If weak ties do favors for us, they start to like us.

Twentysomething women and men who are dating down—or working down, for that matter—usually have untold, or at least unedited, stories. These stories originated in old conversations and experiences and, so, they change only through new conversations and new experiences.

Goals direct us from the inside, but shoulds judge us from the outside. Goals feel like authentic dreams, while shoulds feel like oppressive standards.

The Big Five refers to five factors that describe how people interact with the world: Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Neuroticism.

I once had a fortune cookie that read A WISE MAN MAKES HIS OWN LUCK. Perhaps the single best thing we can do to make our own luck in our twenties is say yes to our weak ties or give them a reason to say yes to us.

“the dread of doing what has been done before.” If he ever chose something to do for work, he didn’t want it to be some same-old, everyday thing; his life could be unique.

If building a career is like spending twelve hours at the blackjack table—seeing the cards as you make your decisions, playing each hand with current winnings in mind, having a new opportunity to take a chance or play it safe with every card dealt—then choosing a mate is like walking over to the roulette wheel and putting all your chips on red 32.

Adults don’t emerge. They’re made. —Kay Hymowitz, social commentator We are born not all at once, but by bits. —Mary Antin, writer

The more you use your brain, the more brain you will have to use. —George A. Dorsey, anthropologist