WIST Quotations

Ingersoll, Robert Green -- Speech (1876-10-20), “Hayes Campaign,” Exposition Building, Chicago

Dave — Sat, 11 Apr 2026 04:03:15 +0000

The superior man is the man that loves his fellow-man; the superior man is the useful man; the superior man is the kind man, the man who lifts up his down-trodden brothers; and the greater the load of human sorrow and human want you can get in your arms, the easier you can climb the great hill of fame. The superior man is the man who loves his fellow-man.
And let me say right here, the good men, the superior men, the grand men are brothers the world over, no matter what their complexion may be; centuries may separate them, yet they are hand in hand; and all the good, and all the grand, and all the superior men, shoulder to shoulder, heart to heart, are fighting the great battle for the progress of mankind.

Robert Green Ingersoll (1833-1899) American lawyer, freethinker, orator
Speech (1876-10-20), “Hayes Campaign,” Exposition Building, Chicago
(Source)

On Whites in the South, and the Democratic Party, who believed they remained superior to Blacks.

Addison, Joseph -- Essay (1713-07-18), The Guardian, No. 111

Dave — Mon, 23 Mar 2026 16:05:04 +0000

Knowledge is, indeed, that which, next to virtue, truly and essentially raises one man above another. It finishes one half of the human Soul. It makes Being pleasant to us, fills the mind with entertaining views and administers to it a perpetual series of gratifications. It gives ease to fortitude, and gracefulness to retirement. It fills a publick station with suitable abilities, and adds a lustre to those who are in the possession of them.

Joseph Addison (1672-1719) English essayist, poet, statesman
Essay (1713-07-18), The Guardian, No. 111
(Source)

Roosevelt, Eleanor -- Essay (1951-12), “This I Believe: Growth that Starts from Thinking,” on Edward R. Murrow, This I Believe, CBS Radio

Dave — Tue, 10 Mar 2026 17:18:33 +0000

And the important thing was that you never let down doing the best that you were able to do — it might be poor because you might not have very much within you to give, or to help other people with, or to live your life with. But as long as you did the very best that you were able to do, then that was what you were put here to do and that was what you were accomplishing by being here.

Eleanor Roosevelt (1884–1962) First Lady of the US (1933–1945), politician, diplomat, activist
Essay (1951-12), “This I Believe: Growth that Starts from Thinking,” on Edward R. Murrow, This I Believe, CBS Radio
(Source)

(Source (Audio); start 3:04), The essay was read without a script.

Collected in Edward P. Morgan (ed.), This I Believe (1952).

Roosevelt, Eleanor -- Essay (1951-12), “This I Believe: Growth that Starts from Thinking,” on Edward R. Murrow, This I Believe, CBS Radio

Dave — Wed, 04 Mar 2026 16:58:08 +0000

Perhaps that’s what we all had to do — think out for ourselves what we could believe and how we could live by it. And so I came to the conclusion that you had to use this life to develop the very best that you could develop.

Eleanor Roosevelt (1884–1962) First Lady of the US (1933–1945), politician, diplomat, activist
Essay (1951-12), “This I Believe: Growth that Starts from Thinking,” on Edward R. Murrow, This I Believe, CBS Radio
(Source)

(Source (Audio); start 1:54). The essay was read without a script. The official transcript gives "what we all must do," but the audio clearly says, "what we all had to do."

Collected in Edward P. Morgan (ed.), This I Believe (1952).

Hoffer, Eric -- Passionate State of Mind, Aphorism 131 (1955)

Dave — Thu, 28 Aug 2025 15:34:21 +0000

The readiness to praise others indicates a desire for excellence and perhaps an ability to realize it.

