I know it sounds hard to believe, but habits laid down by our ancestors persist even after the conditions that created those habits have gone away.

So the first task of a police force is not to fight crime and enforce the law. It is to establish legitimacy with the law-abiding citizenry and then fight crime and enforce the law.

Every cop will tell you that their real job is being a social worker. That's what they do all day. The large majority of police officers in this country never even draw their gun, let alone fire it. They do conflict resolution, right? And if that's their job, why do they need to look like they're an occupying force?

What happens when two people talk? That is really the basic question here, because, that's the basic context in which all persuasion takes place.

I'm totally engaging in cultural stereotyping, no question about it. But I think it's OK because I'm doing it for a reason, for a good reason.

It's not how much money we make that ultimately makes us happy between nine and five. It's whether or not our work fulfills us. Being a teacher is meaningful.

We prematurely write off people as failures. We are too much in awe of those who succeed and far too dismissive of those who fail.