Donald Miller Quotes

We have to listen to other people's stories. That's the thing. And that's the only way that we eventually get to know ourselves.

Those who write about life, reflect about life. you see in others who you are.

Once we begin to question our thoughts, our partners-alive, dead or divorced-are always our greatest teachers. There's no mistake about the person you're with; he or she is the perfect teacher for you, whether or not the relationship works out, and once you enter inquiry, you come to see that clearly.

Everybody should have a documentary made about themselves. It's amazing what you see and what you learn.

It was easier to know a character's point of view than it was to figure out what your point of view was.

I used to think, 'How can I write my life story? I'm still living it.'

A story about my life should not be particularly interesting, but it is: it's just about me and some kids who didn't know how to talk to each other. It's personal but not autobiographical.

Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.

I've always liked the idea of memoirs, going into someone else's life, going through someone else's day and getting out of your own head.

If you don't understand yourself you don't understand anybody else.

What makes writing a memoir difficult is harder to quantify. Is it learning to know when you're ready to talk about something? Is it seeing the structure in a lumpen mass of fact? Is it finding out what you were really like as other people saw you? Yes to each.

I've learnt to listen. I don't think I always did listen.

People learn the most about themselves by confronting those with whom they deeply disagree..

Books can only reveal us to ourselves, and as often as they do us this service we lay them aside.

Stories teach us empathy. They reveal to us ourselves in the skins of others.

Always search for your innermost nature in those you are with, as rose oil imbibes from roses.

It's really about connecting to your own humanity and your own behaviors, and getting to a level of self-awareness so that you can have perspective and step outside of yourself and transform and become another person.

Whoever can weep over himself for one hour is greater than the one who is able to teach the whole world; whoever recognizes the depth of his own frailty is greater than the one who sees visions of angels.

The more you understand yourself, the more you will understand the world.

You're always thinking, "What does that add up to?" You can't really get a handle on it. I was curious. I felt like it would be an interesting challenge for me to write down what I'd seen and done and learned - all the convolutions captured in one item that I could look at and get some grip on what the hell happened.

I can’t help thinking about memoir as a down-and-up process: Dive down for color; come up for context. Sink back down for action; climb back up for self-awareness and gratitude.

The art of listening needs its highest development in listening to oneself; our most important task is to develop an ear that can really hear what we're saying.

He who knows others is clever; He who knows himself has discernment.

To know yourself you have only to set down a true statement of those that ever loved or hated you.

And he who does not know himself does not know others, so it may be said with equal truth, that he who does not know others knows himself but very imperfectly.