Right Attitudes

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Nagesh Belludi

The Best of the Chinese Proverbs (Inspirational Quotations #362)

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Chinese New Year, the Spring Festival

The Chinese New Year, or the Spring Festival, is the most important festival on the Chinese calendar. The festivities traditionally begin on the first day of the first month of the Chinese calendar and end with the Lantern Festival celebrated on the 15th day of the New Year.

The Chinese festival year follows a lunar calendar and consists of twelve moons; each moon lasts about 29 1/2 days. The Chinese calendar follows a 12-year cycle and each year relates to an animal in the Chinese zodiac. Year 4708, the year beginning February 3, 2011, is the Year of the Rabbit.

Festivities and Traditions

For the Chinese, the New Year is a time of great renewal. They devote the last few days of the old year to intense preparation. They clean their homes in a belief that, along with the dirt and debris around their homes, they can sweep away the mistakes and misfortunes of the past. They hang protective ornaments in their homes to welcome the good fortunes that the New Year brings.

The Chinese New Year is also a period of reunion. Scores of migrants return home to share the festivities with their families. The Chinese celebrate by partaking in divinatory readings at temples, sharing gifts, and bonding over elaborate family dinner parties. Children receive “lucky money” in red envelopes as part of the New Year’s gift-giving.

Outside of the Far East, ethnic Chinese celebrate the New Year in Chinatowns around the world with community parades and extravaganzas featuring fireworks, lion and dragon dance-shows, acrobatics, lanterns, and illuminated floats.

Chinese Proverbs

Patience is power; with time and patience the mulberry leaf becomes a silk gown.
—Chinese Proverb

Gold cannot be pure, and people cannot be perfect.
—Chinese Proverb

If you are patient in one moment of anger, you will escape a hundred days of sorrow.
—Chinese Proverb

Man who waits for roast duck to fly into mouth must wait very, very long time.
—Chinese Proverb

Slander cannot destroy the man … when the flood recedes, the rock is there.
—Chinese Proverb

I dreamed a thousand new paths… I woke and walked my old one.
—Chinese Proverb

If you must play, decide upon three things at the start: the rules of the game, the stakes, and the quitting time.
—Chinese Proverb

What you cannot avoid, welcome.
—Chinese Proverb

Man fools himself. He prays for a long life, and he fears an old age.
—Chinese Proverb

Never try to catch two frogs with one hand.
—Chinese Proverb

Flowers leave their fragrance on the hand that bestows them.
—Chinese Proverb

If you want your dinner, don’t offend the cook.
—Chinese Proverb

Talk doesn’t cook rice.
—Chinese Proverb

A wise man makes his own decisions, an ignorant man follows the public opinion.
—Chinese Proverb

Not the fastest horse can catch a word spoken in anger.
—Chinese Proverb

Spring is sooner recognized by plants than by men.
—Chinese Proverb

The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago. But the second best time is today.
—Chinese Proverb

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  3. Dueling Maxims, Adages, and Proverbs
  4. Confucius on Dealing with People

Inspirational Quotations by Franklin D. Roosevelt (#361)

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It’s the birthday of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, one of the most admired Presidents of the United States. The 32nd President is widely known by his initials, FDR.

Roosevelt led the United States during some of its most challenging times, both domestically and internationally. He is most renowned for his socio-economic policies to resolve the Great Depression, his decision to enter the war after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor in 1941, and the eventual victory of the Allied forces in World War II. His presidency transformed the President of the United States into the most powerful elected official in the world.

FDR is the longest-serving president of the United States. He died three months into his fourth term in office, just weeks before the surrender of Germany in World War II. Time Magazine named Franklin Roosevelt as a runner-up (along with Mohandas Gandhi) in the Person of the Century recognition.

Roosevelt was known for his warm-heartedness and humility. He triumphed over a physical disability—at age 39, FDR suffered a polio attack that practically paralyzed his legs and confined him to a wheelchair for the rest of his life.

FDR is also legendary for his collections of stamps, coins, medals, printings, models of various artifacts, walking sticks, paintings and photographs of naval vessels, stuffed animals, etc. He was the first president to set up a Presidential Library. The Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum located in his birthplace of Hyde Park, New York, houses his presidential papers and collections.

See also quotes by his wife, Eleanor Roosevelt, and by his distant cousin, Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th President of the United States.

