Quotes from Samuel H. Barondes

The beginning of wisdom is to call things by their right names. —Chinese Proverb

pay attention to the stories people tell about themselves, which will help you figure out what they stand for and their sense of identity.

Every man is in certain respects (a) like all other men, (b) like some other men, (c) like no other man. —Clyde Kluckhohn and Henry A. Murray

To be adult means, among other things, to see one's own life in continuous perspective, both in retrospect and in prospect.

T]hough I never arrived at the perfection I had been so ambitious of obtaining, but fell far short of it, yet I was, by the endeavor, a better and happier man than I otherwise should have been if I had not attempted it.

Can we learn a technique to make our own descriptions of people more incisive and complete?

The timing of this effect of testosterone is crucial. If it comes too late in fetal development, the key neurons in the hypothalamus are already dead, and the brain is set on an irreversible female course. Other regulators of neuronal death may also have decisive behavioral effects, but none is as obvious as testosterone.

we are becoming more, not less, alike ....

Recognizing that backsliding is natural, he committed himself to repeated practice. Recognizing that some virtues, such as humility and order, were particularly hard for him to achieve, he decided to lower his standards and cut himself some slack. The result was a program that was explicit, realistic, and, as he looked back on it, seemingly effective.

You have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something—your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever." The

your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life .... And, most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition." These