I'll take an earnest person over a hip person every day, because hip is short-term, earnest is long term.

educators best serve students by helping them be more self-reflective. The only way any of us can improve—as Coach Graham taught me—is if we develop a real ability to assess ourselves. If we can’t accurately do that, how can we tell if we’re getting better or worse?

Never lose the childlike wonder. Show gratitude... Don't complain; just work harder... Never give up.

The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want it badly enough. They’re there to stop the other people.

somehow, with the passage of time, and the dealines that life imposes, surrending became the right thing to do

Sometimes all you have to do is ask, and it can lead to all your dreams coming true.

I know you're smart. But everyone here is smart. Smart isn't enough. The kind of people I want on my research team are those who will help everyone feel happy to be here.