Most people have been brainwashed into believing that their job is to copyedit the world, not to design it.

If it were any other way, it would be easy. And if it were any other way, everyone would do it and your work would ultimately be devalued. The yin and yang are clear: without people pushing against your quest to do something worth talking about, it's unlikely it would be worth the journey. Persist.

The thing about goals is that living without them is a lot more fun, in the short run. It seems to me, though, that the people who get things done, who lead, who grow and who make an impact . . . those people have goals.

Fitting in is a short-term strategy, standing out pays off in the long run.

Do you know what people want more than anything? They want to be missed.

Our job is to make change. Our job is to connect to people, to interact with them in a way that leaves them better than we found them, more able to get where they'd like to go. Every time we waste that opportunity, every page or sentence that doesn't do enough to advance the cause is waste.

What I learned: Shun nonbelievers. Ignore critics. Do your best for people who want to dance with you.