I was extremely shy and had a terrible fear of public speaking. But I had fallen in love with stand-up.

I approximated the Black Friday experience at home by hurling myself into a wall a number of times and then ordering online.

We only hear success stories. You don't hear about the hundreds and hundreds - the overwhelming majority that don't go anywhere. This is a more realistic portrayal of what happens in startups.

The plan was always to come to America, because Pakistan's a scary place. They don't have religious freedom. It's very poor, and there's a lot of violence and corruption.

Just because you saw a vampire doesn't mean that a snowman or a Loch Ness Monster also exists.

I think being funny had something to do with feeling like an outsider, not feeling cool - insecurity.

The whole religion of Islam is based on reward and punishment and reward and punishment, and it becomes a part of how you think of everything. Even yourself.

I thought of America as this crazy, happy, exciting place where everybody's rich and there's stuff everywhere. Compared to Pakistan, it's not untrue.

I am a very nerdy guy. I understand that it's easier to cast me as a nerdy guy than an action star - although I would love to be an action star!

It's not like I listened to music and then stopped. I still don't have a real appreciation for music because I didn't really start listening to it until my 20s.

I moved to New York first and was really apprehensive about moving to L.A., but I really, really like it.

We must get over wanting to be needed-this is the hardest of all temptations to resist

I wasn't getting the responses I hoped for. You can't protect yourself from other judgments.

Success isn't overnight. It's when everyday you get a little better than the day before. It all adds up.

All the rest of us - you and me and even the thousands of soldiers behind the lines in Africa - we want terribly yet only academically for the war to get over.

I am not one who - who flamboyantly believes in throwing a lot of words around.

Few people seem to realize that the resurrection of Jesus is the cornerstone to a worldview that provides the perspective to all of life.

Like the bodies of dancers or athletes, the minds of readers are genuinely happy and self-possessed only when cavorting around, doing their stretches and leaps and jumps to the tune of words.

I'd learned a long time ago that one of the finest weapons in my arsenal was my ability to invade personal space

As an avid photographer, I also took advantage of the latest technology in photography - digital photography - to post photos on my website on a daily basis.