Eric Hoffer (1902-1983) American writer, philosopher, longshoreman
Passionate State of Mind, Aphorism 131 (1955)
(Source)

Gaiman, Neil -- Speech (2012-05-17), Commencement, University of the Arts, Philadelphia [14:10]

Dave — Thu, 03 Oct 2024 21:17:48 +0000

People keep working in a freelance world, and more and more of today’s world is freelance, because their work is good, and because they are easy to get along with, and because they deliver the work on time. And you don’t even need all three. Two out of three is fine. People will tolerate how unpleasant you are if your work is good and you deliver it on time. People will forgive the lateness of the work if it’s good, and if they like you. And you don’t have to be as good as the others if you’re on time and it’s always a pleasure to hear from you.

Neil Gaiman (b. 1960) British author, screenwriter, fabulist
Speech (2012-05-17), Commencement, University of the Arts, Philadelphia [14:10]
(Source)

(Source (Video))

Barzun, Jacques -- Essay (1991), “Schooling No Mystery,” Begin Here: The Forgotten Conditions of Teaching and Learning, ch. 1

Dave — Tue, 01 Oct 2024 13:50:54 +0000

Everybody keeps calling for Excellence — excellence not just in schooling, throughout society. But as soon as somebody or something stands out as Excellent, the other shout goes up: “Elitism!” And whatever produced that thing, whoever praises that result, is promptly put down. “Standing out” is undemocratic.

Jacques Barzun (1907-2012) French-American historian, educator, polymath
Essay (1991), “Schooling No Mystery,” Begin Here: The Forgotten Conditions of Teaching and Learning, ch. 1
(Source)

Carlyle, Thomas -- “Jean Paul Friedrich Richter,” Edinburgh Review No. 91, Art. 7 (1827-06)

Dave — Thu, 29 Aug 2024 21:21:05 +0000

There is no uniform of excellence, either in physical or spiritual nature: all genuine things are what they ought to be. The reindeer is good and beautiful, and so likewise is the elephant. In literature it is the same.

Thomas Carlyle (1795-1881) Scottish essayist and historian
“Jean Paul Friedrich Richter,” Edinburgh Review No. 91, Art. 7 (1827-06)
(Source)

A review of Heinrich Döring, Jean Paul Friedrich Richter's Life, with a Sketch of His Works (1826).

Brooks, Louise -- Lulu in Hollywood, ch. 5 “The Other Face of W. C. Fields” (1982)

Dave — Tue, 30 Apr 2024 16:38:14 +0000

Anyone who has achieved excellence in any form knows that it comes as a result of ceaseless concentration. Paying attention.

Louise "Lulu" Brooks (1906-1985) American film actress, dancer, writer
Lulu in Hollywood, ch. 5 “The Other Face of W. C. Fields” (1982)
(Source)

Writing of Mack Sennett.

Hazlitt, William -- “Thoughts on Taste,” Edinburgh Magazine (1819-07)

Dave — Fri, 09 Feb 2024 21:42:28 +0000

It is erroneous to tie down individual genius to ideal models. Each person should do that, not which is best in itself, even supposing this could be known, but that which he can do best, which he will find out if left to himself. Spenser could not have written Paradise Lost, nor Milton the Faerie Queene. Those who aim at faultless regularity will only produce mediocrity, and no one ever approaches perfection except by stealth, and unknown to themselves.

William Hazlitt (1778-1830) English writer
“Thoughts on Taste,” Edinburgh Magazine (1819-07)
(Source)

Russell, Bertrand -- Interview by Woodrow Wyatt, BBC TV (1959)

Dave — Thu, 08 Feb 2024 01:23:35 +0000

WYATT: Do you think that philosophy contribute to happiness?

RUSSELL: Yes, if you happen to be interested in philosophy and good at it, but not otherwise – but so does bricklaying. Anything you’re good at contributes to happiness.

Bertrand Russell (1872-1970) English mathematician and philosopher
Interview by Woodrow Wyatt, BBC TV (1959)

Collected in Bertrand Russell's BBC Interviews (1959) [UK] and Bertrand Russell Speaks His Mind (1960) [US].

