those with less natural ability can develop into highly effective leaders. Others who were blessed with all the natural talent in the world will fail as leaders if they are not humble enough to own their mistakes, admit that they don’t have it all figured out, seek guidance, learn, and continuously grow.” ~ Jocko Willink, Extreme Ownership (Page 285)