A long long time ago I began collecting inspirational quotes and aphorisms which became my collection of quotes.
The superior man is he who develops, in harmonious proportions, his moral, intellectual and physical nature. This should be the end at which men of all classes should aim, and it is this only which constitutes real greatness.
~ Douglas Jerrold
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Life is not always a matter of holding good cards,
~ Jack London
but sometimes, playing a poor hand well.
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It is not necessary for a man to be actively bad in order to make a failure in life; simple inaction will accomplish it. Nature has everywhere written her protest against idleness; that which remains inactive, rapidly deteriorates. It is the struggle toward an ideal, the constant effort to get higher and further, which develops manhood and character.
~ James Terry White
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Fitness is not about being better than someone else,
~ unknown
it’s about being better than you used to be.
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Without an adversary, virtus shrivels. We see how great and how viable virtus is when, by endurance, it shows what it is capable of.
~ Seneca
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A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.
~ Robert Heinlein
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A man must stand erect, not be kept erect by others.
~ Marcus Aurelius
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Men often become what they believe themselves to be. If I believe I cannot do something, it makes me incapable of doing it. When I believe I can, I acquire the ability to do it even if I didn’t have it in the beginning.
~ Mohandas Gandhi
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No man is more unhappy than he who never faces adversity. For he is not permitted to prove himself.
~ Seneca
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If you want to really hurt you parents … the least you can do is go into the arts. I’m not kidding. The arts are not a way to make a living. They are a very human way of making life more bearable. Practicing an art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow, for heaven’s sake. Sing in the shower. Dance to the radio. Tell stories. Write a poem to a friend, even a lousy poem. Do it as well as you possible can. You will get an enormous reward. You will have created something.
~ Kurt Vonnegut
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