Once upon a time, I was under the illusion that wisdom came in thick textbooks and long lectures. But after decades watching brilliant people quietly fail—and quiet people quietly win—I realized the opposite was true.

Instead, the best ideas I've ever encountered have arrived as memorable quips and glimmers of usable insight, from family, friends, colleagues, professors, and mentors.

So I started writing them down. What you're holding is the list so far: sixty slogans distilled from statistics, music cognition, software, startups, and a few spectacular mistakes. They are not commandments. They are tools.

Read them straight through if you'd like; the sections flow purposefully. Or simply open to a random page. I've learned that the best bits of wisdom also seem to find you when you need them, rather than the other way around. Or treat it like the “I Ching” and throw it against the wall.

My hope is that these can be as helpful and meaningful for you as they have been for me. Take what works. Improve what doesn't. Iterate. And if one slogan or another has meaningful resonance, drop me a note. After all, I still collect these things.

Yuri Broze
Town and Country, Missouri
March 2026