93 Robert Greene Quotes on Power & Life (MASTERY)

38 Inspiring Robert Greene Quotes on Being The Master of Your Life

Life goes by very fast. And the worst thing in life that you can have is a job that you hate, and have no energy and creativity in.

We must create our own world or we will die from inaction.

Mastery is not a function of genius or talent, it is a function of time and intense focus applied to a particular field of knowledge. — **Mastery** is not a function of genius or **talent**, it is a function of time and intense **focus** applied to a particular field of **knowledge**.

Keep your friends for friendship, but work with the skilled and competent.

Boldness makes even the smallest animal dangerous.

The secret to success is retaining your child-like qualities.

Mistakes and failures are precisely your means of education. They tell you about your own inadequacies. — Mistakes and failures are precisely your means of **education**. They tell you about your own inadequacies.

Your faith in yourself should overcome your insecurities. Imagine yourself a king and you will become a king.

The best way to neutralize our natural impatience is to cultivate a kind of pleasure in pain – like an athlete, you come to enjoy rigorous practice, pushing past your limits, and resisting the easy way out.”
Robert Greene

Everything that happens to you is a form of instruction if you pay attention.

In the end, the money and success that truly last come not to those who focus on such things as goals, but rather to those who focus on mastery and fulfilling their Life’s Task.

Every single human being is a completely unique creation.

The time that leads to mastery is dependent on the intensity of our focus.

Never waste valuable time, or mental peace of mind, on the affairs of others—that is too high a price to pay. — Never waste valuable time, or mental **peace of mind**, on the affairs of others—that is too high a price to pay.

The future belongs to those who learn more skills and combine them in creative ways. — The **future** belongs to those who **learn** more skills and combine them in creative ways.

What kills the creative force is not age or lack of talent, but our own spirit, our own attitude. — What kills the creative force is not age or lack of talent, but our own spirit, our own **attitude**.

It is up to you to set your own price. Ask for less and that is what you will get. Ask for more, however, and you send a signal that you are worth a king’s ransom. Even those who turn you down will respect your confidence, and that will pay off in ways you can’t imagine.”
Robert Greene

Power is not what we do but what we do not – hasty and unwise actions that we repeat every day and which ultimately bring us into trouble. — Power is not what we do but what we do not – hasty and unwise **actions** that we repeat every day and which ultimately bring us into trouble.

The greatest test of courage on earth is to bear defeat without losing heart. — The greatest test of **courage** on earth is to bear defeat without losing heart.

When it comes to mastering a skill, time is the magic ingredient.

Mastery is not a question of genetics of luck, but of following your natural inclinations and the deep desires that stirs you from within.

What makes people successful is their degree of motivation.

Never whine, never complain, never try to justify yourself.

If the happiness and prosperity of other people depend on you, you have nothing to fear anymore. — If the happiness and prosperity of other people depend on you, **you have nothing to fear anymore**.

The need for certainty is the greatest disease the mind faces.

Creative endeavors are by their nature uncertain. — Creative endeavors are by their **nature** uncertain.

When you show yourself to the world and display your talents, you naturally stir all kinds of resentment, envy, and other manifestations of insecurity… you cannot spend your life worrying about the petty feelings of others.”
Robert Greene

Increase your power and your image will gain reliability. — Increase your power and your image will gain **reliability**.

Become the curator of life. Edit, leave out the junk. But when you find something worth keeping, treasure it.

The truth is that creative activity is one that involves the entire self - our emotions, our levels of energy, our characters, and our minds. — The **truth** is that creative activity is one that involves the entire self – our emotions, our levels of energy, our **characters**, and our minds.

Be royal in your own fashion: act like a king to be treated like one.

Do not leave your reputation to chance or gossip; it is your life’s artwork, and you must craft it, hone it, and display it with the care of an artist.

People are more complicated than the masks they wear in society.

Keep others in suspense, cultivate an air of unpredictability.

Routine life is unbearable, and most people only think about how to escape into the world of fantasy and dreams. — Routine life is unbearable, and most people only think about how to escape into the world of fantasy and **dreams**.

The person who cannot control his words shows that he cannot control himself.

55 Robert Greene Quotes on Power, Strategies, & Seduction

Be wary of friends-they will betray you more quickly, for they are easily aroused to envy. They also become spoiled and tyrannical. But hire a former enemy and he will be more loyal than a friend, because he has more to prove.”
Robert Greene

Be as fluid as water, do not give your enemies anything solid to attack.

Never take your position for granted and never let any favors you receive go to your head.

Powerful people impress and intimidate by saying less. The more you say, the more likely you are to say something foolish.

Lord, protect me from my friends; I can take care of my enemies.

Teach no one your tricks or they will be used against you.

There is nothing more intoxicating than victory, and nothing is more dangerous.

Confidence is important, but if it is not based on a realistic appraisal of who you are, it is mere grandiosity and smugness.

Do not commit to any side or cause but yourself. By maintaining your independence, you become the master of others.

Your fears are a kind of prison that confines you within a limited range of action. The less you fear, the more power you will have and the more fully you will live. — Your fears are a kind of prison that confines you within a limited range of **action**. The less you fear, the more power you will have and the more fully you will live.

Grand strategy is the art of looking beyond the present battle and calculating ahead. Focus on your ultimate goal and plot to reach it.

The human tongue is a beast that few can master.

Strike the shepherd and the sheep will scatter.

You don't take people's maneuvers personally; you merely try to defend or advance yourself. — You don’t take people’s maneuvers personally; you merely try to defend or advance yourself.

What good is it to have the greatest dream in the world if others reap the benefits and the glory? Never lose your head over a vague, open-ended dream—plan to the end.”
Robert Greene

You must learn when to leave. Create value through scarcity. — You must **learn** when to leave. Create value through scarcity.