Inspirational Quotations by Franklin D. Roosevelt

The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today. Let us move forward with strong and active faith.
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (American Head of State)

Happiness lies not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort. The joy and moral stimulation of work no longer must be forgotten in the mad chase of evanescent profits. These dark days will be worth all they cost us if they teach us that our true destiny is not to be ministered unto but to minister to ourselves and to our fellow men.
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (American Head of State)

Those who have long enjoyed such privileges as we enjoy, forget in time that men have died to win them.
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (American Head of State)

If you treat people right they will treat you right—ninety percent of the time.
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (American Head of State)

Men are not prisoners of fate, but only prisoners of their own minds.
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (American Head of State)

A great man left a watchword that we can well repeat: There is no indispensable man.
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (American Head of State)

Human kindness has never weakened the stamina or softened the fiber of a free people. A nation does not have to be cruel in order to be tough.
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (American Head of State)

Remember you are just an extra in everyone else’s play.
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (American Head of State)

We can’t always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future.
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (American Head of State)

We have always known that heedless self-interest was bad morals; we know now that it is bad economics.
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (American Head of State)

The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much it is whether we provide enough for those who have little.
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (American Head of State)

Confidence… thrives on honesty, on honor, on the sacredness of obligations, on faithful protection and on unselfish performance. Without them it cannot live.
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (American Head of State)

Freedom to learn is the first necessity of guaranteeing that man himself shall be self-reliant enough to be free.
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (American Head of State)

Peace, like charity, begins at home.
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (American Head of State)

You Don’t Have to Be Chained to Your Desk to Succeed at Work

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The 40-hour workweek is a bygone. The workday is longer, the pace of work is faster, and most projects tend to be open-ended. A successful corporate career now demands a high-level of performance for sustained periods. At what cost, though?

The “Activity is Productivity” Fallacy

Regrettably, companies still tend to measure an employee’s commitment by how many hours he is willing to put in. In the absence of a meaningful yardstick for the productivity of knowledge workers, companies continue to cling to the outdated equation that time worked equals output, a residue from the mindsets of the Industrial Age. Late nights and shorter weekends have become implied signs of employee loyalty.

Companies strive to get more from their “right-sized” staffs and have come to depend on cadres of hard-working professionals. Therefore, companies look upon employees willing to put in long hours as assets. They bestow swift promotions and pay big bucks to employees who are willing to take on demanding assignments, be available around the clock, and forego a healthy separation between work and personal time.

The unspoken imperative is that employees have to work longer hours to get ahead, and defiant employees who wish for a balanced life may hurt their careers.

Our Society Endorses Overwork

As a society, we respect overwork. We praise hardworking, career-driven individuals, even if they have lost their sense of work-life balance. Canadian psychologist Barbara Killinger asserts in her book, “Workaholics: The Respectable Addicts,” that workaholism is now talked about as a virtue.

Overwork has become a social problem in many countries. Surveys have revealed that Americans put in more hours of work each year than employees in other countries put and do not use a fourth of their allotted vacation. Working mothers take shorter maternity leaves than they used to. Entrepreneurs sacrifice way too much for relatively modest payoffs.

In Japan, overwork has led to some of the highest rates of work-related deaths and suicides in the developed world. This social problem is rooted in the samurai culture that judged the allegiance and personal fortitude of its warriors by their willingness to work long hours and sacrifice self-interests. In the 1960s, the Japanese even coined the term karoshi to describe death by overwork. Currently, the Japanese government is considering regulating work hours.

Chinese employers have recently faced a spate of suicides and ill health caused by overwork and deteriorating employee welfare. Most newsworthy of these episodes is the deaths of many migrant workers at a factory that contract-manufactures iPods and iPhones for Apple. The Mandarin term guolaosi refers to the destructive consequences of this intense work ethic.

Long Work Hours Just Don’t Help

The all-work, no-play mentality is serving neither employees nor their employers.

Employees spend fewer hours at home, preoccupy their minds with work even when they are at home, ignore the emotional needs of their families, and ultimately strain their relationships with loved ones. Overworked employees suffer from a lack of sleep. Their unceasing fatigue debilitates their immune systems and results in serious health problems. Often, they resort to excessive smoking or alcohol and substance abuse, develop poor eating habits, and ignore physical fitness.

