Don't ascribe to malice anything that can be explained by stupidity.

Time is the only limited resource.

Having children and passing along your values is likely the only achievable form of immortality.

Most people are followers. A few are leaders. Only a small handful of individuals look at the others and say "whoaa, the leaders are assholes, the followers are dumb, so I'm gonna just wing it on my own".

At the same time, whatever gifts you have or don't have, including the ability to think for yourself, are beyond your control, so be charitable.

Human ability has a normal distribution. This is true for any cross section you take. Never assume that a specific profession has a monopoly on a portion of the curve. In other words, the average doctor/engineer/lawyer/etc is still an idiot.

Honesty is a rare commodity.

Words are infinitely powerful, so watch your tongue.