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Most people live, whether physically or morally, in a very restricted circle. They make use of a very limited portion of the resources available to them until they face a great problem or crisis. Sometimes imagination is a more valuable asset than experience. People who lack experience are free to imagine what is possible and thus can approach a task without constraints of established habits and attitudes. People have been so encouraged by society to focus on apparent differences that they fail to see meaningful similarities among ideas, individuals, and groups. People often look for similarities, even between very different things, and even when it is unhelpful or harmful to do so. Instead, a thing should be considered on its own terms; we should avoid the tendency to compare it to something else. Spending time alone makes one a better companion to others. The most elusive knowledge is self-knowledge, and it is usually acquired through solitude, rather than through interaction with others. No one can possibly achieve success in the world by conforming to conventional practices and conventional ways of thinking. Public figures such as actors, politicians, and athletes should expect people to be interested in their private lives. When they seek a public role, they should expect that they will lose at least some of their privacy. | 