Long hours and lesser vacations are not good for the bottom line of companies either. Longer hours do not add up to better work.

Overwork weighs down on organizational effectiveness in terms of productivity loss, inaccuracies, poor relationships at work, and plummeting employee engagement. Employers also face increased medical costs from the decline in the physical and emotional health of their employees.

Please Stop Working So Hard!

Look, there is nothing wrong with working hard and having a passion for what you do. I agree that putting in the extra effort, undertaking challenging projects, and pursuing career growth are all very gratifying. Nevertheless, do not ignore the needs of the other aspects of your life. Here are seven suggestions that can help you work hard, but not indulge in overwork.

  1. Pace yourself. Do not think of your job as an endurance contest. As a knowledge worker, for the most part, you are paid for your intellectual work. Ingenuity and creative aptitude tend to spring in intense bursts. Therefore, your capacity for intellectual work drops dramatically when you are weary and stressed-out. Plan your day on how much you target to achieve before you can take a break and rest.
  2. Understand and cling to the critical path. Recognize the big picture of everything you work on from the customer’s perspective. Then, concentrate on the essentials. Remember, there are several things you can do, many things people want you to do, but only a few that you must do. Focus on what you must do, not what you can. Prioritize relentlessly.
  3. If you are struggling with managing your time, follow my simple, three-step process (time logging, time analysis, time budgeting) to discover how you tend to spend time currently and how you could focus on the things that matter the most. Remember, effective time management is truly about managing priorities, not about managing time.
  4. Stay on top of your tasks. Identify areas of inefficiency. Ask for help, delegate, outsource, or invest in tools and technologies that can help you achieve more in less time.
  5. Limit the amount of time you spend in meetings. Screen the agenda of each meeting for items that can be resolved by e-mail or delegation or a prior meeting.
  6. Learn to set limits on your workweek. Don’t take your time for granted. Reflect on what you would truly like to achieve and make the right work-life choices. No one can make the choices for you. Remember that the true yardstick of your performance assessment is not the number of hours you put in, but your accomplishment in these hours.
  7. Set aside personal time. Plan and use your vacation time meaningfully. Have the discipline to leave your laptop, blackberry, and other electronic devices behind. Disconnect from work and enjoy your time with loved ones.

The Right Choices for a Successful Career & a Balanced Life

Work as many hours as you think you need to achieve your goals, realize your aspirations and be happy. Do not overwork and let your career progression become an obsession.

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Book Summary of John Bogle’s ‘Little Book of Common Sense Investing’

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The Little Book of Common Sense Investing, John Bogle “In investing, the winning strategy for reaping the rewards of capitalism depends on owning businesses, not trading stocks,” argues John Bogle in making a strong case for low-cost index funds in his text, “The Little Book of Common Sense Investing.” With statistics and graphs, Bogle rationalizes that low-cost index funds outperform most investment professionals and offer better-than-average returns for investors over the long term.

John Bogle is the legendary founder of the investor-owned Vanguard Group, currently the world’s largest mutual fund company by total assets under management. Over the course of 25 years at the helm of Vanguard, until his retirement in 1999, he focused the efforts of Vanguard on offering cost-conscious investment choices to the masses. John Bogle is the bestselling author of many other books on investment advice.

Superiority of Low-Cost Index Funds

John Bogle founded the world’s first index mutual fund, the Vanguard 500 Index Fund in 1975. Since then, “Saint Jack” (as critics labeled Bogle mockingly) has untiringly promoted the virtues of low-fee, no-load, low-turnover, passively-managed index (or more precisely, index-tracking) mutual funds. Investing in such funds, he contends in “The Little Book,” is the simplest and most effective way to invest in a diversified portfolio of stocks and bonds, and profit from earnings growth of businesses and the dividends they yield.

John Bogle methodically discusses every theme relevant to successful investing: the myths of speculation and market timing, inflation, frictional costs (fees charged by brokers and investment advisors, costs of transactions, front-end and back-end loads,) and the effects of compounding and taxes. He then convincingly counters arguments against investing in total market index funds through easy-to-follow quantitative appraisals of investing in individual stocks and bonds, actively managed funds, hedge funds, and sector-specific funds. At the end of each chapter, Bogle reinforces his position with words of wisdom from some of the greatest minds in economics and investing: Ben Graham, Warren Buffet, John Maynard Keynes, Peter Lynch, and the like.

