India Test and one-day international cricketer, 1996–2012; later India head coach
Let us not be so satisfied with the present, with deals and finances in hand that we get blindsided.
Recorded · ESPNcricinfo · 2011
In their thirties
Old enough to have a view and young enough to still be arguing for it. A great deal of the working advice on this site was given at this age.
31 people · 1,017 answers
What are bad recommendations you hear in your profession or area of expertise?
Co-founder and chief executive of Dropbox
I was going to say work on what you love, but that's not really it. It's so easy to convince yourself that you love what you're doing — who wants to admit that they don't?
Recorded · MIT News (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) · 2013
Irish professional boxer; Olympic champion 2012
I have never felt the need to trash talk, and I'm not going to start now! I just quietly do my job and then quietly step into the ring to showcase what I can do.
Recorded · RTÉ · 2025
United States swimmer, 2000–2016
I think it's something that nobody's really talked about in the past because we're supposed to be this big, macho, strong person that has no weaknesses.
Recorded · CBS News · 2018
Novelist and essayist
Don’t romanticise your “vocation”. You can either write good sentences or you can’t. There is no “writer’s lifestyle”. All that matters is what you leave on the page.
Recorded · The Guardian · 2010
Co-founder and former chief executive of Spotify
Many people talk about a willingness to have failures. I hate failures. I don't think you should strike to make failures.
Recorded · Music Ally · 2016
In the last five years, what have you become better at saying no to?
Novelist and essayist
To get this prize, I was required to talk about how important a particular European feminist woman writer had been to me.
Recorded · Wellesley College · 2015
Novelist and essayist
Protect the time and space in which you write. Keep everybody away from it, even the people who are most important to you.
Recorded · The Guardian · 2010
United States sprinter, 2003–2022
What I'm not willing to accept is the enduring status quo around maternity.
Recorded · The New York Times · 2019
When you feel overwhelmed or unfocused, what do you do?
Spanish professional tennis player, 2001–2024
Sometimes when I'm in the first round or second round, and I'm not playing well, I say, okay, just accept it. Don't get frustrated. Just accept and focus.
Recorded · CBS News / 60 Minutes · 2020
Irish professional boxer; Olympic champion 2012
There are days when I wake up and don't want to move, but you must show up!
Recorded · RTÉ · 2025
Kenyan marathon runner
You run, eat, sleep, walk around - that's how life is. You don't get complicated. The moment you get complicated it distracts your mind.
Recorded · BBC Sport · 2019
Everyone here · A–Z
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