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Greg McKeown

Greg McKeown Quotes

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Famous Greg McKeown Quotes

“To eliminate nonessentials means saying no to someone. Often. It means pushing against social expectations. To do it well takes courage and compassion. So eliminating the nonessentials isn’t just about mental discipline. It’s about the emotional discipline necessary to say no to social pressure.”

SocialCompassionCouragePressureExpectPushSay NoEliminateNonessential
Book:Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less
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“But this time I felt a sense of immediate clarity: in that instant, I just knew, even as the words escaped my lips, that this was the essential path for me. What made me so sure I was on the right path was how the clarity disappeared when I even thought of applying elsewhere. Several times I started the application process for other programs but always stopped after a few minutes. It just didn’t feel right. So I concentrated my efforts only on that single application. As I waited to hear back from the university, many other opportunities, some quite tempting, presented themselves. I said no to all of them. But despite the uncertainty of not yet knowing whether I had been accepted, I didn’t feel anxious or nervous. Instead, I felt calm, focused, and in control.”

EffortPathFocusCalmClarityControlFeelConcentrateSay No
Book:Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less
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“Warren decided early in his career it would be impossible for him to make hundreds of right investment decisions, so he decided that he would invest only in the businesses that he was absolutely sure of, and then bet heavily on them. He owes 90% of his wealth to just ten investments. Sometimes what you don’t do is just as important as what you do." In short, he makes big bets on the essential few investment opportunities and says no to the many merely good ones.”

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Book:Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less
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