Invaluable Insights for Investors

The majority of people do not have the time, energy, determination, or aptitude for understanding economics, examining investments, managing risk, and building wealth for themselves. They are either overly cautious, or they invest heedlessly, submit to market trends, or engage in speculation. In reading John Bogle’s authoritative book, modest investors will recognize that low-cost index funds offer them broad diversification, reasonably good returns over the long-term, and the ability to outperform a majority of investment professionals.

Informed investors will find, notwithstanding many drawn-out discussions, a great reiteration of John Bogle’s now-familiar, commonsensical ideas on the merits of index investing.

Leadership Reader’s Bottom-line

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Inspirational Quotations #360

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As gold is tested in four ways by rubbing, cutting, heating and beating – so a man should be tested by these four things: his renunciation, his conduct, his qualities and his actions.
—Chanakya Neeti

Faith is the bird that feels the light and sings when the dawn is still dark.
—Rabindranath Tagore (Indian Hindu Polymath)

When you realize that suffering and discomfort are the call to inquiry, you may actually begin to look forward to uncomfortable feelings. You may even experience them as friends coming to show you what you have not yet investigated thoroughly enough.
—Byron Katie (American Speaker)

It is not the cares of today, but the cares of tomorrow that weigh a man down. For the needs of today we have corresponding strength given.—For the morrow we are told to trust.—It is not ours yet.
—George MacDonald (Scottish Christian Author)

Action, not words, are the true criterion of the attachment of friends.
—George Washington (American Head of State)

But for money and the need of it, there would not be half the friendship in the world. It is powerful for good if divinely used. Give it plenty of air and it is sweet as the hawthorn; shut it up and it cankers and breeds worms.
—George MacDonald (Scottish Christian Author)

Those born blind cannot see;|similarly blind are those in the grip of lust.|Proud men have no perception of evil; and|those bent on acquiring riches see no sin in their actions.
—Chanakya Neeti

Any concern too small to be turned into a prayer is too small to be made into a burden.
—Corrie Ten Boom (Dutch Jewish Humanist)

Keeping score of old scores and scars, getting even and one-upping, always makes you less than you are.
—Malcolm Forbes (American Publisher)

The Wit & Wisdom of Benjamin Franklin: The Best 100 Maxims from “Poor Richard’s Almanack”

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Benjamin Franklin, American inventor, journalist, printer, diplomat, author, and founding father It is the 305th birthday of Benjamin Franklin, American inventor, journalist, printer, diplomat, author, and founding father.

At age 27, Benjamin Franklin began publishing “Poor Richard’s Almanack” under the pseudonym “Richard Saunders.”

Published annually for the next 26 years, the Almanack became widely successful. At the height of its popularity, the Almanack sold 10,000 copies a year, making it a best-seller in colonial America.

“Poor Richard’s Almanack” consisted of a hodgepodge of facts, weather forecasts, household hints, puzzles, historical tidbits, poems, and assorted amusements. However, what made the Almanack well known were the witty proverbs and maxims that Franklin included as fillers. The most famous of these maxims include, “Well done is better than well said,” “Haste makes waste,” and the oft misquoted “A penny saved is twopence dear.”

Benjamin Franklin sourced a good number of his maxims in the “Poor Richard’s Almanack” from Native American traditions, common legends and superstitions of his day, public speeches, and works of other published authors.

Maxims from Benjamin Franklin’s “Poor Richard’s Almanack”

'Poor Richard's Almanack' published by Benjamin Franklin under the pseudonym Richard Saunders

Fools multiply folly.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

The noblest question in the world is, What Good may I do in it?
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Pay what you owe, and you’ll know what’s your own.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

An ounce of wit that is bought, is worth a pound that is taught.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Hunger is the best pickle.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Reading makes a full Man, Meditation a profound Man,|discourse a clear Man.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Whate’er’s begun in anger ends in shame.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Fear to do ill, and you need fear naught else.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

A quarrelsome Man has no good Neighbors.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

If time be of all things the most precious, wasting time must be the greatest prodigality, since lost time is never found again; and what we call time enough always proves little enough. Let us then up and be doing, and doing to the purpose; so by diligence shall we do more with less perplexity.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

