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A stupid man behaves stupidly, not because he wants to, or tries to, or is motivated to, but simply because he is what he is.

Abraham Maslow

One’s only rival is one’s own potentialities. One’s only failure is failing to live up to one’s own possibilities. In this sense, every man can be a king, and must therefore be treated like a king.
ABRAHAM MASLOW

Failure King Live Man Potential Rival Treat
Creativity is a characteristic given to all human beings at birth.
ABRAHAM MASLOW

Birth Characteristic Creative Human
If you deliberately plan to be less than you are capable of being, then I warn you that you’ll be deeply unhappy for the rest of your life. You will be evading your own capacities, your own possibilities.
ABRAHAM MASLOW

Capable Capacity Delinerate Evade Possible Unhappiness
Perhaps adjustment and stabilization, while good because it cuts your pain, is also bad because development towards a higher ideal ceases?
ABRAHAM MASLOW

Adjustment Cease Development Goodness Pain
We need not take refuge in supernatural gods to explain our saints and sages and heroes and statesmen, as if to explain our disbelief that mere unaided human beings could be that good or wise.
ABRAHAM MASLOW

Belief God Hero Human Being Refuge Saint Wise
In a word, growth and improvement can come through pain and conflict.
ABRAHAM MASLOW

Conflict Growth Improvement Pain
The story of the human race is the story of men and women selling themselves short.
ABRAHAM MASLOW

Human Men Race Sell Story Women
People are not evil; they are schlemiels.
ABRAHAM MASLOW

Evil One Liner People
Obviously the most beautiful fate, the most wonderful good fortune that can happen to any human being, is to be paid for doing that which he passionately loves to do.
ABRAHAM MASLOW

Beautiful Fate Fortune Human Being Inspirational Love Passionate Wonderful
One can choose to go back toward safety or forward toward growth. Growth must be chosen again and again; fear must be overcome again and again.
ABRAHAM MASLOW

Choose Fear Growth Overcome Safety
False optimism sooner or later means disillusionment, anger and hopelessness.
ABRAHAM MASLOW

Anger Hopeless Optimism
When people appear to be something other than good and decent, it is only because they are reacting to stress, pain, or the deprivation of basic human needs such as security, love, and self-esteem.
ABRAHAM MASLOW

Appearance Decent Human Love Pain Security Self Esteem Stress
What one can be, one must be!
ABRAHAM MASLOW

Be Yourself Inspirational One Liner
The great lesson is that the sacred is in the ordinary, that it is to be found in one’s daily life, in one’s neighbors, friends, and family, in one’s backyard.
ABRAHAM MASLOW

Family Friendship Lesson Life Neighbor Ordinary Sacred
Life is an ongoing process of choosing between safety (out of fear and need for defense) and risk (for the sake of progress and growth). Make the growth choice a dozen times a day.
ABRAHAM MASLOW

Choice Defense Fear Growth Life Process Progress Risk Safety Time
Be independent of the good opinion of other people.
ABRAHAM MASLOW

Goodness Independence Opinion People

A stupid man behaves stupidly, not because he wants to, or tries to, or is motivated to, but simply because he is what he is.

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A stupid man behaves stupidly, not because he wants to, or tries to, or is motivated to, but simply because he is what he is.

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