Positive Illusion Quotes

Illusory joy is often worth more than genuine sorrow.

Sometimes a happy delusion is better than grim reality.

For people at the bottom who are really doing badly — those in the bottom 10th or 15th percentile — they think their work falls in the 60th or 55th percentile, so, above average. People at the bottom still think they're outperforming other people.

My mom was so good at hiding the bad in life that I thought all of life was good.

It is in numberless instances happier to have a false opinion which we believe true, than a true one of which we doubt.

There are certain ways you have to delude yourself. Self-delusion is important, for instance in family life. You know what I mean? If you're in love with your wife you have to go in there with blind faith. You have to support everything. And with your kids, you have to believe that you're doing something that has higher purpose; even though you don't have any evidence that that's the way it's going to turn out.

America is a vast conspiracy to make you happy.

Suppose you like someone very much. Then, by a familiar halo effect, you will also be prone to believe many good things about that person - you will be biased in their favor. Most of us like ourselves very much, and that suffices to explain self-assessments that are biased in a particular direction.

I never met another man I'd rather be. And even if that's a delusion, it's a lucky one.

If you can delude yourself by believing that there is some kind of Santa Claus out there who is going to bail you out in the end, then it will help you get through. Even if you are proven wrong in the end, you would have had a better life than a non-believer.

The ability to delude yourself may be an important survival tool.

The best any human can do is to pick a delusion that helps him get through the day