Idries Shah Quotes
Please, not again what you studied, how long you spent at it, how many books you wrote, what people thought of you - but: what did you learn?
Quotes to Explore
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The oldest books are only just out to those who have not read them.
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The hardest thing in the world for a writer is to amass a readership. So many good books come out, and so many good books disappear.
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As one grows older one becomes more critical of oneself and less of other people.
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We want to encourage people to talk to one another.
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Some of the most fun people I know are scientists.
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I think it's a mistake to try to pin down one particular reason for a person's personality. Don't we all, for many reasons, act differently in different circumstances and with different people?
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I think bad politics are incredibly dangerous, so it's important to make sure that people are communicating well. Culture and morale are super important. It's best to not force it, but let it happen organically and genuinely.
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Every story I write adds to me a little, changes me a little, forces me to reexamine an attitude or belief, causes me to research and learn, helps me to understand people and grow.
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There is little difference in people, but that little difference makes a big difference. The little difference is attitude. The big difference is whether it is positive or negative.
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I read books. Remember those? I read them, on paper.
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People are really talkative in New York. Someone always comes up to me and says 'Hi' during the day.
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Of course we wish that more people involved in the leak of my true CIA identity had been prosecuted, but the system worked.
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I was a writer for hire. I wrote to pay the bills.
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I don't want to privatise part of the parliament, like some people in Russia.
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I think, initially, working on your own is really great because it allows you to just be really free and not worry about how things are perceived or if people are going to think you're an idiot. And once that becomes ingrained, at least for me, I think I'll feel really comfortable to work with other people and still feel that same freedom.
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Crazy old people are our entire source of polling information.
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I would say that my fatal flaw, as a human being, is that I need people to like me, and if they don't like me, I will obsess over it - and try to change my personality until they like me - even if they don't like me for reasons that have nothing to do with me, and even if they're strangers.
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I always try to put something personal on my albums just to give people out there a little piece of my history and how I got where I am and who I am.
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People inspire me. Everyone is such an individual and has unique stories. I'm a voyeur. I eavesdrop. Sometimes I ask questions. And sometimes people just want to tell me their stories.
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I'm an actor.
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Canada is rich in hydrocarbons and other natural resources... India's requirements and Canada's surplus are a perfect match.
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Everything my mother made had to cook for 80 hours, and when she made matzoh balls she didn't know fluffy. Everything sank.
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I can imagine nothing more terrifying than an Eternity filled with men who were all the same. The only thing which has made life bearable…has been the diversity of creatures on the surface of the globe.
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Please, not again what you studied, how long you spent at it, how many books you wrote, what people thought of you - but: what did you learn?
