For many years, I have written a quote on my board at the front of the room. Many of these are from famous people, but many are not and some are just things that I've found to be interesting. I'll post them (and others) here for your enjoyment. Feel free to submit your favorites!
Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm. -- Emerson
Start by doing what is necessary, then what is possible, and suddenly you are doing the impossible. St. Francis of Assisi
Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you.
Shallow men believe in luck. Strong men believe in cause and effect.
If a man does not know what port he is steering for, no wind is favorable to him. Seneca
The pessimist complains about the wind, the optimist expects it to change, the realist adjusts the sails. UA Ward
A crisis is an opportunity riding the dangerous wind. Chinese proverb
Change is a measure of time, and in the autumn, time seems speeded up. What was is not and never again will be. What it is is change.
People seem not to see that their opinion of the world is also a confession of their character.
The superior person is modest in his speech but exceeds in his actions. Confucsis
The important thing is this: to be able at any moment to sacrifice what we are for what we could become. Dubois
Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm. Emerson
Pain is inevitable. Suffering is optional. H. witte
A wise man does at once what a fool does at last.
Most problems arise due to a lack of communication. C. Cores
When the character of a man is not clear to you, look at his friends. Prverb
The greatest of faults, I should say, is to be conscious of none. F. Carlyle
To be prepared is half the victory. Cervantes
There are many wonderful things that will never be done if you do not do them. C gill
The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity. Parker
It’s what people know about themselves inside that makes them afraid. Eastwood
The freedom to swing your fist ends where the other guy’s nose begins.
The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining.
The greatest test of courage on earth is to be defeated without losing heart.
Self-discipline is the ability to make yourself do what you should do when you should do it, whether you feel like it or not.
Ebert Hubbard
Sometimes it’s the smallest decisions that change your life forever. Keri Russell
A good laugh is sunshine in a house. William Thackery
A man’s errors are his portals of discovery. James Joyce (9/23/08)
Learning is never done without errors and defeat. Lenin
Be careful of your thoughts; they may become words at any moment. Ira Gassen
Half of the world is composed of people who have something to say and can’t; and the other half who have nothing to say and keep on saying it. Robert Frost
You’ve go to think about ‘big things’ while you’re doing small things so that all the small things go in the right direction. Alvin Toefeller
Remember not only to say the right thing in the right place, but far more difficult still, to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment. Ben Franklin
Man’s natures are alike; it is their habits that carry them apart. Confucius
Great things are not done by impulse but a series of small things brought together. Van Gogh
The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place. G B Shaw
I am a member of a team, and I rely on the team, I defer to it, and sacrifice for it, because the team, not the individual is the ultimate champion. Mia Hamm
Individually, we are one drop. Together, we are an ocean. Ryunoste Saturo
The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance. Socrates
Sweat silently. Let’s have no squawking about a little expenditure of energy. Martin Fischer (8/26/08)
The way to procure insults is to submit to them; a man meets with no more respect than he exacts. William Hazlit
All the beautiful sentiments in the world weigh less than a single lovely action. James Lowell
You must be the change you wish to see in the world. Gandhi
I would, if I could, stand on a busy corner, hat in hand, and beg people to throw me all their wasted hours. Bernard Bereven
If there is no struggle, there is no progress. Frederick Douglass
People should know what you stand for … and what you won’t stand for.
Winners have simply formed the habit of doing things losers don’t like to do. (8/21/08)
A man’s accomplishments in life are the cumulative effect of his attention to detail.
(8/25/08)
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit. Aristotle (8/28/08)
The great dividing line between success and failure can be expressed in five words: ‘I did not have time’. (9/2/08)
It is curious that physical courage is so common in the world and moral courage is so rare. (9/10/08)
Attitude determines altitude. (9/9/08)
Losing doesn’t build character, it reveals character. (9/11/08)
If there is no wind, row! (9/18/08)
I’m a great believer in luck and the harder I work the more I have of it. Thomas Jefferson (10/9/08)
Discipline yourself so others won’t have to. John Wooden 10/6/08
Well done is better than well said. BF 10/10/08
Your spark can become a flame and ignite your passions.
Never let fear of striking out get in your way. Babe Ruth
Love people. Use things. Not vice versa.
If you have always done it that way, you’re probably doing it wrong.
What you think, you become.
The difficulty lies not in developing new ideas, it’s letting go of old ones.
There are no shortcuts to anywhere worth going to.
When you’re through changing, you’re through.
Every thought is a seed, if you plant crabapples, don’t expect Golden Delicious.
Never mistake motion for action. Hemingway
It’s not having what you want, it’s wanting what you have.
Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.
People don’t come here to learn to drive, they come to get a license.
Our life is what our thoughts make it.
People only see what they are prepared to see.
You cannot step twice into the same river.
We don’t live in a world of reality, we live in a world of perceptions. Simmons
A wise man learns by the mistakes of others, a fool by his own. Proverb
Who aims at excellence will be above mediocrity; who aims at mediocrity will be far short of it. Burmese proverb
He who has never learned to obey cannot be a good commander. Aristotle
You cannot plow a field by turning it over in your mind.
The best way out is always through. Frost
Nothing will ever be attempted if all possible objections must first be overcome. S. Johnson
Constant dripping hollows out a stone. Lucretius
Don’t try to be a great man. Be a man. Let history make its judgment.
A person must be interested in finding the best way, not in having his own way.
