WSJ Magazine - On Point: Life Lessons from the Columnists Interviews in WSJ. Magazine

W SJ. Magazines Columnists feature, in which six people from different backgrounds and cultural pursuitsartists, scientists, fashion designers, CEOs, comedians, chefs and athletes, among othersweigh in on a single topic, has kicked off every issue since I became editor in chief in 2013. One part cocktail party chatter, one part philosophical debate, the page has, over its five years of existence, served as a monthly snapshot of the intellectual and emotional climate of the times.

Its also become, in a serendipitous way, a compendium of everyday wisdom. Thats because the subjects covered by the columnlove, power, fear, intuition, luck, envy, memory, confidence and so much morehave a broad appeal. The life lessons bubbling up from these short manifestos are as important to our readers as the headlines of the day. (And, speaking of news, in a nod to The Wall Street Journal, which WSJ. Magazine is wrapped and distributed inside every month, each columnists portrait is rendered in the Journals classic, hand-illustrated stipple style, referred to as a hedcut by the newsroom.)

The volume you hold in your hands is the first time this pithy opinion page and its distinguished constellation of voices have been gathered together in one place. Here you will find Martha Stewart and Cindy Crawford holding forth on perfection, Donatella Versace and Jay McInerney speaking about indulgence, Deepak Chopra on epiphanies, Yoko Ono on patience, Sarah Jessica Parker on transformation, Neil deGrasse Tyson on the futureeven Miss Piggy on love. The format allows these luminaries to break free of the constraints of conventional interviews or Q&As, providing a space for deeply personal reflections and resurfacing anecdotes and insights that are often a key to understanding what made them who they are today.

The range of perspectives is inspirational. I was as tickled by David Sedariss reflections on willpower (I have to overdo pretty much everything) as I was edified by Kenneth Branaghs observation that ambition has given him tremendous energy and a way of looking at the world. Diane von Furstenberg offers a highly personal take on independence, while the late architect Zaha Hadid opened up about her philosophy of design.

On the subject of discipline, Karl Lagerfeld is charmingly blunt: Discipline? Oh, I have none.

There is no right or wrong way to read this book. Some may decide to follow the pages sequentially from start to finish, to absorb the many crosscurrents of thought that emerge. Others will prefer to dip in at a random spot for a daily dose of inspiration. An index cataloging the topics discussed is another point of entry. So whether youre looking for words of wisdom from Tory Burch, Questlove, Simone Biles or Jonathan Franzen, or youre after a primer on risk, habit, innovation or loyalty, youve come to the right place.

I hope you get as much enjoyment out of the book as we have putting it together for you.

Kristina ONeill, April 2018

Some people have a negative reaction to the word advice. They imagine somebody shaking their finger and telling them what to do. That kind of advice is never helpful. Good advice is simply about sharing your perspective. When I started writing an advice column, I approached it with a sense of curiosity and a light heart, and I quickly realized that it was incredibly meaningful work. I was using stories to illuminate those deeper human truths that can so often be guiding lights for us. The big questions were always about love, sex and family. Will I ever be loved? How do I heal when bad things happen? The letters I got could be devastating. But theres something about being able to help others thats empowering. You shift from despair to hope. We are made stronger for our suffering, especially when we turn that into generosity, into helping others.

Strayed is an author.

A few years ago I played the lead in Macbeth, a drama about ambition, on the stageunhealthy ambition, one might say, that carries resentment, aggression, treachery and acquisitiveness. Lady Macbeth says of her husband, Art not without ambition, but without the illness should attend it. But I think this pejorative association with ambition is a dangerous thing. Ambition can give us a sense of purpose, meaning and determination. And I think that ambition need not be ruthless. Ambition begets adventure, a process that teaches us that the journey is potentially more enjoyable than the arrival. Ambition has given me tremendous energy and a way of looking at the world. What Ive learned about ambition is to share it, that it need not always be about you, that it works best quietly but insistently and can indeed be healthy, despite what Lady Macbeth says.

Branagh is an actor and director.