You will become way less concerned with what other people think of you when you realize how seldom they do.
David Foster WallaceRead
Almost anything that you pay close, direct attention to becomes interesting.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Focusing intently on something can reveal its inherent interest and significance.
David Foster Wallace's quote suggests that the act of paying close, direct attention to something transforms the way we perceive it, making it more interesting and meaningful. This idea emphasizes the power of mindfulness and engagement in our daily lives, encouraging us to delve deeper into the world around us and discover the beauty and complexity that may otherwise go unnoticed.
Themes
AttentionMindfulnessEngagementInterestAwareness
In practice
Example use cases
In a presentation about the importance of mindfulness practices.
More from David Foster Wallace
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It seems important to find ways of reminding ourselves that most 'familiarity' is meditated and delusive.
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Under fun's new administration, writing fiction becomes a way to go deep inside yourself and illuminate precisely the stuff you don't want to see or let anyone else see, and this stuff usually turns out (paradoxically) to be precisely the stuff all writers and readers share and respond to, feel.
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Acceptance is usually more a matter of fatigue than anything else.
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Bliss - a-second-by-second joy and gratitude at the gift of being alive, conscious - lies on the other side of crushing, crushing boredom. Pay close attention to the most tedious thing you can find (Tax Returns, Televised Golf) and, in waves, a boredom like youβve never known will wash over you and just about kill you. Ride these out, and itβs like stepping from black and white into color. Like water after days in the desert. Instant bliss in every atom.
David Foster WallaceRead
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