“A guru gives us himself and then his system; a teacher gives us his subject, and then ourselves
When your work speaks for itself, don’t interrupt. H. kaiser
Always the beautiful answer who asks a more beautiful question. e e cummings
Start by doing what is necessary, then what is possible, and suddenly you are doing the impossible. St. Francis of Assisi
Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you.
Shallow men believe in luck. Strong men believe in cause and effect.
If a man does not know what port he is steering for, no wind is favorable to him. Seneca
The pessimist complains about the wind, the optimist expects it to change, the realist adjusts the sails. UA Ward
A crisis is an opportunity riding the dangerous wind. Chinese proverb
Change is a measure of time, and in the autumn, time seems speeded up. What was is not and never again will be. What it is is change.
People seem not to see that their opinion of the world is also a confession of their character.
The superior person is modest in his speech but exceeds in his actions. Confucsis
The important thing is this: to be able at any moment to sacrifice what we are for what we could become. Dubois
Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm. Emerson
Pain is inevitable. Suffering is optional. H. witte
A wise man does at once what a fool does at last.
Most problems arise due to a lack of communication. C. Cores
When the character of a man is not clear to you, look at his friends. Prverb
The greatest of faults, I should say, is to be conscious of none. F. Carlyle
To be prepared is half the victory. Cervantes
There are many wonderful things that will never be done if you do not do them. C gill
The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity. Parker
It’s what people know about themselves inside that makes them afraid. Eastwood
The freedom to swing your fist ends where the other guy’s nose begins.
The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining.
The greatest test of courage on earth is to be defeated without losing heart.
Self-discipline is the ability to make yourself do what you should do when you should do it, whether you feel like it or not.
Ebert Hubbard
Sometimes it’s the smallest decisions that change your life forever. Keri Russell
A good laugh is sunshine in a house. William Thackery
A man’s errors are his portals of discovery. James Joyce (9/23/08)
Learning is never done without errors and defeat. Lenin
Be careful of your thoughts; they may become words at any moment. Ira Gassen
Half of the world is composed of people who have something to say and can’t; and the other half who have nothing to say and keep on saying it. Robert Frost
You’ve go to think about ‘big things’ while you’re doing small things so that all the small things go in the right direction. Alvin Toefeller
Remember not only to say the right thing in the right place, but far more difficult still, to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment. Ben Franklin
Man’s natures are alike; it is their habits that carry them apart. Confucius
Great things are not done by impulse but a series of small things brought together. Van Gogh
The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place. G B Shaw
I am a member of a team, and I rely on the team, I defer to it, and sacrifice for it, because the team, not the individual is the ultimate champion. Mia Hamm
Individually, we are one drop. Together, we are an ocean. Ryunoste Saturo
The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance. Socrates
Sweat silently. Let’s have no squawking about a little expenditure of energy. Martin Fischer (8/26/08)
The way to procure insults is to submit to them; a man meets with no more respect than he exacts. William Hazlit
All the beautiful sentiments in the world weigh less than a single lovely action. James Lowell
You must be the change you wish to see in the world. Gandhi
I would, if I could, stand on a busy corner, hat in hand, and beg people to throw me all their wasted hours. Bernard Bereven
If there is no struggle, there is no progress. Frederick Douglass
People should know what you stand for … and what you won’t stand for.
Winners have simply formed the habit of doing things losers don’t like to do. (8/21/08)
A man’s accomplishments in life are the cumulative effect of his attention to detail.
(8/25/08)
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit. Aristotle (8/28/08)
The great dividing line between success and failure can be expressed in five words: ‘I did not have time’. (9/2/08)
It is curious that physical courage is so common in the world and moral courage is so rare. (9/10/08)
Attitude determines altitude. (9/9/08)
Losing doesn’t build character, it reveals character. (9/11/08)
If there is no wind, row! (9/18/08)
I’m a great believer in luck and the harder I work the more I have of it. Thomas Jefferson (10/9/08)
Discipline yourself so others won’t have to. John Wooden 10/6/08
Well done is better than well said. BF 10/10/08
Your spark can become a flame and ignite your passions.
Never let fear of striking out get in your way. Babe Ruth
Love people. Use things. Not vice versa.
If you have always done it that way, you’re probably doing it wrong.
What you think, you become.
The difficulty lies not in developing new ideas, it’s letting go of old ones.
There are no shortcuts to anywhere worth going to.
When you’re through changing, you’re through.
Every thought is a seed, if you plant crabapples, don’t expect Golden Delicious.
Never mistake motion for action. Hemingway
It’s not having what you want, it’s wanting what you have.
Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.
People don’t come here to learn to drive, they come to get a license.
Our life is what our thoughts make it.
People only see what they are prepared to see.
You cannot step twice into the same river.
We don’t live in a world of reality, we live in a world of perceptions. Simmons
A wise man learns by the mistakes of others, a fool by his own. Proverb
Who aims at excellence will be above mediocrity; who aims at mediocrity will be far short of it. Burmese proverb
He who has never learned to obey cannot be a good commander. Aristotle
You cannot plow a field by turning it over in your mind.
The best way out is always through. Frost
Nothing will ever be attempted if all possible objections must first be overcome. S. Johnson
Constant dripping hollows out a stone. Lucretius
Don’t try to be a great man. Be a man. Let history make its judgment.
A person must be interested in finding the best way, not in having his own way.
“A guru gives us himself and then his system; a teacher gives us his subject, and then ourselves
When your work speaks for itself, don’t interrupt. H. kaiser
Always the beautiful answer who asks a more beautiful question. e e cummings