Mastery (The Modern Machiavellian Robert Greene Book 1)

by Robert Greene

“Just as a well-filled day brings blessed sleep, so a well-employed life brings a blessed death.”

You are not tied to a particular position; your loyalty is not to a career or a company. You are committed to your Life’s Task, to giving it full expression. It is up to you to find it and guide it correctly.

you may not want to go in search of mentors until you have acquired some elementary skills and discipline that you can rely upon to interest them.

One book that crossed his path played a decisive role in his life: Michael Faraday’s two-volume Experimental Researches in Electricity. This book became for Edison what The Improvement of the Mind had been for Faraday.

Navigating smoothly the social environment, we have more time and energy to focus on learning and acquiring skills.

“Chance favors only the prepared mind.”

Engaged in the creative process we feel more alive than ever, because we are making something and not merely consuming, Masters of the small reality we create.

You must make this a model for your own work as well. Your project or the problem you are solving should always be connected to something larger—a bigger question, an overarching idea, an inspiring goal.