M. C. Escher on Work
“My work is a game, a very serious game.” M. C. Escher Dutch artist (1898 – 1972)
Benjamin Franklin on Freedom and Security
“He who sacrifices freedom for security deserves neither.” Benjamin Franklin
Robert W. Sarnoff on Finance
“Finance is the art of passing money from hand to hand until it finally disappears.” Robert W. Sarnoff
Walt Disney on Movies
“Movies can and do have tremendous influence in shaping young lives in the realm of entertainment towards the ideals and objectives of normal adulthood.” Walt Disney
Samuel Johnson on Writing
“Your manuscript is both good and original, but the part that is good is not original and the part that is original is not good.” Samuel Johnson, (attributed) English author, critic, & lexicographer (1709 – 1784)
Miguel de Cervantes on Truth
“Facts are the enemy of truth.” Miguel de Cervantes, Man of La Mancha Spanish adventurer, author, & poet (1547 – 1616)
H. L. Mencken on Imagination
“Any man who afflicts the human race with ideas must be prepared to see them misunderstood.” H. L. Mencken US editor (1880 – 1956)
Benjamin Franklin on Time
“You may delay, but time will not.” Benjamin Franklin
Mahatma Gandhi on Work
“Whatever you do will be insignificant, but it is very important that you do it.” Mahatma Gandhi Indian political and spiritual leader (1869 – 1948)
Zig Ziglar on Success
“It was character that got us out of bed, commitment moved us into action, and discipline enabled us to follow through.” Zig Ziglar
Paul Valery on Politics
“Politics is the art of preventing people from taking part in affairs which properly concern them.” Paul Valery, Tel Quel 2 (1943) French critic & poet (1871 – 1945)
Lord Acton on Business
“I’m not a driven businessman, but a driven artist. I never think about money. Beautiful things make money.” Lord Acton
Emile Chartier on Ideas
“There are only two kinds of scholars; those who love ideas and those who hate them.” Emile Chartier
Frank Lloyd Wright on Truth
“The truth is more important than the facts.” Frank Lloyd Wright US architect (1869 – 1959)
Saint Paul the Apostle on Money
“People who want to be rich fall into all sorts of temptations and traps. They are caught by foolish and harmful desires that drag them down and destroy them.” Saint Paul the Apostle, The Bible (1 Timothy 6:10)
Chester Bowles on Politics
“Government is too big and too important to be left to the politicians.” Chester Bowles US diplomat & economist (1901 – 1986)
Jason Fried on Success
“You don’t need to win every medal to be successful.” Jason Fried, Signal Vs. Noise
Edith Wharton on Happiness
“There are lots of ways of being miserable, but there’s only one way of being comfortable, and that is to stop running round after happiness. If you make up your mind not to be happy there’s no reason why you shouldn’t have a fairly good time.” Edith Wharton, The Last Asset, 1904 US novelist (1862 – 1937)
Seneca on Difficulties
“It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare; It is because we do not dare that they are difficult.” Seneca
Louis Pasteur on Science
“There are no such things as applied sciences, only applications of science.” Louis Pasteur French biologist & bacteriologist (1822 – 1895)
Josh Billings on Marriage
“Marrying for love may be a bit risky, but it is so honest that God can’t help but smile on it.” Josh Billings
Jef Mallett on Opinion
“An opinion should be the result of thought, not a substitute for it.” Jef Mallett Frazz, 04-04-07
Arthur Schopenhauer Wisdom Quote
“We forfeit three-fourths of ourselves in order to be like other people.” Arthur Schopenhauer German philosopher (1788 – 1860)
Baltasar Gracian on Wisdom
“A wise man gets more use from his enemies than a fool from his friends.” Baltasar Gracian
Don Juan Manuel on Praise
“He who praises you for what you lack wishes to take from you what you have.” Don Juan Manuel Spanish author & nobleman (1282 – 1349)
Gilbert K. Chesterton on Imagination
“It is not bigotry to be certain we are right; but it is bigotry to be unable to imagine how we might possibly have gone wrong.” Gilbert K. Chesterton English author & mystery novelist (1874 – 1936)
Harlan Ellison’s Funny Quote
