“I want to say to all of you who were reading this, you were reading a book about how to live life.

You weren’t reading about how you can change the world.”

–Daniel Pearl, author of The Power of Habit.

“If you don’t want to change, then you have to take a step back, look at your life and say, ‘What is it that I want to do to change?’

If you don, then the change will happen.

You are in control of the process.”

–Shahid Khan, founder and CEO of Khan Academy.

“It is important to acknowledge that the human mind is not designed to solve problems.

It is designed to create meaning and purpose.

But the more you use it, the more it becomes dependent on you.”

–Benjamin Franklin, 17th President of the United States.

“When I’m feeling down and depressed, I feel like I can’t go out and find someone.

I can only look at myself in the mirror and wonder what I’ve done wrong and why I’m not good enough.

I know that I’m making a mistake and I know I can change that.

And I know if I look at my mistakes and I’m willing to look at how I’ve gone wrong, then I’m going to find that person, I’ll change myself.”

–Rihanna, Grammy Award-winning pop singer.

“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had a day where I felt so depressed that I was like, ‘I’m so sorry.’

And then I’d go on with my day.

I’d be like, oh, I’m so happy.

I don’t know what’s going on.”

–John Lennon, former Beatle and rock icon.

“You’ve got to be a leader.

If you’re not a leader, you’re just a follower.

You can’t be a follower without being a leader.”

–Tobi Ostrovsky, author and motivational speaker.

“The key to changing is to be open to change.”

–Thomas Piketty, French economist and author of Capital in the Twenty-First Century.

“What we need is not a new paradigm.

What we need are a new model.”

–Michael Bloomberg, New York City Mayor.

“This book changed my life.”

–Jill Kagan, former U.S. Attorney General.

“Daniel Pearl is a remarkable human being.

He has a deep understanding of human psychology and a tremendous ability to connect people with their own inner selves.”

–Hannah Arendt, German philosopher and co-founder of the Eppstein Institute.

“For me, it’s a book that has always been a part of my life.

I think it’s something that everyone should have.

I’m glad I got to read it.”

–Dana Rohrabacher, California Republican.

“To see how we all get stuck in a spiral of self-absorption and the self-righteousness of our own egos, this book is a life saver.”

–Bruce Friedrich, CEO of The Leadership Institute.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.