Adams, John -- Letter (1775-10-29) to Abigail Adams

Dave — Tue, 26 Dec 2023 20:35:08 +0000

Human nature with all its infirmities and depravation is still capable of great things. It is capable of attaining to degrees of wisdom and of goodness, which, we have reason to believe, appear respectable in the estimation of superior intelligences. Education makes a greater difference between man and man, than nature has made between man and brute. The virtues and powers to which men may be trained, by early education and constant discipline, are truly sublime and astonishing.

John Adams (1735–1826) American lawyer, Founding Father, statesman, US President (1797–1801)
Letter (1775-10-29) to Abigail Adams
(Source)

Gladwell, Malcolm -- Outliers: The Story of Success, Part 2, ch. 9 (2008)

Dave — Mon, 03 Apr 2023 21:59:57 +0000

We are so caught in the myths of the best and the brightest and the self-made that we think outliers spring naturally from the earth. We look at the young Bill Gates and marvel that our world allowed that thirteen-year-old to become a fabulously successful entrepreneur. But that’s the wrong lesson. Our world only allowed one thirteen-year-old unlimited access to a time sharing terminal in 1968. If a million teenagers had been given the same opportunity, how many more Microsofts would we have today?

Malcolm Gladwell (b. 1963) Anglo-Canadian journalist, author, public speaker
Outliers: The Story of Success, Part 2, ch. 9 (2008)
(Source)

Russell, Bertrand -- “On National Greatness,” New York American (1932-01-20)

Dave — Thu, 22 Dec 2022 16:36:06 +0000

Expect of the young the very best of which they are capable, and you will get it. Expect less, and it is only too likely that you will get no more than you expect.

Bertrand Russell (1872-1970) English mathematician and philosopher
“On National Greatness,” New York American (1932-01-20)
(Source)

McLaughlin, Mignon -- The Neurotic’s Notebook, ch. 4 (1963)

Dave — Thu, 03 Nov 2022 15:16:20 +0000

If you have to do it every day, for God’s sake learn to do it well.

Mignon McLaughlin (1913-1983) American journalist and author
The Neurotic’s Notebook, ch. 4 (1963)
(Source)

Della Casa, Giovanni -- Galateo: Or, A Treatise on Politeness and Delicacy of Manners [Il Galateo overo de’ costumi], ch. 28 (1558) [tr. Graves (1774)]

Dave — Thu, 13 Oct 2022 15:14:45 +0000

Wherefore, we must not think it sufficient that we do any thing merely well; but we ought to make it our study to do every thing gracefully also.

[Non si dèe adunque l’uomo contentare di fare le cose buone, ma dèe studiare di farle anco leggiadre.]

Giovanni della Casa (1503-1556) Florentine poet, author, diplomat, bishop
Galateo: Or, A Treatise on Politeness and Delicacy of Manners [Il Galateo overo de’ costumi], ch. 28 (1558) [tr. Graves (1774)]
(Source)

(Source (Italian)). Alternate translations:

It is not inoughe for a man, to doe things that be good: but hee must also have a care, hee doe them with a good grace.
[tr. Peterson (1576)]

Therefore, a man must not be content with doing what is good, but he must also seek to do it gracefully.
[tr. Einsenbichler/Bartlett (1986)]

A man must therefore not be content to do things well, but must also aim to do them gracefully.

Forbes, Bertie Charles -- Forbes Epigrams (1922)

Dave — Wed, 23 Feb 2022 22:22:34 +0000

The man who has done his level best, and who is conscious that he has done his best, is a success.

Bertie Charles (B. C.) Forbes (1880-1954) American publisher
Forbes Epigrams (1922)
(Source)

Heinlein, Robert A. -- Glory Road, ch. 2 [Rufo] (1963)

Dave — Tue, 15 Feb 2022 19:25:19 +0000

Any social organization does well enough if it isn’t rigid. The framework doesn’t matter as long as there is enough looseness to permit that one man in a multitude to display his genius. Most so-called social scientists seem to think that organization is everything. It is almost nothing — except when it is a straitjacket. It is the incidence of heroes that counts, not the pattern of zeros.

