The best quotes contain a world of wisdom in a couple of sentences.

Each of the 25 quotes below can be used to build a great life…

“Not wanting something is as good as having it.” -Liad Shababo

This concept has been around for thousands of years. Supposedly, when Socrates visited a mall, he joyously declared to his friends, “Look at all these things I don’t need!” The truly rich are those who want nothing more than what they already have.

“Hard choices, easy life. Easy choices, hard life.” -Jerzy Gregorek

Tim Ferriss and Naval Ravikant talk about how every effective self-improvement system is really just a mechanism to help us prioritize long-term decisions over short-term ones. Prioritizing the future is necessary for every worthwhile habit: going to the gym instead of sitting on the couch, reading instead of watching tv, etc.

“When values are clear, decisions are easy.” -Roy Disney

Remarkably few people spend the time to crystallize who they want to become. Creating a list of predefined personal values can help you pre-determine how you’ll behave in 1,000 different situations.

“There’s no force more powerful than someone completely owning who they are.” -James Pratt

Don’t hide your passions and interests. If you’re a nerd, embrace that. If you love NSYNC and Backstreet Boys, sing along at the top of your lungs when they’re on the radio. The people whose opinions you should care about respect that type of courage and authenticity.

“You can be the ripest, juiciest peach in the world, and there’s still going to be somebody who hates peaches.” -Dita Von Teese

I think of this quote whenever I find myself questioning my abilities or the way someone reacted to my work. We can’t control how others respond to us. We can only control ourselves and how we show up in the world.

“The size of your dreams must always exceed our current capacity to achieve them. If your dreams do not scare you, they are not big enough.” -Ellen Johnson Sirleaf

From a young age, we’re subconsciously taught to tamp down our dreams. A kid gushes to his teacher that he wants to be an astronaut, and the teacher reminds him he’s “not good enough at math,” so maybe he should pick something else instead. Or an intern lets it slip that she wants to be a CEO someday, and her boss says that’s unrealistic. Screw that. The only worthwhile dreams are the scary ones.

“The most valuable lesson I’ve learned as a journalist is that everybody is interesting if you ask the right questions. If someone is dull or uninteresting, it’s on you.” -Kate Murphy

On several occasions, I’ve asked Lyft drivers to tell me their life story in five minutes. Every time, they’ve amazed me with their stories: a refugee who fled to America for a better life, a sports career torpedoed due to an injury, a retired entrepreneur who drives ride-shares just to chat with people, etc. Everyone has a story to tell. We just need to ask the right question.

“What do you love doing so much that the words failure and success essentially become irrelevant?” -Elizabeth Gilbert

Each of us was born with a handful of passions that unlock our deepest, truest selves. For me, it’s reading, traveling, eating nice meals, and playing basketball. For you, maybe it’s birdwatching, spending time with your kids, or collecting stamps. The exact passions don’t matter. Your level of fulfillment is directly related to how much time you spend doing those things.

“The final estimate of men shows that history cares not an iota for the rank or title a man has borne, or the office he has held, but only the quality of his deeds and the character of his mind and heart.” -Samuel Brengle

David Brooks talks about the difference between “resumé virtues” and “eulogy virtues.” When you die, no one will care whether you worked at McKinsey or McDonald’s. They won’t care whether you were a CEO or a janitor. But they WILL remember if you were loving and kind.

“We suffer more often in imagination than in reality.” -Seneca

The brain is like a lush garden, full of flowers and weeds alike. If you water the weeds (fears, anxieties, etc.) and give them undue attention, they’ll grow. But so will the flowers (self-confidence, optimism, hope, etc.).

“All events are neutral, and I can choose how to react to them. I can choose to be a victim to my circumstances, or I can choose to stand responsible for how I handle my circumstances.” -Daniel Negreanu

Our brains immediately judge anything that happens, but there’s no way of telling whether a “horrible event” will truly end up being so horrible in the end. Lost jobs can lead to empowering career changes. Lost relationships can lead to even better ones. No event is inherently “good” or “bad.”

