“Adversity in almost all the presidents I’ve studied changes them. For Teddy Roosevelt, in 1884, losing his wife and his mother on the same day, in the same house. He goes to the Badlands, and he’s suddenly out among people. Both he and F.D.R. had to move beyond their privileged class. Polio and his…”— Doris Kearns Goodwin, vanityfair.comTagged: Empathy, Adversity, The Obstacle Is The Way
“There’s a point where the vanity burns away and you’ve had your fill of your name in the papers, or big adoring crowds, or the exercise of power. And for me that happened fairly quickly. And then you are really focused on: What am I going to get done with this strange privilege that’s been granted t…”— Barack Obama, vanityfair.comTagged: Strange Privilege, Ego, Seeing Further, Burning Focus
“I think of the things that have come before me during the day and the decisions that I have made, I say to myself—well, I have done the best I could and turn over and go to sleep.”— Franklin D. Roosevelt, vanityfair.comTagged: Goodnight, Night, End of the Day, Your Life and Your Decisions
“I am a firm believer that you don’t do anything significant by yourself.”— Barack Obama, vanityfair.comTagged: It Takes A Village, Community, Against Individualism
“In the United States, hopefully, what we’re building are not just pyramids, are not icons to one pharaoh. What we’re building is a culture and a way of living together that we can look back on and say, this was good, was inclusive, was kind, was innovative, was able to fulfill the dreams of as many…”— Barack Obama, vanityfair.comTagged: The United States, Politcal Experiments, Building The World, Political Structures, Social Systems
“What is relevant is: What am I building that lasts?”— Barack Obama, vanityfair.comTagged: The Long View, Big Picture, Work Strategies, Aphorisms