Paulo Coelho is a Brazilian author of internationally bestselling inspirational stories of spiritual- and self-awakening. His best-known work, The Alchemist, has been translated into over sixty-five languages.
CLEAR ALL
Resolve to do the things you find to be difficult. That’s what confident people do. They tackle those things that are scary and they get addicted to doing it.
1
Learning any new skill involves relatively brief spurts of progress, each of which is followed by a slight decline to a plateau somewhat higher in most cases than that which preceded it . . . the upward spurts vary; the plateaus have their own dips and rises along the way. . . .
What we call ‘mastery’ can be defined as that mysterious process through which what is at first difficult or even impossible becomes easy and pleasurable through diligent, patient, long-term practice.
Indecision leads to inaction, which leads to low energy, depression, despair.
2
It may be hard for an egg to turn into a bird: it would be a jolly sight harder for a bird to learn to fly while remaining an egg. We are like eggs at present. And you cannot go on indefinitely being just an ordinary, decent egg. We must be hatched or go bad.
3
Courage is not simply one of the virtues but the form of every virtue at the testing point, which means at the point of highest reality.
Since in order to speak, one must first listen, learn to speak by listening.
Stay a verb—don’t become a noun.
4
If you bring forth what is within you it will save you. If you do not, it will destroy you.
Excessive use of external motivation can slow and even stop your journey to mastery.