If you desire many things, many things will seem few.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Well done is better than well said.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

He that sows thorns, should not go barefoot.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Work as if you were to live 100 years, Pray as if you were to die To-morrow.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Genius without education is like silver in the mine.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Who is strong? He that can conquer his bad Habits.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Don’t go to the doctor with every distemper, nor to the lawyer with every quarrel, nor to the pot for every thirst.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Distrust & caution are the parents of security.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Avarice and Happiness never saw each other, how then shou’d they become acquainted.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Wink at small faults; remember thou hast great ones.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Proclaim not all thou knowest, all thou owest, all thou hast, nor all thou canst.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Employ thy time well if thou meanest to gain leisure; and since thou art not sure of a minute, throw not away an hour. Leisure is time for doing something useful, and this leisure the diligent man will obtain, but the lazy man never, for a life of leisure and a life of laziness are two things.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Reading makes a full man, meditation a profound man, discourse a clear man.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Plough deep, while Sluggards sleep; And you shall have Corn, to sell and to keep.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Better is a little with content than much with contention.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Silence is not always a Sign of Wisdom, but Babbling is ever a Mark of Folly.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

You may give a Man an Office, but you cannot give him Discretion.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Experience keeps a dear school; but fools will learn in no other, and scarce in that; for it is true, we may give advice, but we cannot give conduct.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that is the stuff life is made of.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Search others for their virtues, thy self for thy vices.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Sloth makes all things difficult, but industry, all things easy.—He that rises late must trot all day, and hall scarce overtake his business at night, while laziness travels so slowly that poverty soon overtakes him.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Glass, China, and Reputation, are easily crack’d, and never well mended.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Better slip with foot than tongue.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

If you’d know the Value of Money, go and borrow some.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

The Proud hate Pride—in others.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

God helps them that help themselves.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Have you somewhat to do tomorrow; do it today.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Wish not so much to live long as to live well.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

The worst wheel of the cart makes the most noise.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Diligence overcomes Difficulties, Sloth makes them.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Would you persuade, speak of Interest, not of Reason.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

An empty bag will not stand upright.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

He that can compose himself, is wiser than he that composes books.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

He’s a Fool that cannot conceal his Wisdom.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Having been poor is no shame, but being ashamed of it, is.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

If you desire many things, many things will seem but a few.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Beware of him that is slow to anger: He is angry for some thing, and will not be pleased for nothing.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Humility makes great men twice honourable.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

The Sting of a Reproach, is the Truth of it.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

How many observe Christ’s Birth-day! How few, his Precepts! O! ’tis easier to keep Holidays than Commandments.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Think of three Things, whence you came, where you are going, and to whom you must account.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Virtue may not always make a Face handsome, but Vice will certainly make it ugly.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

To-morrow, every fault is to be amended; but that To-morrow never comes.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

The things which hurt, instruct.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

By diligence and patience, the mouse bit in two the cable.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

He that’s content, hath enough; He that complains, has too much.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

If time be of all things most precious, wasting time must be the greatest prodigality, since lost time is never found again.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Necessity never made a good bargain.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

A great Talker may be no Fool, but he is one that relies on him.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Approve not of him who commends all you say.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

When the Well’s dry, we know the Worth of Water.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

They that won’t be counselled, can’t be helped.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Tell a miser he’s rich, and a woman she’s old, you’ll get no money of one, nor kindness of t’other.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Tell me my Faults, and mend your own. Men take more pains to mask than mend.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

The poor have little, beggars none, the rich too much, enough not one.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Poverty wants some things, Luxury many things, Avarice all things.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Wealth is not his that has it, but his that enjoys it.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Anger is never without a Reason, but seldom with a good One.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

A Temper to bear much, will have much to bear.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

If Man could have Half his Wishes, he would double his Troubles.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Lost time is never found again.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Want of Care does us more Damage than Want of Knowledge.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Hunger never saw bad bread.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

God helps them that help themselves.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Speak little, do much.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

The Wolf sheds his Coat once a Year, his Disposition never.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

To err is human, to repent divine, to persist devilish.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

When you’re good to others, you are best to yourself.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

He that waits upon fortune, is never sure of a dinner.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Do not do what you would not have known.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Haste makes waste.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Beware of little expenses; a small leak will sink a great ship.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