Robert A. Heinlein (1907-1988) American writer
Glory Road, ch. 2 [Rufo] (1963)
(Source)

Trillin, Calvin -- Travels with Alice, ch. 10 (1989)

Dave — Tue, 17 Aug 2021 00:29:52 +0000

On Venice Beach, Alice and the girls and I once saw a man blowing truly spectacular soap bubbles the size of watermelons — still the symbol for me of the tendency of people in Southern California to become awfully good at something that isn’t terribly important.

Calvin Trillin (b. 1935) American journalist, humorist, novelist
Travels with Alice, ch. 10 (1989)
(Source)

Einstein, Albert -- Interview with Algernon Black (Fall 1940) [Einstein Archives 54-834]

Dave — Fri, 19 Feb 2021 13:59:21 +0000

We have to do the best we are capable of. This is our sacred human responsibility.

Albert Einstein (1879-1955) German-American physicist
Interview with Algernon Black (Fall 1940) [Einstein Archives 54-834]
(Source)

Einstein forbade publication of the discussion.

Fromm, Erich -- Man for Himself, ch. 3 (1947)

Dave — Mon, 07 Dec 2020 17:53:21 +0000

Man must accept the responsibility for himself and the fact that only by using his own powers can he give meaning to his life. But meaning does not imply certainty; indeed, the quest for certainty blocks the search for meaning. Uncertainty is the very condition to impel a man to unfold his powers. If he faces the truth without panic, he will recognize that there is no meaning to life except the meaning man gives his life by the unfolding of his powers, by living productively.

Erich Fromm (1900-1980) American psychoanalyst and social philosopher
Man for Himself, ch. 3 (1947)
(Source)

Hofstadter, Richard -- Anti-Intellectualism in American Life, Part 1, ch. 2 “On the Unpopularity of Intellect” (1962)

Dave — Wed, 18 Nov 2020 15:52:11 +0000

Intellect needs to be understood not as some kind of a claim against the other human excellences for which a fatally high price has to be paid, but rather as a complement to them without which they cannot be fully consummated.

Richard Hofstadter (1916-1970) American historian and intellectual
Anti-Intellectualism in American Life, Part 1, ch. 2 “On the Unpopularity of Intellect” (1962)
(Source)

Homer -- The Iliad [Ἰλιάς], Book 6, l. 245ff (6.245-251) (c. 750 BC) [tr. Fagles (1990)]

Dave — Wed, 23 Sep 2020 20:26:22 +0000

He sent me off to Troy …
And I hear his urgings ringing in my ears:
“Always be the best, my boy, the bravest,
and hold your head up high above the others.
Never disgrace the generation of your fathers.
They were the bravest champions born in Corinth,
In Lycia far and wide.

Homer (fl. 7th-8th C. BC) Greek author
The Iliad [Ἰλιάς], Book 6, l. 245ff (6.245-251) (c. 750 BC) [tr. Fagles (1990)]

This is the first appearance of the Greek "Αἰὲν ἀριστεύειν καὶ ὑπείροχον ἔμμεναι ἄλλων" ["Always strive for excellence and prevail over others"] in the Illiad, Glaucus telling of his father's command to him. Peleus urges Achilles with the same words in Book 11. The two passages are sometimes confused.

