WIST Quotations

Bell, Alexander Graham -- (Attributed)

Dave — Mon, 15 Feb 2016 15:38:53 +0000

Another discovery which came out of my investigation was the fact that when a man gives his order to produce a definite result and stands by that order it seems to have the effect of giving him what might be termed a second sight which enables him to see right through ordinary problems. What this power is I cannot say; all I know is that it exists and it becomes available only when a man is in that state of mind in which he knows exactly what he wants and is fully determined not to quit until he finds it.

Alexander Graham Bell (1847–1922) Scottish-American scientist, inventor, engineer
(Attributed)

Bell, Alexander Graham -- (Attributed)

Dave — Thu, 31 Mar 2016 13:20:39 +0000

There cannot be mental atrophy in any person who continues to observe, to remember what he observes, and to seek answers for his unceasing hows and whys about things.

Alexander Graham Bell (1847–1922) Scottish-American scientist, inventor, engineer
(Attributed)

Comment to a reporter a few months before he died, as quoted in the Alexander Graham Bell Family Papers at the Library of Congress.

Bell, Alexander Graham -- Interview, in Orison Swett Marden, How They Succeeded, ch. 2 (1901)

Dave — Thu, 07 Apr 2016 13:47:49 +0000

Perseverance must have some practical end, or it does not avail the man possessing it. A person without a practical end in view becomes a crank or an idiot. Such persons fill our asylums.

Alexander Graham Bell (1847–1922) Scottish-American scientist, inventor, engineer
Interview, in Orison Swett Marden, How They Succeeded, ch. 2 (1901)

Bell, Alexander Graham -- Interview, in Orison Swett Marden, How They Succeeded, ch. 2 (1901)

Dave — Thu, 21 Apr 2016 14:22:42 +0000

The most successful men in the end are those whose success is the result of steady accretion. That intellectuality is more vigorous that has attained its strength gradually. It is the man who carefully advances step by step, with his mind becoming wider and wider — and progressively better able to grasp any theme or situation — persevering in what he knows to be practical, and concentrating his thought upon it, who is bound to succeed in the greatest degree.

Alexander Graham Bell (1847–1922) Scottish-American scientist, inventor, engineer
Interview, in Orison Swett Marden, How They Succeeded, ch. 2 (1901)

Bell, Alexander Graham -- Interview, in Orison Swett Marden, How They Succeeded, ch. 2 (1901)

Dave — Thu, 28 Apr 2016 16:09:48 +0000

Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work at hand. The sun’s rays do not burn until brought to a focus.

Alexander Graham Bell (1847–1922) Scottish-American scientist, inventor, engineer
Interview, in Orison Swett Marden, How They Succeeded, ch. 2 (1901)

Bell, Alexander Graham -- Speech (1891)

Dave — Thu, 14 Apr 2016 13:56:10 +0000

The inventor … looks upon the world and is not contented with things as they are. He wants to improve whatever he sees, he wants to benefit the world; he is haunted by an idea. The spirit of invention possesses him, seeking materialization.

Alexander Graham Bell (1847–1922) Scottish-American scientist, inventor, engineer
Speech (1891)

On a plaque at the entrance to the Alexander Graham Bell Museum in Baddeck, Nova Scotia, Canada.