I became convinced that knowing lots of people was kind of skill, something that the diligent can overcome.

Six degrees of separation doesn't mean that everyone is linked to everyone else in just six steps. It means that a very small number of people are linked to everyone else in a few steps, and the rest of us are linked to the world through those special few.

Nobody accomplishes success by themselves.

Asian culture has a profoundly different relationship to work. It rewards people who are persistent.

Acquaintances represent a source of social power, and the more acquaintances you have the more powerful you are.

It's not about how smart you are. It's about your values.

Our intuitions, as humans, aren't always very good. Changes that happen really suddenly, on the strength of the most minor of input, can be deeply confusing.