Worship power, you will end up feeling weak and afraid, and you will need ever more power over others to numb you to your own fear. Worship your intellect, being seen as smart, you will end up feeling stupid, a fraud, always on the verge of being found out. But the insidious thing about these forms of worship is not that they’re evil or sinful, it’s that they’re unconscious. They are default settings.
from This is water - David foster wallace
Notes
I understand how I sometimes feel like a imposter because internally I believe being smartest guy in the room is the only skill I possess. And when there is a chance for it to be proven wrong, I panic & run away.