Plant you feet, look them in the eye, and tell the truth. Freedom of speech and freedom of thought are meaningless without freedom to think. And there is no freedom of thought without doubt. The civilized person has an obligation to be skeptical, to demand the credentials of all statements that claim to be facts. Try to be better than yourself.
Specialization is for insects.
Where there are no men, be thou a man. He took a stumbling block and turned it into a stepping stone. Great works are performed not by strength but by perseverance. The difference between an optimist and a pessimist is that the pessimist is usually better informed. Even if you have all the motivation and enthusiasm in the world, the minute you put off a task until tomorrow, you are the same as the person with none.