What I Learned from the Richest Man in the World

by Alan Cohen

"Life was intended to be big and a lot. Everything, everywhere, in infinite supply, capable of reproducing itself in immeasurable quantities forever. Enough of everything for everyone. Always."

When you put two small things together, the results get only smaller."

Habits affect you whether you mean them or not. Every time you assume, 'there's not enough' or 'I'm not enough' and you get together with someone who agrees, you just bred a pygmy thought. You just made your world smaller."

"When millions of people keep thinking 'not enough' and fueling their belief with fear, the world shrinks daily."

Most people feel safe in their familiar little world—even if it stinks.

"Once you start blaming, there's no end. You can't go back and hang the first amoeba."

"Oh, come on, live a little, would you?" he chided me. "The purpose of life is not to arrive safely at death."

"Word of mouth is the best sign and real estate you can invest in."

"Everything you buy is a statement of what you believe you're worth," he explained. "People who love and believe in themselves give themselves what makes them happy."

"Why is it that so many religions teach that money is evil, and then spend so much time asking for it?"

"I don't come to conclusions. A conclusion is where you got tired of thinking. If I came to a conclusion, I'd be dead."

"But some rules run deeper than the ones on paper. There are times when engineering harmony is more important than being right. Over time, building relationships generates more revenue than holding people at gunpoint."

"'Take what you have and make what you want',"

When you are learning to ride a bike, you learn from falling off, but you learn just as much—maybe more—when you stay balanced and enjoy the ride. Pain has a purpose, but it is highly overrated as a teaching device. If you pay attention to internal signals and external feedback, life won't need a two-by-four to get your attention."

"Just because technology lets you do twelve things at a time, doesn't mean you have to. Spin as many plates as you can without them crashing on you. If you can fully give your attention to one thing at a time, everything you do will speak of excellence."

"People who decide to be happy no matter what the stock market is doing, find all kinds of things to feel successful about—and attract more."