The fastest way to change yourself is to hang out with people who are already the way you want to be.
Interpretation
Surrounding yourself with the right people can accelerate your personal growth.
This quote by Reid Hoffman emphasizes the powerful influence that the company we keep has on our personal development. By associating with individuals who embody the traits and behaviors we aspire to, we can more rapidly and effectively transform ourselves, as their attitudes and practices can inspire and guide us toward our goals.
In practice
During a workshop on personal development, I shared this quote to encourage participants to evaluate their social circles.
Leaders, whether in the public or the private sphere, must understand the responsibilities that come with their role. They are the most visible standard-bearers of their organizations. Holding them accountable to this responsibility protects the promise of our organizations and our communities.
The same instincts that make us good students can make us lousy entrepreneurs.
The entrepreneurial journey starts with jumping off a cliff and assembling an airplane on the way down.
Any effort to make the death penalty speedier and less costly - more 'efficient' - will inevitably make it less just.
I've long believed that if you're not embarrassed by your first product release, you've released too late.
Good ideas need good strategy to realize their potential.
Living through times of rapid change can be exhilarating, but it also can be very difficult.
Unlucky people are stuck in routines. When they see something new, they want no part of it. Lucky people always want something new. They're prepared to take risks and relaxed enough to see the opportunities in the first place.
We have always policed the bodies of people of color, and black people in particular. The Jim Crow South is a classic example. White flight in the North. School segregation. Gerrymandering.
As a newcomer to America who learned to 'speak American' by watching movies, I firmly believe that to change the politics of immigration and citizenship, we must change culture - the way we portray undocumented people like me and our role in society.
Building capacity dissolves differences. It irons out inequalities.
Security can only be achieved through constant change, through discarding old ideas that have outlived their usefulness and adapting others to current facts.
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