“One must ask: if your belief in yourself is not dependent on actual achievement, then what is it dependent on? The answer, too often when we are just setting out, is nothing. Ego. And this is why we so often see precipitous rises followed by calamitous falls.”
More from Ryan Holiday
“Just because your mind tells you that something is awful or evil or unplanned or otherwise…”
“How To Stay Calm While Everyone Else Freaks Out: → Separate things into what you control…”
“Don’t measure yourself against other people’s posturing”
“You've got to cultivate people around you who are not afraid to tell you the truth.”