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Using social proof is a great way to limit your life--to make it just like everybody else's.

Whenever one of us began to set our sights lower, lose faith, or "accept reality," the other would chime in via phone or e-mail like an AA sponsor: "Dude, are you turning into the bald fat man in the red BMW convertible?" The prospect was terrifying enough that we always got our asses and priorities back on track immediately. The worst that could happen wasn't crashing and burning, it was accepting terminal boredom as a tolerable status quo. Remember--boredom is the enemy, not some abstract "failure."

you can think for yourself while being open-minded in a clearheaded way to find out what is best for you to do, and if you can summon up the courage to do it, you will make the most of your life.

Thoreau: "If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away."