Any titles, money, or privilege you inherit are actually hindrances. They delude you into believing you are owed respect. — Any titles, money, or privilege you inherit are actually hindrances. They delude you into believing you are owed **respect**.

There is too little mystery in the world; too many people say exactly what they feel or want.

It is much more powerful to get others to agree with you through your actions, without saying a word. Demonstrate, do not explicate. — It is much more powerful to get others to agree with you through your **actions**, without saying a word. Demonstrate, do not explicate.

When our emotions are engaged, we often have trouble seeing things as they are.

Never be distracted by people’s glamorous portraits of themselves and their lives; search and dig for what really imprisons them.

Do not fight them. Instead think of them the way you think of children, or pets, not important enough to affect your mental balance.

Give people options that come out in your favor whichever one they choose.

In dealing with fools you must adopt the following philosophy: they are simply a part of life, like rocks or furniture. — In dealing with fools you must adopt the following **philosophy**: they are simply a part of life, like rocks or furniture.

Sweet are the thoughts that savour of content, The quiet mind is richer than a crown... — Sweet are the thoughts that savour of content, The quiet mind is richer than a crown…

You must learn to stir people’s curiosity by letting them glimpse something in your private life. — You must **learn** to stir people’s curiosity by letting them glimpse something in your private life.

Everyone admires the bold; no one honors the timid.

Sexuality is extremely disruptive. The insecurities and emotions it stirs up can often cut short a relationship that would otherwise be deeper and longer lasting.

In order to master a field, you must love the subject and feel a profound connection to it. Your interest must transcend the field itself and border on the religious.

Never rush into the waiting arms of the first person who seems to like you. That is not seduction but insecurity.

If, for example, you are miserly by nature, you will never go beyond a certain limit; only generous souls attain greatness. — If, for example, you are miserly by **nature**, you will never go beyond a certain limit; only generous souls attain greatness.

Your greatest power in seduction is your ability to turn away, to make others come after you, delaying their satisfaction.

The best way to protect yourself is to be as fluid and formless as water; never bet on stability or lasting order. Everything changes.

Become who you are by learning who you are. — Become who you are by **learning** who you are.

Love is a lock that linketh noble minds.

Seduction is a game of psychology, not beauty, and it is within the grasp of any person to become a master at the game. All that is required is that you look at the world differently, through the eyes of a seducer.”
Robert Greene

Make yourself a magnet of attention by appearing larger, more colorful, more mysterious than the bland and timid masses.

Fools say that they learn by experience. I prefer to profit by others’ experience. — Fools say that they **learn** by experience. I prefer to profit by others’ experience.

Hurrying betrays a lack of control over yourself and over time. Always seem patient, as if you know that everything will come to you eventually.

Know who you're dealing with. Do not offend the wrong person. — Know who you’re dealing with. Do not offend the wrong person.

When you turn your back on someone, they come running after you.

Your predictability gives them a sense of control. Turn the tables; be deliberately unpredictable.

To succeed in the game of power, you have to master your emotions.

Giving too much can be a sign of desperation, as if you were trying to buy someone.

Sometimes any emotion is better than the boredom of security.

Make people depend on you for their happiness and prosperity and you have nothing to fear. Never teach them enough so that they can do without you. — Make people depend on you for their **happiness** and **prosperity** and you have nothing to fear. Never teach them enough so that they can do without you.

Any man who tries to be good all the time is bound to come to ruin among the great number who are not good.

Keep people off-balance and in the dark by never revealing the purpose behind your actions. If they have no clue what you are up to, they cannot prepare a defense. — Keep people off-balance and in the dark by never revealing the **purpose** behind your **actions**. If they have no clue what you are up to, they cannot prepare a defense.

The more you are seen and heard from, the more common you appear.

Every seduction has two elements that you must analyze and understand: first, yourself and what is seductive about you; and second, your target and the actions that will penetrate their defenses and create surrender.”
Robert Greene

If there is something you want but you cannot have, show contempt for it. The less interest you reveal, the more superior you seem.

You cannot repress anger or love, or avoid feeling them, and you should not try.

The unfortunate sometimes draw misfortune on themselves, they will also draw it on you. Associate with the happy and fortunate instead.

When you act, act effortlessly, as if you could do much more. Avoid the temptation of revealing how hard you work -- it only raises questions. — When you act, act effortlessly, as if you could do much more. Avoid the temptation of revealing **how hard you work** — it only raises questions.

Robert Greene Short Biography

Best known for writing the New York Times Bestsellers The 48 Laws of Power (1998), Robert Greene is also the author of international bestsellers The Art of Seduction (2001), The 33 Strategies of War (2006), The 50th Law (2009), Mastery (2012) and The Laws of Human Nature (2018).

Robert Greene polarizes his readers by writing what he feels is right and best for his readers; not exactly what his readers want to hear.

Understand: people will constantly attack you in life. One of their main weapons will be to instill in your doubts about yourself – worth, your abilities, your potential. They will often disguise this as their objective opinion, but invariably it has a political purpose – they want to keep you down.”
Robert Greene

As a reader, reading his books can be tough (sorta like tough love) and controversial (sometimes) but if you allow yourself the chance to be open, you’ll find Greene’s work to be phenomenal.

Greene’s books are recognized worldwide and are praised by top historians and the biggest musicians in the industry – including Jay-Z and 50 Cent.

Here are the most inspiring quotes by Robert Greene so you can harness your human nature for success and master your dark side.

(MUST READ)

Also read:

38 Inspiring Robert Greene Quotes on Being The Master of Your Life

55 Robert Greene Quotes on Power, Strategies, & Seduction

Robert Greene Short Biography

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