He that is rich need not live sparingly, and he that can live sparingly need not be rich.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Half the Truth is often a great Lie.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Diligence is the mother of good luck.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

No gains without pains.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

There are lazy Minds as well as lazy Bodies.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Be slow in chusing a Friend, slower in changing.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

He that lives upon Hope, dies fasting.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

The Sun never repents of the good he does, nor does he ever demand a recompence.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Love, and be loved.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

What signifies your Patience, if you can’t find it when you want it.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Fish & visitors stink in 3 days.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Sin is not harmful because it is forbidden, but it is forbidden because it is hurtful.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Be neither silly, nor cunning, but wise.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

They who have nothing to be troubled at, will be troubled at nothing.
—Benjamin Franklin (American Political leader)

Franklin was a doyen of the self-improvement movement. His methods for self-mastery are worth taking a serious look at if you’re interested in getting better at anything in life. He was the unlikely father of self-help and his Autobiography (1793) remains a popular self-help book.

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Inspirational Quotations #358

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Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same.
—Ronald Reagan (American Head of State)

Any act often repeated soon forms a habit; and habit allowed, steadily gains in strength. At first it may be but as the spider’s web, easily broken through, but if not resisted it soon binds us with chains of steel.
—Tryon Edwards (American Theologian)

The search for happiness is one of the chief sources of unhappiness.
—Eric Hoffer (American Philosopher)

Wise people may say what they will, but one passion is never cured by another.
—Earl of Chesterfield

Man is much more sensitive to the contempt of others than to self-contempt.
—Friedrich Nietzsche (German Philosopher, Scholar)

Men show their character in nothing more clearly than by what they think laughable.
—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (German Poet)

I see it only that thyself is here, and art and nature, hope and fate, friends, angels and the supreme being shall not be absent from the chamber where thou sittest.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (American Philosopher)

It is almost more important how a person takes his fate than what it is.
—Wilhelm von Humboldt (German Philosopher)

There is absolutely nothing that you desire that you cannot achieve.
—Abraham Hicks

No matter how dull, or how mean, or how wise a man is, he feels that happiness is his indisputable right.
—Helen Keller (American Author)

Life has no smooth road for any of us; and in the bracing atmosphere of a high aim the very roughness stimulates the climber to steadier steps, till the legend, over steep ways to the stars” fulfils itself.”
—William Croswell Doane (American Anglican Hymn writer)

Inspirational Quotations for the New Year (#357)

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Happy New Year everybody, I hope this year brings peace, prosperity, and well-being.

“In the New Year, may your right hand always be stretched out in friendship, never in want.” ? Old Irish toast

It is ever the invisible that is the object of our profoundest worship. With the lover it is not the seen but the unseen that he muses upon.
—Christian Nestell Bovee

Everything’s got a moral, if only you can find it.
—Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (Lewis Carroll) (British Anglican Author)

Whoever you are, whatever your dream, you have to be strong in your head and strong in your heart. Be strong. There’s no quitting in the person who wants it bad enough.
—Carly Patterson (American Sportsperson)

In all living there is a certain narrowness of application which leads to breadth and power. We have to concentrate on a thing in order to master it. Then we must be broad enough not to be narrowed by our specialties.
—Ralph Washington Sockman

In the midst of global crises such as pollution, wars and famine, kindness may too easily be dismissed as a soft issue,” or a luxury to be addressed after the urgent problems are solved. But kindness is the greatest need in all those areas—kindness toward the environment, toward other nations, toward the needs of people who are suffering. Until we reflect basic kindness in everything we do, our political gestures will be fleeting and fragile. Simple kindness may be the most vital key to the riddle of how human beings can live with each other in peace, and care properly for this planet we all share.”
—Bo Lozoff (American Interfaith Writer)

Good actions ennoble us, and we are the sons of our own deeds.
—Miguel de Cervantes (Spanish Novelist)

The root of all difficulty and conflict lies in the mind; therefore, the solution to all difficulty and conflict lies in changing the mind.
—Kusan Sunim (Korean Buddhist Priest)

Inspirational Quotations from the Holy Bible [#356]

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In observance of Christmas, I present teachings from the Holy Bible, the principal scripture in the Christian faith.

Merry Christmas! May you all have a day filled with peace and joy.

