“I think that the one thing that we've learned in our union is that you don't wait. You just get out and you start doing things.”

“It was just one of those things," I said, "You know, that just happen. You don't think or plan. You just do it.”

“If you don't know, the thing to do is not to get scared, but to learn.”

“I don't understand it any more than you do, but one thing I've learned is that you don't have to understand things for them to be.”

“Out there things can happen, and frequently do,
To people as brainy and footsy as you.
And when things start to happen, don't worry, don't stew.
Just go right along, you'll start happening too!”

“The thing to understand is that if you are going to reform society you don't start with cops. And if you are going to reform intellect you don't start with psychiatrists. If you don't like our present social system or intellectual system the best thing you can do with either cops or psychiatrists is stay out of their way. You leave them till last.”

“One thing I do understand is that people get scared when I start thinking out loud.”

“You don't start out writing good stuff. You start out writing crap and thinking it's good stuff, and then gradually you get better at it.
That's why I say one of the most valuable traits is persistence.”

“If you don't get everything you want, think of the things you don't get that you don't want.”

“The main thing is to make up your mind. If you're going to do it, do it, and if you're just going to halfway do it don't even try. This is a very demanding thing. I stay simple, I didn't get a whole lot of education, so most of it's just coming from what I gathered up. If you stay honest we've all got in common that we're all different. If you stay real deadly honest and write about some very interesting things then you'll be a good one. A lot of people just don't like to get honest but it's the cheapest psychiatrist there is. I think that's the way to look at it.”