Things will get better only when you make the changes that are necessary to make them better.
A free and prosperous society has no fear of anyone entering it. But a welfare state is scared to death of every poor person who tries to get in and every rich person who tries to get out.
An individual might say, “I don’t want to change anyone.” And yet, he might still spend a great deal of his time trying to get others to agree with his views, or trying to prevent someone from doing something he thinks will be bad for him, or trying to change people by participating in a movement over a burning issue, or voting to prevent others from doing what they want to do. In all these ways, he’s trying to change others – to make them do other than what their natures lead them to do.
And when someone accuses you of being selfish, just remember that he’s upset only because you aren’t doing what he selfishly wants you to do.
I’ve concentrated upon the things I control, and used that control to remove the restrictions and complications from my life.
Never focus your attention on anyone’s weaknesses – his temper, sloppiness, poor logic, dishonesty, whatever. Recognize these shortcomings, take them into consideration, but don’t waste your time complaining about them. Instead, pay attention to what your actions should be in order to deal with him.
To be self-reliant is to recognize that no one else is as concerned about your future as you are and that no one knows as much about you as you do.
I’m free and happy because I accepted myself as I am and found a life that suits me.
As I lie on my couch by the fireplace, looking out from my hillside home at the snow leading down to the ocean, with the right woman in my arms, a glass of Bordeaux beside me and a Puccini opera on the stereo system, knowing that I’ve earned the pleasure I feel, I’m so glad I didn’t let someone else decide what’s best for me.
The first step in trying to get along with other people is to realize that each is doing what he wants to do. Examine his actions, uncover the motives for his acts, find out why he wants to do as he does. And, as we’ll see further along, this will give you the opportunity to earn his respect and cooperation to an extent that others can never obtain.
The answer is simple: You are you, the person who will live with the consequences of what you do. No one else can be responsible, because no one else will experience the consequences of your actions as you will.
One person devotes his life to helping the poor. Another one lies and steals. Still another person tries to create better products and services for which he hopes to be paid handsomely. One woman devotes herself to her husband and children. Another seeks a career as a singer. In every case, the basic motivation has been the same. Each person is doing what he believes will bring him happiness. What varies between them is the means each has chosen to gain his happiness.
So while the totalitarian state may include a TV camera in every room, I doubt that the camera will work.
There’s no final resting place – short of death – where you can stop having to earn what you want.
It is not how long you work at some task that determines what you’ll receive for it in exchange. It is the value someone else places upon the product or service that determines what it is worth in exchange.
Absolutely every government regulation is enforced by violence. If you’ve never seen that violence, it’s because you’ve been careful, obedient, or lucky.
The negative side of marriage remains long after the positive goals have been discarded.
Everyone begins life as a free person. But as time passes, most people accept the prearranged programs and never stop to realize the freedom they possess. They accept standards and situations that are unsuitable to them.
If your purpose is to make someone happy, you’re more apt to succeed if you make yourself the object. You’ll never know another person more than a fraction as well as you can know yourself.
Hitler couldn’t have conquered Europe without the help provided by the governments of the occupied nations.