Quotes from Robert Greene

We humans like to believe that we are consistent and mature, and that we have reasonable control over our lives. We make decisions based on rational considerations, on what will benefit us the most. We have free will. We know who we are, more or less. But in one particular aspect of life these self-opinions are all easily shattered - when we fall in love.

You must alter your attitude toward your own generation. We like to imagine that we are autonomous and that our values and ideas come from within, not without, but this is in fact not the case. Your goal is to understand as deeply as possible how profoundly the spirit of your generation, and the times that you live in, have influenced how you perceive the world.

It is a deadly but common misperception to believe that by displaying and vaunting your gifts and talents, you are winning the master's affection. He may feign appreciation, but at his first opportunity he will replace you with someone less intelligent, less attractive, less threatening, just as Louis XIV replaced the sparkling Fouquet with the bland Colbert.

No te dejes engañar por la reprobación superficial que tu actitud de dandy puede provocar. Aun si la sociedad propala su desconfianza de la androginia (en la teología cristiana Satanás suele representarse como andrógino), con eso no hace otra cosa que esconder su fascinación por ella; lo más seductor es con frecuencia lo más reprimido.

The truth is that we humans live on the surface, reacting emotionally to what people say and do. We form opinions of others and ourselves that are rather simplified. We settle for the easiest and most convenient story to tell ourselves.

Una vez motivada esa sensación, tu objetivo se preguntará por qué no has dado el paso, y tomará la iniciativa, disfrutando de la ilusión de que es quien está al mando. No hay nada más efectivo en la seducción que hacer creer seductor al seducido.

Your mind will never go blank when it is that well prepared.

The Way of the Samurai is in desperateness. Ten men or more cannot kill such a man. Common sense will not accomplish great things. Simply become insane and desperate.

Los errores suelen perdo- narse, pero el desprecio nunca. Nues- tro orgullo lo recuerda para siem- pre. (Lord Chesterfield, 1694-1773)

This should not upset you but liberate you. The book will teach you to stop taking personally their insinuating comments, shows of coldness, or moments of irritation. The more you grasp this, the easier it will be to react not with your emotions but rather with the desire to understand where their behavior might come from.

Most of us spend our lives avoiding the thought of death. Instead, the inevitability of death should be continually on our minds. Understanding the shortness of life fills us with a sense of purpose and urgency to realize our goals. Training ourselves to confront and accept this reality makes it easier to manage the inevitable setbacks, separations, and crises in life. [...] By becoming deeply aware of our mortality, we intensify our experience of every aspect of life.

Place your iron hand inside a velvet glove.

To think that by doing more you are doing better is a common blunder. It is never good to seem to be trying too hard—it is as if you were covering up some deficiency.

Como la vida adulta es aburrida y acomodaticia, nos creamos la ilusión de que la infancia es una especie de edad de oro

Let us call the collection of these forces that push and pull at us from deep within human nature. Human nature stems from the particular wiring of our brains, the configuration of our nervous system, and the way we humans process emotions, all of which developed and emerged over the course

Second, the Laws will make you a master interpreter of the cues that people continually emit, giving you a much greater ability to judge their character.

Let us call the collection of these forces that push and pull at us from deep within human nature. Human nature stems from the particular wiring of our brains, the configuration of our nervous system, and the way we humans process emotions, all of which developed and emerged over the course of the five million years or so of our evolution as a species.

Power is a game—this cannot be repeated too often—and in games you do not judge your opponents by their intentions but by the effect of their actions.

Trata de persuadir a una persona apelando a su conciencia, diciendo lo que quieres, mostrando todas tus cartas, ¿y qué esperanza te queda? Serás sólo una irritación más por eliminar.

It is impossible to not have our inclinations and feelings somehow involved in what we think. Rational people are aware of this and through introspection and effort are able, to some extent, to subtract emotions from their thinking and counteract their effect. Irrational people have no such awareness. They rush into action without carefully considering the ramifications and consequences.

The higher the rank, the greater the effect of the example. The men tend to feel no kind of contact with a commander who, they know, is sitting somewhere in headquarters. What they want is what might be termed a physical contact with him.

I had much rather be confined to one element, and be admired in that, than be a goose in all!

Hesitation puts obstacles in your path, boldness eliminates them.

Keep withdrawing, surprising, and stimulating the chase. As long as you do, you have the power.