Book quotes: Our finest moments...occur precisely when we are uncomfortable

The best lie, promoted by some of our social institutions is that "we're here to be happy all the time". For motives of profit, the lies of materialism and advertising suggests that if we're not happy, comfortable and fulfilled, we must be eating the wrong cereal, or driving the wrong car, or that we must not have it right with god — how wicked.

The truth is, that our finest moments, more often than not, occur precisely when we are uncomfortable, when we're not feeling happy or fulfilled, when we're struggling and searching. In this bombardment of one dimensional thinking, we're told in clear but subtle ways about what is expected of us in order to fit into society.

— M.Scott Peck, A Road Less Travelled