It takes intellectuals to come up with some of the most moronic ideas possible.
— Gad SaadEvolutionary Psychologist & Author Known for Consumer Behavior Research
“They have maternal instincts and look after each other as we do… it's not an intellectual thing when a mother protects her child; it's an instinctive behaviour. We value all those things in the human being because we are human beings! But that's pretty short sighted and narrow minded.”— Ingrid Newkirk
Founder and President of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)
The quote archive
Philosophy
A growing archive of 3,000+ moments, drawn from every interview.
Humans can be parasitized by actual brain worms, but also by idea pathogens that cause them to behave in profoundly maladaptive ways.
— Gad SaadEvolutionary Psychologist & Author Known for Consumer Behavior Research
I can't advertise chewing gum to my children because it's unethical, but I can feed them all sorts of narratives that will have a profound impact on their personal trajectories. It's quite an extraordinarily hypocritical position.
— Gad SaadEvolutionary Psychologist & Author Known for Consumer Behavior Research
The number one thing I've discovered is that people deny that they have any of these traits. We always want to say it's that other person who is a narcissist, the other person is aggressive, they have envy, but no…. not us. We deny we have these qualities and make out as if we are the exception.
— Robert GreeneAuthor of "The 48 Laws of Power" & Strategist
We are creatures of history, yet we have this idea that we are alienated from our past – and that's a deep problem. Language is a product of thousands of years of history. The words that we speak are not our own. The ideas we have are not our own. They come from many other sources, stretching back hundreds, and thousands of years. The past is extremely alive in the present moment.
— Robert GreeneAuthor of "The 48 Laws of Power" & Strategist
When I look at my own life- the things that I'm most embarrassed about are the moments where I acted, or didn't act, because of fear. The moments I'm most proud of are those where I acted with some semblance of courage.
— Ryan HolidayAuthor & Stoicism Expert; Marketer & Media Strategist
Legacy is not for us to decide, it's not for us to chase, it's not for us to get, it's not for us to enjoy. I don't think about it much.
— Ryan HolidayAuthor & Stoicism Expert; Marketer & Media Strategist
Our world today is not only superficial, but also very cynical, almost to the point of nihilism. There's a cynicism that masquerades as intelligence, but which- in reality- is a form of despair, a kind of excuse for not having to do anything.
— Ryan HolidayAuthor & Stoicism Expert; Marketer & Media Strategist
To have courage, you need fear. Courage is not the opposite of fear, rather it is the triumph over fear. There is nothing courageous about a guaranteed outcome.
— Ryan HolidayAuthor & Stoicism Expert; Marketer & Media Strategist
The first thing we can notice is how much trouble we could cause if we act like we don't matter and cease to take care of ourselves, and the people around us.
— Jordan PetersonClinical Psychologist, Author of "12 Rules for Life," Public Intellectual
If you don't place any emphasis on the development of character, or any belief that character is a reality; If you don't believe in the utility of courage and truth as the means of making your way through life; then you're left with – well – celebrity.
— Jordan PetersonClinical Psychologist, Author of "12 Rules for Life," Public Intellectual
War teaches you that there are many different types of people, good and bad, and you have to understand that good and evil co-exist, and it's up to you to calculate your way through the world, understanding where people are rooted.
— Jocko WillinkFormer Navy SEAL Commander & Leadership Author
If you want to see where human nature is most revealed, you have to look at human beings in their most stressful and painful scenarios. It is in those situations that you can learn how people behave and how you can behave.
— Jocko WillinkFormer Navy SEAL Commander & Leadership Author
Humans have this incredible ability; we understand the world around us, we can dream, we can share visions of the future and persuade each other- and ourselves- to improve. This is so deep in our biology.
— Chris AndersonCurator of TED Talks & Author of "The Long Tail
We cannot think about technology in confrontational terms. There is no race against the machines, there is no fight, no war. We have to end this long, historical confrontational narrative.
— Garry KasparovWorld Chess Champion & Political Activist Against Russian Authoritarianism
History is not linear, like the chapters of a book… History moves through seasons, and so winters are inevitable.
— Garry KasparovWorld Chess Champion & Political Activist Against Russian Authoritarianism