The snow goose need not bathe to make itself white. Neither need you do anything but be yourself.

Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.

You should do what other people do, unless you have a very good reason not to.

All my big mistakes are when I try to second-guess or please an audience. My work is always stronger when I get very selfish about it.

My fans don’t feel like I hold anything back from them. They know whatever I’m going through now, they’ll hear about it on a record someday. They’ll hear the real story. There’s a little bit of lag time. It’s not as instant as going on a gossip blog. But it’s much more accurate.

The only answer to fear is faith in God, knowing He loves you unconditionally and individually.

Literature is strewn with the wreckage of men who have minded beyond reason the opinions of others.

The art of acting is not to act. Once you show them more, what you show them, in fact is bad acting.

To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.

You learn that there’s no right way to do it, no wrong way to do it. It’s just what you feel comfortable with, to trust that, and don’t let anybody box you in to a certain style of parenting or make you feel a certain way about what your kids do.

I restore myself when I’m alone.

I do believe in God. But you won’t find me visiting temples every now and then. I believe in self-realization. Peace of mind matters a lot to me. What’s the point in doing something just for the sake of it? I’d rather do something I like doing as long as I’m being true to myself.

I want my fans to love themselves. It’s almost like I want to hypnotize them so when they hear my music they love themselves instantly.

I am particularly drawn to the form of meditation called Japa. I know it works.

I first found delight in the Sabbath many years ago when, as a busy surgeon, I knew that the Sabbath became a day for personal healing. By the end of each week, my hands were sore from repeatedly scrubbing them with soap, water, and a bristle brush. I also needed a breather from the burden of a demanding profession.

You aren’t normal if you sing to people. You aren’t a normal person. It’s nerve-racking.

Patience is key for getting over a breakup. That, and trailing off your interaction after the breakup.

Originality is a thing we constantly clamour for, and constantly quarrel with.

The trouble with always trying to preserve the health of the body is that it is so difficult to do without destroying the health of the mind.

I look at myself like a show dog. I’ve got to keep her clipped and trimmed and in good shape.

I’ll never tell a lie. I’ll never make a misleading statement. I’ll never betray the confidence that any of you had in me. And I’ll never avoid a controversial issue.

In my later years, I have looked in the mirror each day and found a happy person staring back. Occasionally I wonder why I can be so happy. The answer is that every day of my life I’ve worked only for myself and for the joy that comes from writing and creating. The image in my mirror is not optimistic, but the result of optimal behavior.

There are many sham diamonds in this life which pass for real, and vice versa.

I carry a small sheet of paper in my wallet that has written on it the names of people whose opinions of me matter. To be on that list, you have to love me for my strengths and struggles.

It’s simple, if it jiggles, it’s fat.

When I came into this industry, I was never afraid to be myself.

Give yourself more opportunities for privacy, when you are not bombarded with duties and obligations. Privacy is not a rejection of those you love; it is your deserved respite for recharging your batteries.

I’m not in this world to live up to your expectations and you’re not in this world to live up to mine.

This above all; to thine own self be true.

The wish for healing has always been half of health.

Before I can live with other folks I’ve got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn’t abide by majority rule is a person’s conscience.

One is loved because one is loved. No reason is needed for loving.

It is not love that should be depicted as blind, but self-love.

The only real failure in life is not to be true to the best one knows.

What I want for my fans and for the world, for anyone who feels pain, is to lean into that pain and embrace it as much as they can and begin the healing process.

If you consider the definition of authenticity, it’s saying something and actually doing it. I write my own songs. I made my own videos. I pick my producers. Nothing goes out without my permission. It’s all authentic.

If an individual wants to be a leader and isn’t controversial, that means he never stood for anything.

There’s just some magic in truth and honesty and openness.

I’m tough when I have to be, tender when I should be. When you find a really tough guy, he’s not a predator. He doesn’t have to prove himself. Guys who have to pretend to be tough, they ain’t. I’m tough.

One cannot become a saint when one works sixteen hours a day.

Your love is not outside; it is deep within you. You can never lose it, and it cannot leave you. It is not dependent on some other body, some external form.

I make decisions all day, so it’s nice for a woman like me to go to dinner and have the man take the menu and say, ‚Let me order.‘ Other women would be offended by that, but I’m like, ‚Good. Because I can’t make one more decision today.‘ I want someone to rub my feet without being asked.

No man was ever great by imitation.

For a creative writer possession of the ‚truth‘ is less important than emotional sincerity.

The most virtuous are those who content themselves with being virtuous without seeking to appear so.

If it’s going to come out eventually, better have it come out immediately.

It is better to be alone than in bad company.

I say what I want to say and do what I want to do. There’s no in between. People will either love you for it or hate you for it.

I can’t very well be teaching one way and living my life another way. What I do in life must be consistent with the things I say. And the same goes for you.

Always be sincere, even if you don’t mean it.

For beautiful eyes, look for the good in others; for beautiful lips, speak only words of kindness; and for poise, walk with the knowledge that you are never alone.

You don’t have to be somebody different to be important. You’re important in your own right.

I think every entertainer’s had nights when things go wrong. I mean you can’t remember everything all the time, and especially if you’re having hard times personally, things going on that you – you know, and then people make it worse. And that makes you feel worse.

I write from my soul. This is the reason that critics don’t hurt me, because it is me. If it was not me, if I was pretending to be someone else, then this could unbalance my world, but I know who I am.

Key is never be afraid of being yourself. Never!

I’m not really concerned with portraying this tough warrior – I mean, that’s part of my job and I take that very seriously. But I don’t have anything to hide, and I’m not concerned with what people think.

No face which we can give to a matter will stead us so well at last as the truth. This alone wears well.

We all self-conscious. I’m just the first to admit it.

Around every corner, always protect the engine that powers you.

I’m not perfect.

There’s no real excuse for being successful enough as an actor to do what you want and then selling out. You do it pure. You don’t try to adapt it, make it commercial.