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

Not a great deal is known about the factors in childhood that doubtless underlie a person's choice of career - I'm talking…

— Nathaniel Branden

The music that inspires the souls of lovers exists within themselves and the private universe they occupy. They share it with each…

— Nathaniel Branden

The higher our self-esteem, the stronger the drive to express ourselves, reflecting the sense of richness within. The lower our self-esteem, the…

— 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

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

— 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

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

— 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

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

— 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

In the whole history of capitalism, no one has been able to establish a coercive monopoly by means of competition in a…

— Nathaniel Branden

You are not likely to bring out the best in people or nurture their creativity if every time you hear about their…

— Nathaniel Branden

To love a person is to know and love the person. But we can pick up an enormous amount about another human…

— Nathaniel Branden

Individualism is at once an ethical-psychological concept and an ethical-political one. As an ethical-psychological concept, individualism holds that a human being should…

— Nathaniel Branden

Living consciously reflects the conviction that sight is preferable to blindness; that respecting the facts of reality is more satisfying than denying…

— Nathaniel Branden

“Out of fear, out of the desire for approval, out of misguided notions of duty, people surrender themselves--their convictions and their aspirations--every…

— Nathaniel Branden

To live consciously means to seek to be aware of everything that bears on our actions, purposes, values, and goals—to the best…

— Nathaniel Branden

To accept struggle as part of life, to accept all of it, even the darkest moments of anguish; to be motivated by…

— Nathaniel Branden

The tragedy of too many people is that they cannot allow happiness just to be there; they cannot leave it alone. Their…

— Nathaniel Branden

“Throughout the world there is an awakening to the fact that, just as a human being cannot hope to realize his or…

— 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