Always remember that you are absolutely unique. Just like everyone else. (Margaret Mead, 20th century cultural anthropologist) Here are two important principles. First, each person is different from every other person. He or she is, indeed, unique. Even twins or...
I never dreamed about success; I worked for it. (Estée Lauder, late cosmetic leader) Athletes dream of being inducted into their sports hall of fame. Actors covet an Oscar or Emmy. Business people fantasize about earning their first million. Authors are hoping for a...
[There] is but one just use of power, and it is to serve people. (George H. W. Bush, 41st U.S. president) English writer Lord Acton famously said, “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” But William Gaddis wrote, “Power doesn't corrupt people,...
You learn something every day you pay attention. (Ray LeBlond, author and communicator) It is often said that you learn something new every day. But LeBlond is probably more accurate; you learn only if you’re paying attention. Any student recognizes that truth. We...
What a grand world this would be if we all did as well today as we expect to do tomorrow! (Anon.) Like the song in the play Annie, tomorrow is always the hope for better things no matter how bad everything might seem today. Some of us put off working at a difficult...
The single biggest problem with communication is the illusion that it has taken place. (George Bernhard Shaw, 19th-20th centuries Irish playwright) It happens way too often, doesn’t it? We leave someone, thinking we have communicated our expectations clearly, only to...
Do not depend upon teachers to educate you ... follow your own bent, pursue your curiosity bravely. . . (Will Durant, 20th century American historian and philosopher) Durant goes on to say, “In the end, education, like happiness, is individual, and must come to us...
Much wants more and loses all. (Aesop’s Fables) How much is enough? For a lot of people it seems that there is never enough—enough money to buy what we want; enough time to do all we want. Aesop is telling us that when we continue to want more (when nothing is ever...
If a man wants to read good books, he must make a point of avoiding bad ones. (Arthur Schopenhauer, 18th century German philosopher) His reason: “Life is short, and time and energy limited,” he said. That’s good advice for more than just the reading of books. To save...
The act of self-giving is a personal power-releasing factor. (Chelle Thompson, editor and publisher) Thompson continues: “When you become detached mentally from yourself and concentrate on helping other people with their difficulties, you will be able to cope with...
What you believe must determine how you behave. (Warren Wiersbe, preacher and author) Why do we do the things we do? What determines our actions and behavior? There may be different influences that cause us to do this or that, but in the end we most often act on the...
There is a language in actions. And in some cases the language of action is much more clear and convincing than words. (Jonathan Edwards, 18th century Puritan theologian) Perhaps Edwards’ words are the basis for the more modern expression, “Actions speak louder than...