David D. Burns

“You feel the way you do right now because of the thoughts you are thinking at this moment.”

“Blame is the sacred cow of depression.”

“The moment you have a certain thought and believe it, you will experience an emotion, a feeling. Your thoughts create your feelings.”

“Every bad feeling is the result of a distorted negative thought.”

“The pursuit of approval is a trap.”

“When you stop telling yourself that you’re worthless, you’ll stop feeling worthless.”

“The 'shoulds' are a form of self-coercion that creates a sense of pressure and resentment.”

“The first principle of cognitive therapy is that all your moods are created by your 'cognitions,' or thoughts.”

“What you are telling yourself is the most important factor in how you feel.”

“The truth is that your feelings result from the meaning you give to an event, not from the event itself.”

“Cognitive distortions are the root cause of our suffering.”

“The key, then, is to change the way you think.”

“Your feelings are not facts.”

“If you are willing to do the work, you can change the way you feel.”

“Anger is almost always caused by the belief that someone is acting unfairly.”

“Perfectionism is the enemy of happiness.”