The first and most important thing an individual can do is to become an individual again, decontrol himself, train himself as to what is going on and win back as much independent ground for himself as possible

William S. Burroughs
About This Quote

Voltaire said, “The first and most important thing an individual can do is to become an individual again, decontrol himself, train himself as to what is going on and win back as much independent ground for himself as possible.” Decontrol is when you learn to control your own mind and emotions. You control your thoughts because you are in charge of your own mind. You can’t allow people to tell you what to think, so you decide for yourself. When you are decontrolled in this way, you can interact with others without being controlled by them.

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More Quotes By William S. Burroughs
  1. Freedom is the only worthy goal in life. It is won by disregarding things that lie beyond our control.
  2. No man is free who is not master of himself.
  3. If anyone tells you that a certain person speaks ill of you, do not make excuses about what is said of you but answer, "He was ignorant of my other faults, else he would not have mentioned these alone.
  4. Don't explain your philosophy. Embody it.
  5. Don't just say you have read books. Show that through them you have learned to think better, to be a more discriminating and reflective person. Books are the training weights of the mind. They are very helpful, but it would be a bad mistake to...
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