The first step in solving any problem is recognizing there is one - America is not the greatest country in the world anymore. Aaron Sorkin More Quotes by Aaron Sorkin More Quotes From Aaron Sorkin Don't ever forget that you're a citizen of this world, and there are things you can do to lift the human spirit, things that are easy, things that are free, things that you can do every day: civility, respect, kindness, character. Aaron Sorkin respect freedom kindness Good writers borrow from other writers. Great writers steal from them outright. Aaron Sorkin good-writers great-writers stealing You're going to fall down, but the world doesn't care how many times you fall down, as long as it's one fewer than the numbers of times you get back up. Aaron Sorkin numbers graduation fall I'd been concerned all along that the character of the president in the West Wing pilot would throw the ensemble out of whack, that that character would simply take up all the oxygen in a room. I wanted to hold off bringing this character in until the last possible moment. Aaron Sorkin moments president character I love writing. I'm not particularly comfortable in the actual world - I'm much more comfortable on the page. So if I could have a life where I could just slip the pages under the door and somebody would slip me a meal back, then that would be perfect for me. Aaron Sorkin perfect writing doors I love writing but hate starting. The page is awfully white and it says, "You may have fooled some of the people some of the time but those days are over, giftless. I'm not your agent and I'm not your mommy, I'm a white piece of paper, you wanna dance with me?" and I really, really don't. I'll go peaceable-like. Aaron Sorkin hate white writing Rule of storytelling: When a character is shoved against a wall, shove them against a wall harder. Aaron Sorkin storytelling wall character An artist’s job is to captivate… if we stumble into truth, we got lucky. Aaron Sorkin lucky artist jobs Stupid people surround themselves with smart people. Smart people surround themselves with smart people who disagree with them. Aaron Sorkin smart stupid people Decisions are made by those who show up. Aaron Sorkin decision shows made Socializing on the internet is to socializing what reality TV is to reality. Aaron Sorkin internet tvs reality Education is the silver bullet. Education is everything. We don't need little changes, we need gigantic, monumental changes. Schools should be palaces. The competition for the best teachers should be fierce. They should be making six-figure salaries. Schools should be incredibly expensive for government and absolutely free of charge to its citizens, just like national defense. That's my position. I just haven't figured out how to do it yet. Aaron Sorkin government teacher school Perhaps something like Facebook couldn't have been invented by somebody who goes out five nights a week and has a ton of friends and makes friends really easily. Aaron Sorkin like-facebook week night A friend is somebody who says the same things to your face that they would say if you're not in the room. Aaron Sorkin your-face faces rooms The real problem with all drugs is that they work. Fantastically. They're great, right up until the moment they kill you. Aaron Sorkin drug problem real Tell me what you think and then tell me what the really smart person in the room who disagrees with you thinks. Aaron Sorkin smart rooms thinking Music is what mathematics does on a Saturday night. Aaron Sorkin mathematics doe night People don't live their lives in a series of scenes that form a dramatic narrative, they don't speak in dialogue, they're not lit by a cinematographer or scored by a composer. The properties of real life and the properties of drama have almost nothing to do with each other. The difference between writing about reporters and being a reporter is the same as the difference between drawing a building and building a building. Aaron Sorkin real drama life Writers are opposite of athletes, they get better with age Aaron Sorkin get-better athlete opposites I'm not interested in the difference between good and bad, I'm interested in the differences between good and great. Aaron Sorkin not-interested good-and-bad differences
