No exercise of will can make any of us other than what we are, or more than marginally better than who we are. - James Blish

He wore the expression of a man who has heard all this before, and is not enjoying it any better the second time.

Actually, there are never motives behind actions. All actions are fixed. What we call motives evidently are rationalizations by the helpless observing consciousness, which is intelligent enough to smell an event coming—and, since it cannot avert the event, instead cooks up reasons for wanting it to happen...or ascribes it to the malice of God or man.

He had been greatly talented once, but the loss of gifted experimenters to administrative posts was the curse of all research organizations.