There is no doubt that in exchanging a self-centered for a selfless life we gain enormously in self-esteem. The vanity of the selfless, even those who practice utmost humility, is boundless.
Interpretation
Living selflessly enhances our self-esteem, but even humility can be a form of vanity.
This quote by Eric Hoffer suggests that by shifting from a self-centered perspective to one that prioritizes the needs of others, we inherently boost our own self-worth. However, Hoffer also warns that even those who pride themselves on being selfless may fall prey to a different kind of vanity, one that stems from their perceived humility, indicating a complex relationship between selflessness and self-esteem.
In practice
During a motivational speech about personal growth and selflessness.
Language was invented to ask questions. Answers may be given by grunts and gestures, but questions must be spoken. Humanness came of age when man asked the first question. Social stagnation results not from a lack of answers but from the absence of the impulse to ask questions.
Faith in humanity, in posterity, in the destiny of one's religion, nation, race, party or family-what is it but the visualization of that eternal something to which we attach the self that is about to be annihilated?
You can discover what your enemy fears most by observing the means he uses to frighten you.
Our frustration is greater when we have much and want more than when we have nothing and want some. We are less dissatisfied when we lack many things than when we seem to lack but one thing.
Our credulity is greatest concerning the things we know least about.
Perhaps a modern society can remain stable only by eliminating adolescence, by giving its young, from the age of ten, the skills, responsibilities, and rewards of grownups, and opportunities for action in all spheres of life. Adolescence should be a time of useful action, while book learning and scholarship should be a preoccupation of adults.
The intellectual attainments of a man who thinks for himself resemble a fine painting, where the light and shade are correct, the tone sustained, the colour perfectly harmonised; it is true to life. On the other hand, the intellectual attainments of the mere man of learning are like a large palette, full of all sorts of colours, which at most are systematically arranged, but devoid of harmony, connection and meaning.
I am always doing that which I cannot do, in order that I may learn how to do it.
Guilt is only another way of avoiding informed action.
It's wonderful to know you're aging, because that means you're still on the planet, right?
Most people talk about fear of the unknown, but if there is anything to fear, it is the known.
Sometimes it's easy to go where the wind blows, but those that stand firmly planted are forces to be reckoned with.
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