A Field Guide for the Hero's Journey Quotes

“Can’t is a word none should speak without blushing; To utter it should be a symbol of shame; Ambition and courage it daily is crushing; It blights a man’s purpose and shortens his aim. Despise it with all of your hatred of error; Refuse it the lodgment it seeks in your brain; Arm against it as a creature of terror, And all that you dream of you some day shall gain.”
― Robert Sirico, A Field Guide for the Hero's Journey

“If you want to be a hero, you must decide to be a person who acts, rather than a person who says “I can’t.” You can. You can make deliberate choices that will change your life. You can take steps—many small ones, occasionally a big one—toward your chosen goal, your star, your grail.”
― Robert Sirico, A Field Guide for the Hero's Journey

“We need brilliant men and women like Tesla: we need people with a broad vision of what can be and what really is of lasting value, people with the strength to surmount obstacles and maintain a definition of success that is deeper and more authentic than what we find in today’s celebrity tabloids. Are you ready to embrace hard work?”
― Robert Sirico, A Field Guide for the Hero's Journey

“He exemplified the indomitable nature of the human spirit.… Tesla pursued his ideas and interests tirelessly despite being criticized or forgotten.”
― Robert Sirico, A Field Guide for the Hero's Journey

“That’s why I encourage students to fail early, often, and as cheaply as possible. No sane person welcomes stones in the road. But don’t build your life around never facing one. These obstacles are the necessary means for developing the faith and persistence to overcome the real challenges that inevitably confront any person who has set out to do something heroic.”
― Robert Sirico, A Field Guide for the Hero's Journey

“Yet, it is moments like these that hone the gifts and build the character that will pave the way to future success. Sure, sometimes scars—even open wounds—remain. But if you can muster the drive, courage, and confidence to get back up and try again, you will not be defined by obstacles; you’ll be defined as one who overcomes them.”
― Robert Sirico, A Field Guide for the Hero's Journey

“choose to see problems as opportunities, as challenges spurring new ways of thinking and personal growth.”
― Robert Sirico, A Field Guide for the Hero's Journey

“the heroic path is, essentially, about making small choices that add up to a big life. A life in which you make a difference—in yourself, in others, in the world. A life in which you forgive yourself for your trespasses, knowing that you’ve learned from them, and in which you forgive the trespasses of others. A life in which you close your eyes for the last time without regret, confident that you took the hours and days and years you were given and made something spectacular out of them.”
― Robert Sirico, A Field Guide for the Hero's Journey

“heroes are not born, but made.”
― Robert Sirico, A Field Guide for the Hero's Journey

“Do you feel like something big is missing from your life? Do you feel trapped, bored, stuck in a meaningless routine? It may be you think you’re too ordinary to ever do something special. Perhaps you’re afraid that if you try, you’ll fail. The startling truth is this: Just about anyone can do great things, can live a life that’s remarkable, purposeful, excellent, and yes, even heroic. If you want to be a hero, you can be.”
― Robert Sirico, A Field Guide for the Hero's Journey