Alt. trans.:

By his decree I sought the Trojan town,
By his instructions learn to win renown;
To stand the first in worth as in command,
To add new honours to my native land;
Before my eyes my mighty sires to place,
And emulate the glories of our race."
[tr. Pope (1715-20)]

He sent me forth
To fight for Troy, charging me much and oft
That I should outstrip always all mankind
In worth and valor, nor the house disgrace
Of my forefathers, heroes without peer
In Ephyra, and in Lycia’s wide domain.
[tr. Cowper (1791), l. 254ff]

Me he sent to Troy, and gave me very many commands, always to fight bravely, and to be superior to others; and not to disgrace the race of my fathers, who were by far the bravest in Ephyra, and ample Lycia.
[tr. Buckley (1860)]

To Troy he sent me, and enjoin'd me oft
To aim at highest honours, and surpass
My comrades all; nor on my father's name
Discredit bring, who held the foremost place
In Ephyre, and Lycia's wide domain.
[tr. Derby (1864), ll. 245-249]

He sent me to Troy and bade me very instantly to be ever the best and to excel all other men, nor put to shame the lineage of my fathers that were of noblest blood in Ephyre and in wide Lykia.
[tr. Leaf/Lang/Myers (1891)]

When he sent me to Troy he urged me again and again to fight ever among the foremost and outvie my peers, so as not to shame the blood of my fathers who were the noblest in Ephyra and in all Lycia.
[tr. Butler (1898)]

He sent me to Troy and straitly charged me ever to be bravest and pre-eminent above all, and not bring shame upon the race of my fathers, that were far the noblest in Ephyre and in wide Lycia.
[tr. Murray (1924)]

He sent me here to Troy, commanding me to act always with valour, always to be the most noble, never to shame the line of my progenitors, great men first in Ephyra, then in Lycia.
[tr. Fitzgerald (1974)]

Lombardi, Vince -- (Attributed)

Dave — Fri, 02 Sep 2016 23:54:59 +0000

Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence.

Vince Lombardi (1913-1970) American football coach
(Attributed)

Butterfield, Stewart -- (Attributed)

Dave — Fri, 15 Apr 2016 13:09:08 +0000

Life is too short to do mediocre work and it is definitely too short to build shitty things.

Stewart Butterfield (b. 1973) Canadian tech entrepreneur and businessman
(Attributed)

Aaronovitch, Ben -- Broken Homes (2013)

Dave — Wed, 27 Jan 2016 16:13:31 +0000

It’s a sad fact of modern life that sooner or later you will end up on YouTube doing something stupid. The trick, according to my dad, is to make a fool of yourself to the best of your ability.

Ben Aaronovitch (b. 1964) British author
Broken Homes (2013)

Munroe, Randall -- XKCD, # 896 “Marie Curie” (9 May 2011)

Dave — Wed, 20 Jan 2016 14:52:01 +0000

You don’t become great by trying to be great. You become great by wanting to do something, then doing it so hard that you become great in the process.

Randall Munroe (b. 1984) American webcomic writer, roboticist, programmer
XKCD, # 896 “Marie Curie” (9 May 2011)
(Source)

Emerson, Ralph Waldo -- Journal (1841-10-28)

Dave — Wed, 21 Oct 2015 14:50:01 +0000

We are very near to greatness: one step and we are safe: can we not take the leap?

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) American essayist, lecturer, poet
Journal (1841-10-28)

Disney, Walt -- In “The Amazing Secret of Walt Disney,” Interview by Don Eddy, The American Magazine (Aug 1955)

Dave — Mon, 10 Aug 2015 14:53:34 +0000

Why worry? If you’ve done the very best you can, worrying won’t make it any better.

Walt Disney (1901-1966) American entrepreneur, animator, film producer, showman
In “The Amazing Secret of Walt Disney,” Interview by Don Eddy, The American Magazine (Aug 1955)
(Source)

Hoffer, Eric -- Passionate State of Mind, Aphorism 181 (1955)

Dave — Thu, 28 May 2015 13:16:17 +0000

There are many who find a good alibi far more attractive than an achievement. For an achievement does not settle anything permanently. We still have to prove our worth anew each day: we have to prove that we are as good today as we were yesterday. But when we have a valid alibi for not achieving anything we are fixed, so to speak, for life. Moreover, when we have an alibi for not writing a book, painting a picture, and so on, we have an alibi for not writing the greatest book and not painting the greatest picture. Small wonder that the effort expended and the punishment endured in obtaining a good alibi often exceed the effort and grief requisite for the attainment of a most marked achievement.

