The truth shrinks as the crowd grows

The truth shrinks as the crowd grows. In a large meeting at work, people hold back their honest opinions. The resulting conversation offends the fewest people but often differs from the truth. Smaller groups are more likely to find truth than larger ones.

Silence can leave a scar

The truth may sting, but silence can leave a scar. We see the barriers holding back the people we work with, just as they see ours. But telling them is hard. Telling the truth might hurt them, but not telling harms them.

Solitude is a condition of peace

Solitude is a condition of peace that stands in direct opposition to loneliness. Loneliness is like sitting in an empty room and being aware of the space around you. It is a condition of separateness. Solitude is becoming one with the space around you. It is a condition of union.

Keeping buildings from burning down

Running into a burning building is heroic work. Keeping buildings from burning down in the first place is actually just as important. And it scales more reliably.

Action is a choice

There will always be reasons to not do something, and this is particularly true of anything worth doing. We value those moments in which we overcame challenge, not those in which we avoided it. Ultimately, action is a choice. The choice to emphasize the reasons for doing it despite the reasons you have for avoiding it.

Life is not a direct march from A to B

Finding your way in life is like unlocking the combination of a safe. You have to go forward and backward. Life is not a direct march from A to B. The twists and turns are progress, not regression. What feels like a setback in the moment is later revealed to have been part of the path all along. Each move was necessary to get to your end goal.

Communication is about what is received

Communication is about what is received, not what is intended. If there is a gap between what you are saying and what they are hearing, you have to find a new way to say it.