Nathaniel Branden

The reputation you have with yourself - your self-esteem - is the single most important factor for a fulfilling life.

— Nathaniel Branden

“It is humiliating to realize that when you drive yourself underground, when you fake who you are, often you do so for…

— Nathaniel Branden

We are anxious when there is a dissonance between our "knowledge" and the perceivable facts. Since our "knowledge" is not to be…

— Nathaniel Branden

Most of the time, I regard the judgment of people as a waste of time. I regard the judgment of behavior as…

— Nathaniel Branden

Fully to surrender to love can be terrifying. But it is the price life asks in exchange for the possibility of ecstasy.

— Nathaniel Branden

When I was a child, I felt at times that I had been born into an insane asylum, that much of human…

— Nathaniel Branden

If you have high self-esteem, you might still know times of emotional suffering, but less often and with faster recovery-your resilience is…

— Nathaniel Branden

Integrity is the integration of ideals, convictions, standards, beliefs-and behavior. When our behavior is congruent with our professed values, when ideals and…

— Nathaniel Branden

Tell me how a person judges his or her self-esteem, and I will tell you how that person operates at work, in…

— Nathaniel Branden

How do we keep our inner fire alive? Two things, at minimum, are needed: an ability to appreciate the positives in our…

— Nathaniel Branden

To preserve an unclouded capacity for the enjoyment of life is an unusual moral and psychological achievement. Contrary to popular belief, it…

— Nathaniel Branden

It is easy enough to say, Be true to your values. But what if your values are irrational? Or what if the…

— Nathaniel Branden

If we do have realistic confidence ... if we feel secure within ourselves, we tend to experience the world as open to…

— Nathaniel Branden

In the nature of our existence, we must act to achieve values. And in order to act appropriately, we need to value…

— Nathaniel Branden

“The idea of original sin--of guilt with no possibility of innocence, no freedom of choice, no alternatives--inherently militates against self-esteem. The very…

— Nathaniel Branden

The greatest barrier to achievement and success is not lack of talent or ability but rather the feeling that achievement and success,…

— Nathaniel Branden

Between the ages of 24 and 27, I read Freud's complete works, everything that had been translated into English. It was very…

— Nathaniel Branden

It would be hard to name a more certain sign of poor self-esteem than the need to perceive some other group as…

— Nathaniel Branden

A productive purpose to which you give yourself fully and joyfully is one of the great adventures of life. It is a…

— Nathaniel Branden

Anyone who engages in the practice of psychotherapy confronts every day the devastation wrought by the teachings of religion.

— Nathaniel Branden

Suffering is just about the easiest of all human activities; being happy is just about the hardest. And happiness requires, not surrender…

— Nathaniel Branden

It is a curious paradox of human history that a doctrine that tells human beings to regard themselves as sacrificial animals has…

— Nathaniel Branden

The first love affair you must consummate is the love affair with yourself. Only then are you ready for a romantic relationship.

— Nathaniel Branden

If you are terrified of making mistakes, you will be reluctant to acknowledge them when you do make them-and therefore you will…

— Nathaniel Branden

If you overcome your fear to ask someone for a date, a raise, or help with a project, that is an act…

— Nathaniel Branden

If we are happy within ourselves, we don't accept or demand that our partner should fulfill every need. We need to be…

— Nathaniel Branden

Where we see self esteem, we see self acceptance. High self esteem individual tend to avoid falling into an adversarial relationship with…

— Nathaniel Branden

The United States was the first country in the history of the world to be consciously created out of an idea -…

— Nathaniel Branden

Sometimes the subconscious mind manifests a wisdom several steps or even years ahead of the conscious mind, and has its own way…

— Nathaniel Branden

As you grow in self-esteem, your face, manner, way of talking and moving will tend naturally to project the pleasure you take…

— Nathaniel Branden

There is no value-judgment more important to a man--no factor more decisive in his psychological development and motivation--than the estimate he passes…

— Nathaniel Branden

To exist without purpose is to be at the mercy of the chance encounter, the chance invitation, the chance phone call, the…

— Nathaniel Branden

Accepting does not necessarily mean liking, enjoying, condoning. I can accept what is-and be determined to evolve from there. It is not…

— Nathaniel Branden

When you are frightened, you typically pull energy in to your center, seeing less, hearing less-shrinking consciousness precisely when you need to…

— Nathaniel Branden

Anyone who really loves you wants you to be authentic. And anyone who doesn't want you to be authentic doesn't really love…

— Nathaniel Branden

The desire for self-esteem without integrity is like the desire for wealth without effort-a longing for the unearned.

— Nathaniel Branden

A well-developed sense of self is a necessary if not sufficient condition of your well-being. Its presence does not guarantee fulfillment, but…

— Nathaniel Branden

Force, governmental coercion, is the instrument by which the ethics of altruism - the belief that the individual exists to serve others…

— Nathaniel Branden

It is true that people are sometimes hit by adversities beyond their control. But those so affected are better helped when they…

— Nathaniel Branden

Set goals that don't feel all that easy, that challenge you, stimulate you, and give you a chance to stretch and push…

— Nathaniel Branden