Eric Hoffer (1902-1983) American writer, philosopher, longshoreman
Passionate State of Mind, Aphorism 181 (1955)
(Source)

Maugham, W. Somerset -- “The Treasure,” The Mixture as Before (1940)

Dave — Tue, 24 Mar 2015 12:03:34 +0000

It’s a funny thing about life; if you refuse to accept anything but the best, you very often get it.

W. Somerset Maugham (1874-1965) English novelist and playwright [William Somerset Maugham]
“The Treasure,” The Mixture as Before (1940)

King, Martin Luther -- Sermon, New Covenant Baptist Church, Chicago (9 Apr 1967)

Dave — Tue, 10 Mar 2015 12:32:54 +0000

We are challenged on every hand to work untiringly to achieve excellence in our lifework. Not all men are called to specialized or professional jobs; even fewer rise to the heights of genius in the arts and sciences; many are called to be laborers in factories, fields and streets. But no work is insignificant. All labor that uplifts should be undertaken with painstaking excellence. If a man is called to be a street sweeper he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say “Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.”

Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968) American clergyman, civil rights leader, social activist, preacher
Sermon, New Covenant Baptist Church, Chicago (9 Apr 1967)

Chesterfield (Lord) -- Letter to his son, #71 (10 Mar 1746)

Dave — Mon, 26 Jan 2015 13:48:48 +0000

A little mind is always hurried, by twenty things at once; but a man of sense does but one thing at a time, and resolves to excel in it; for whatever is worth doing at all is worth doing well.

Lord Chesterfield (1694-1773) English statesman, wit [Philip Dormer Stanhope]
Letter to his son, #71 (10 Mar 1746)
(Source)

Selden, John -- Table Talk, § 86 “Measure of Things” (1689)

Dave — Mon, 08 Dec 2014 13:08:22 +0000

We measure the excellency of other men by some excellency we conceive to be in ourselves.

John Selden (1584-1654) English jurist, legal scholar, antiquarian, polymath
Table Talk, § 86 “Measure of Things” (1689)

Porter, Cole -- “You’re the Top” (1934)

Dave — Mon, 01 Dec 2014 13:43:37 +0000

You’re the top!
You’re the Colosseum.
You’re the top!
You’re the Louvre Museum.
You’re a melody from a symphony by Strauss,
You’re a Bendel bonnet, a Shakespeare sonnet,
You’re Mickey Mouse.

You’re the Nile,
You’re the Tow’r of Pisa,
You’re the smile
On the Mona Lisa.
I’m a worthless check, a total wreck, a flop,
But if, baby, I’m the bottom
You’re the top!

Cole Porter (1891-1964) American composer and songwriter
“You’re the Top” (1934)

Sallust -- Bellum Catilinae [The War of Catiline; The Conspiracy of Catiline], ch. 1, sent. 4 [tr. Rolfe (1931)]

Dave — Thu, 03 Apr 2014 12:14:37 +0000

For the renown which riches or beauty confer is fleeting and frail; mental excellence is a splendid and lasting possession.

[Nam divitiarum et formae gloria fluxa atque fragilis est, virtus clara aeternaque habetur.]

Sallust (c. 86-35 BC) Roman historian and politician [Gaius Sallustius Crispus]
Bellum Catilinae [The War of Catiline; The Conspiracy of Catiline], ch. 1, sent. 4 [tr. Rolfe (1931)]
(Source)

Original Latin. Alt. trans.:

"For what are all the advantages of wealth, and all the graces of form and feature? mere precarious gifts, that soon fade and moulder away. It is virtue, and virtue only, that ennobles the human character, and lives in the memory of the after-times." [tr. Murphy (1807)]
"For the splendour derived from riches and beauty is short-lived and frail, virtue alone confers immortality." [tr. Rose (1831)
"For the glory of riches and beauty is fickle and frail; virtue is accounted bright and everlasting." [Source (1841)]
"For the glory of wealth and beauty is fleeting and perishable; that of intellectual power is illustrious and immortal." [tr. Watson (1867)]
"The glory of wealth and beauty is fleeting and frail, but personal merit is held in eternal honour." [tr. Pollard (1882)]
"The glory of riches and appearance is fleeting and fragile, but to have prowess is something distinguished and everlasting. [tr. Woodman (2007)]
"For the fame of riches and beauty is fickle and frail, while virtue is eternally excellent."