“If anyone can refute me — show me I’m making a mistake or looking at things from the wrong perspective — I’ll gladly change. It’s the truth I’m after, and the truth never harmed anyone. What harms us is to persist in self-deceit and ignorance.” -Marcus Aurelius

The ability to re-think is perhaps the most underrated ability in the world. If you can gain the capacity to question yourself and truly listen to others, you’ll be able to pursue the facts, wherever they lie. If everyone did that, topics like politics, religion, and social issues wouldn’t be so contentious.

“I don’t like that man. I must get to know him better.” -Abraham Lincoln

It’s easy to dwell on differences, but it’s more helpful to focus on similarities. Every human wants to be loved, and everyone has wounds in their past that chiseled the scars they exhibit today. Learning someone’s background will often melt your animosity toward them. Context creates compassion. Get to know your enemies.

“With every decision, conversation, gesture, comment, action, and attitude, we’re inviting heaven or hell to earth.” -Rob Bell

The people most focused on heaven tomorrow are often the ones who care the least about the earth today. But our actions bring “heaven” or “hell” to the world every single day. Be the person who brings joy and light into every room you enter.

“I am successful to the degree that who I am and what I live are in alignment.” -Susan Scott

How wide is the gap between who you say you are and how you actually live? You say you’re honest, but did you go back to the retail counter the last time you were undercharged for an item? You claim to be unselfish, but do you drop off meals for your sick friends? Shrink the gap.

“We have made at least a start in discovering the meaning in human life when we plant shade trees under which we know full well we will never sit.” -D. Elton Trueblood

Real altruism is rare. You can cultivate it by beginning to plant seeds you’ll never harvest (helping others, educating the next generation, etc.).

“Everything you want is on the other side of fear.” -Jack Canfield

We must push through fear and doubt to achieve anything of importance. Big things are never easy, but we must mount the gumption to slowly begin walking in the right direction. Use fear as a compass.

“Most people go through life thinking that tomorrow they’re going to do something great.” -Nick Bilton

What are you planning to do “tomorrow”? Write a book? Run a marathon? Finally start your business? The problem is…tomorrow never comes. Each of us is defined by what we do today.

“Time magnifies the margin between success and failure. It will multiply whatever you feed it. Good habits make time your ally. Bad habits make time your enemy.” -James Clear

Want to get into better shape? Go to the gym today. Want to develop a reading habit? Read today. Habits begin with one foot in front of the other.

“There is no task, however seemingly mammoth, that is not just a series of component parts.” -Ryan Holiday

Everything worth doing requires tenacity, endurance, and a mental shrink-ray that can shrink the task down to its component parts. You don’t need to tackle the whole thing at once. You just need to divide it into its component parts, then tackle step #1. Then step #2. Then step #3.

“What you will become in five years will be determined by what you read and who you associate with.” -Charles ‘Tremendous’ Jones

Whether we like it or not, each of us is the product of our environment. But you know what’s amazing? We can shape our environment.

“Men give me credit for some genius. All the genius I have lies in this: when I have a subject in hand, I study it profoundly.” -Alexander Hamilton

Anything can be learned, especially today in the age of the Internet. But will you put in the time to learn it?

“There’s no talent here, this is hard work. This is an obsession. Talent does not exist. We are all equal as human beings. You could be anyone if you put in the time. You will reach the top, and that is that. I am not talented, I am obsessed.” -Conor McGregor

It’s easy to buy into the idea that some people are “geniuses” or “naturals” who are in a different league than the rest of the world. This myth functions as a false ceiling on our potential. The truth is that behind every “genius” is a mountain of determination, an ocean of sweat, and hundreds of hours of effort when no one was watching.

“One of the most important insights anyone in business can have is that it’s not cruel to tell people the truth respectfully and honestly.” -Patty McCord

Many people mistakenly think you must choose to be either candid or kind. They question whether to (A) share a tough message and lose the relationship or (B) stay silent and maintain the relationship. The truth is…we don’t have to choose. Strive to be both candid and kind.

“Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.” -Anaïs Nin

The best business advice I ever received was to “run toward the fire” and become known as the type of person who solves the toughest problems. People notice courage because it’s such a rare trait. Smell smoke? Start running toward it.