Winners tend to underestimate the role of luck in outcomes, and losers to overestimate it. So all other things being equal, someone who is always tal… - Paul Graham

"Many things people like, especially if they're young and ambitious, they like largely for the feeling of virtue in liking them. 99% of people reading Ulysses are thinking "I'm reading Ulysses" as they do it."

Empathy doesn’t necessarily mean being self-sacrificing. Far from it. Understanding how someone else sees things doesn’t imply that you’ll act in his interest; in some situations — in war, for example — you want to do exactly the opposite.

Competition can be an effective motivator, but don't let it choose the problem for you. Don't let yourself get drawn into chasing something merely because there's a lot of competition for it.