The 48 Laws of Power

Never waste valuable time, or mental peace of mind, on the affairs of others—that is too high a price to pay.

The Arrogant and Proud Man. Although he may initially disguise it, this man’s touchy pride makes him very dangerous. Any perceived slight will lead to a vengeance of overwhelming violence. You may say to yourself, “But I only said such-and-such at a party, where everyone was drunk....” It does not matter. There is no sanity behind his overreaction,

Friends often agree on things in order to avoid an argument.

The only means to gain one’s ends with people are force and cunning. Love also, they say; but that is to wait for sunshine, and life needs every moment. JOHANN VON GOETHE, 1749-1832

As Nietzsche wrote, “The value of a thing sometimes lies not in what one attains with it, but in what one pays for it—what it costs us.”

As Lincoln said, you destroy an enemy when you make a friend of him.

How can you protect yourself against such insidious viruses? The answer lies in judging people on the effects they have on the world and not on the reasons they give for their problems.

Never waste valuable time, or mental peace of mind, on the affairs of others—that is too high a price to pay.

Impatience, on the other hand, only makes you look weak. It is a principal impediment to power.

truth, the use of honesty is indeed a power strategy, intended to convince people of one’s noble, good-hearted, selfless character. It is a form of persuasion, even a subtle form of coercion.