“The two most common elements in the universe are Hydrogen and stupidity.” Harlan Ellison US science fiction author & screenwriter (1934 – )
Pierre Beaumarchais Cynical Quote
“It is not necessary to understand things in order to argue about them.” Pierre Beaumarchais French businessman & comic dramatist (1732 – 1799)
Sharon Salzberg on Life and Education
“We learn and grow and are transformed not so much by what we do but by why and how we do it.” Sharon Salzberg, O Magazine, The Power of Intention, January 2004
Francis Bacon on Death
“Men fear death as children fear to go in the dark; and as that natural fear in children is increased by tales, so is the other.” Francis Bacon
W. C. Fields on Gambling
“Horse sense is the thing a horse has which keeps it from betting on people.” W. C. Fields US actor (1880 – 1946)
Francis Bacon on Beauty
“There is no excellent beauty that hath not some strangeness in the proportion.” Sir Francis Bacon, “Of Beauty” English author, courtier, & philosopher (1561 – 1626)
Woodrow Wilson on Equality
“There can be no equality or opportunity if men and women and children be not shielded in their lives from the consequences of great industrial and social processes which they cannot alter, control, or singly cope with.” Woodrow Wilson
Sun Tzu on Leadership
“A leader leads by example not by force.” Sun Tzu Chinese general & military strategist (~400 BC)
Thomas Jefferson on Liberty
“I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty than to those attending too small a degree of it.” Thomas Jefferson, to Archibald Stuart, 1791 3rd president of US (1743 – 1826)
Zig Ziglar on Friendship
“If you go looking for a friend, you’re going to find they’re very scarce. If you go out to be a friend, you’ll find them everywhere.” Zig Ziglar
Adrian Mitchell on Poetry
“Most people ignore most poetry because most poetry ignores most people.” Adrian Mitchell
Tom Morris on Love and Life
“The meaning of life is creative love. Not love as an inner feeling, as a private sentimental emotion, but love as a dynamic power moving out into the world and doing something original.” Tom Morris
Eleanor Roosevelt on Character
“People grow through experience if they meet life honestly and courageously. This is how character is built.” Eleanor Roosevelt
George Jean Nathan on Patriotism
“Patriotism is often an arbitrary veneration of real estate above principles.” George Jean Nathan US drama critic & editor (1882 – 1958)
Ralph Waldo Emerson on Greatness
“To be great is to be misunderstood.” Ralph Waldo Emerson, An Essay on Self-Reliance US essayist & poet (1803 – 1882)
Oswald Chambers on Work
“The whole point of getting things done is knowing what to leave undone.” Oswald Chambers
Ludwig Wittgenstein on Philosophy
“Philosophy is a battle against the bewitchment of our intelligence by means of language.” Ludwig Wittgenstein Austrian philosopher (1889 – 1951)
Will Rogers on Direction
“Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” Will Rogers US humorist & showman (1879 – 1935)
Thomas Jefferson on Dreams and History
“I like the dreams of the future better than the history of the past.” Thomas Jefferson
Scott Adams on Business
“Informed decision-making comes from a long tradition of guessing and then blaming others for inadequate results.” Scott Adams
Samuel Johnson on Work
“Men are generally idle, and ready to satisfy themselves, and intimidate the industry of others, by calling that impossible which is only difficult.” Samuel Johnson, Life of Boerhaave English author, critic, & lexicographer (1709 – 1784)
Frank Herbert on Knowledge
“The beginning of knowledge is the discovery of something we do not understand.” Frank Herbert US science fiction novelist (1920 – 1986)
Bertrand Russell on Scepticism
“It is undesirable to believe a proposition when there is no ground whatsoever for supposing it is true.” Bertrand Russell, Sceptical Essays (1928), “On the Value of Scepticism” British author, mathematician, & philosopher (1872 – 1970)
Charles Kuralt on Travel
“Thanks to the Interstate Highway System, it is now possible to travel from coast to coast without seeing anything.” Charles Kuralt
