Stories are the untested, uninvestigated theories that tell us what all these things mean. We don’t even realize that they’re just theories.

The world you live in is 100 percent your own responsibility. If you don't like your world, it doesn't work to say, "Well, it's my mother's fault. She taught me how to think."

As far as intellect, what else is there? Without intellect, no story and no world.

Here's what I would want for humanity, because this is what I have come to see is true: it's so simple when we listen to people.

When a thought appears such as "Do the dishes" and you don't do them, notice how an internal war breaks out... The stress and weariness you feel are really mental combat fatigue.

We don’t attach to things; we attach to our stories about them.

Your understanding of another person is limited by what you think you already know. So when you just listen, the person you meet won't match your preconception. The exciting thing is that you usually meet someone much wiser and kinder than you expected. You might also lose track of your ideas about who you are.