Did they know why they knew? Not at all. But the Knew!

..... it would be interesting to find out what goes on in that moment when someone looks at you and draws all sorts of conclusions.

What is learned out of hard work and trial is inevitably more powerful than what is learned easily.

Innovators have to be open. They have to be able to imagine things that others cannot and be willing to challenge their own preconceptions. They also need to be conscientious. An innovator who has brilliant ideas but lacks the discipline and persistence to carry them out is merely a dreamer ... But crucially, innovators need to be disagreeable ... They are people willing to take social risks-to do things that others might disapprove of.

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

If you are going to do something truly innovative, you have to be someone who does not value social approval. You can't need social approval to go forward. Otherwise, how would you ever do the thing that you are doing?

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.