Gentle

Keep a journal. Knowing you're going to write something every day sharpens your attention to everything that happens. For the longest time, I didn't keep a journal, and as a result much of my pretty long and interesting life is lost to me.

Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling five balls in the air. You name them — work, family, health, friends and spirit. Work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back. But the other four balls are made of glass.

Life is not a race, but a journey to be savored each step of the way. Knowledge is weightless, a treasure you can always carry easily.

For every five minutes you spend looking into a mirror, spend five times that amount of time looking out at the world. Your happiness has a lot more to do with how you see the world than how the world sees you.

Letting your mind play is the best way to solve problems.

To invent your own life's meaning is not easy, but it's still allowed, and I think you'll be happier for the trouble.

Your good friends from college may be the best friends you ever have. Guard those relationships like gold, work hard to maintain them. When they have a wedding, go across the country to be there. When one of them needs your help, cross the globe to give it to them.

Seventy-five percent of your education was paid for by your tuition, but twenty-five percent was paid for by people who never met you, through direct contributions to your endowment. They did not know who you were but gave generously so you could have your education.

Mistakes in your 20's are not irreparable; they're part of your education and probably the most valuable part.

In a society that systematically limits feelings, I hope you will not be afraid to fight for them.

Chaos is often the first step in the creative process. Don't be afraid of not knowing. The act of searching is as important as the act of finding.

Be as smart as you can, but remember that it is always better to be wise than to be smart.