Vidal, Gore -- “Love Love Love,” Partisan Review (Spring 1959)

Dave — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 14:41:39 +0000

The theater needs continual reminders that there is nothing more debasing than the work of those who do well what is not worth doing at all.

Gore Vidal (1925-2012) American novelist, dramatist, critic
“Love Love Love,” Partisan Review (Spring 1959)

Fuller, Thomas (1654) -- Introductio ad Prudentiam, Vol. 1, # 111 (1725)

Dave — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 14:31:11 +0000

Promise little, and do much; so shalt thou have Thanks.

Thomas Fuller (1654-1734) English physician, preacher, aphorist, writer
Introductio ad Prudentiam, Vol. 1, # 111 (1725)
(Source)

Hoffer, Eric -- True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements, Part 1, ch. 2, § 9 (1951)

Dave — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 12:46:31 +0000

The less justified a man is in claiming excellence for his own self, the more ready he is to claim all excellence for his nation, his religion, his race or his holy cause.

Eric Hoffer (1902-1983) American writer, philosopher, longshoreman
True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements, Part 1, ch. 2, § 9 (1951)
(Source)

Emerson, Ralph Waldo -- “Success,” Society and Solitude (1870)

Dave — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 15:56:55 +0000

Excellence is lost sight of in the hunger for sudden performance and praise.

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) American essayist, lecturer, poet
“Success,” Society and Solitude (1870)

Johnson, Samuel -- Lives of the Most Eminent English Poets, “Pope” (1781)

Dave — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 17:38:35 +0000

Those indeed who attain any excellence, commonly spend life in one pursuit; for excellence is not often gained upon easier terms.

Samuel Johnson (1709-1784) English writer, lexicographer, critic
Lives of the Most Eminent English Poets, “Pope” (1781)
(Source)

Also known as Lives of English Poets and Lives of the Poets.

Aristotle -- Nicomachean Ethics [Ἠθικὰ Νικομάχεια] (c. 325 BC) (paraphrase)

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 19:00:00 +0000

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit.

Aristotle (384-322 BC) Greek philosopher
Nicomachean Ethics [Ἠθικὰ Νικομάχεια] (c. 325 BC) (paraphrase)
(Source)

Variants:

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit."
"We are what we repeatedly do, therefore excellence is not an act, but a habit."

Not actually Aristotle, but a summary by Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy: The Lives and Opinions of the World's Greatest Philosophers (1926), ch. 2 "Aristotle and Greek Science," sec. 7 "Ethics and the Nature of Happiness" (1926):

Excellence is an art won by training and habituation: we do not act rightly because we have virtue or excellence, but we rather have these because we have acted rightly; "these virtues are formed in man by his doing the actions"; we are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit: "the good of man is a working of the soul in the way of excellence in a complete life ... for as it is not one swallow or one fine day that makes a spring, so it is not one day or a short time that makes a man blessed and happy."

The quoted phrases are from the Nicomachean Ethics, Book 2, ch. 4; Book 1, ch. 7.

Campbell, David H. -- If You Don’t Know Where You’re Going, You’ll Probably End Up Somewhere (1974)

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 16:00:00 +0000

Be good at something, good enough so that you can take quiet pride in knowing that you are a valuable person, that you can do at least one thing well.

David H. Campbell, Jr. (contemp.) American careers expert
If You Don’t Know Where You’re Going, You’ll Probably End Up Somewhere (1974)