Jesus Christ status in La Sainte-Chapelle in Paris

Christmas and the Season of Goodwill

Christmas is widely celebrated to commemorate the birth of Jesus, the central figure of the Christian faith. Christians believe that Jesus, born to Mary and Joseph, a Jewish couple in Palestine in the first century AD, was the Christ (from the Greek word Khrist?s meaning “the anointed,” or “the chosen one of God”.)

To be precise, in the Christian tradition, December 25 is the first of the twelve days of Christmas. Traditionally, this twelve-day Christmas celebration ends with the feast of “Epiphany,” held on January 6 or on the first Sunday after Christmas.

Over the years, Christmas has transformed into a secular holiday. Historians and religious scholars believe that the December date for the birth of Christ was set around the time of the winter solstice to fit in with pre-Christian pagan traditions of feasting during the occasion of the sun’s annual rebirth, in late December. Besides, the Church of Rome (now the Vatican) did not establish the festival as Christian until the middle of the fourth century.

Christmas Spirit in Action

Christmas Spirit in Action No other holiday boasts a richer variety of rituals, traditions, and customs. Christmas celebrations vary around the world in length and style. The Christians attend midnight or Christmas day Church services and set up a Tyrolean crib at home featuring the town of Bethlehem and the manger to commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ.

The season of good will is marked by exchange of gifts and greeting cards, sumptuous dinners, familiar hymns and songs, brightly lit trees, red-ribboned wreaths, ornaments and decorations, Santa Claus, and stockings. During the last few decades, the “Christmas shopping season” has become economically imperative as the time of new product introduction and hectic shopping.

The Holy Bible

The Bible (from the Greek word ta biblia, for “the books”) is a compilation of scripture in Judaism and the Christian faiths. It is the most widely read literature in the world.

The Christian Bible consists of the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Old Testament contains nearly all of the same writings as the Hebrew Bible; the New Testament is a collection of writings dating from after the life of Jesus. The New Testament includes the Gospels (the central message of Jesus Christ and the promise of salvation for the faithful,) the Acts of the Apostles (the stories of the few years after Jesus’ death,) the Epistles (details of the Christian faith), and the book of Revelation (a vision for the end of time.)

Inspirational Quotations from the Christian Bible

Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.
—The Holy Bible (Scripture in the Christian Faith)

Confess your trespasses to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
—The Holy Bible (Scripture in the Christian Faith)

Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.
—The Holy Bible (Scripture in the Christian Faith)

And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.
—The Holy Bible (Scripture in the Christian Faith)

Man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward.
—The Holy Bible (Scripture in the Christian Faith)

God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few.
—The Holy Bible (Scripture in the Christian Faith)

The entire law is summed up in a single command, “Love your neighbor as yourself.”
—The Holy Bible (Scripture in the Christian Faith)

You cannot serve God and Mammon.
—The Holy Bible (Scripture in the Christian Faith)

He who attempts to resist the wave is swept away, but he who bends before it abides.
—The Holy Bible (Scripture in the Christian Faith)

The waters wear the stones.
—The Holy Bible (Scripture in the Christian Faith)

The kingdom of God is within you.
—The Holy Bible (Scripture in the Christian Faith)

He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much; and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.
—The Holy Bible (Scripture in the Christian Faith)

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.
—The Holy Bible (Scripture in the Christian Faith)

Wondering what to read next?

  1. An Olympian History of Humanity // Book Summary of Yuval Noah Harari’s ‘Sapiens’
  2. Is Buddhism Pessimistic?
  3. Does the Consensus Speak For You?
  4. It Pays to Understand Religion
  5. Legendary Primatologist Jane Goodall on Spirituality

Inspirational Quotations #355

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A man too busy to take care of his health is like a mechanic too busy to take care of his tools.
—Spanish Proverb

It takes less time to do a thing right, than it does to explain why you did it wrong.
—Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (American Poet)

Frozen in fear, you avoid responsibility because you think your experience is beyond your control. This stance keeps you from making decisions, solving problems, or going after what you want in life.
—David Emerald

Each of us is something of a schizophrenic personality, tragically divided against ourselves.
—Martin Luther King, Jr. (American Civil Rights Leader)

One who helps us in difficult times should be considered as a relative, even if he is a stranger. One who hurts us, should be considered as a stranger, even if he is our relative. Though a disease resides in our body, it is harmful. But a medicinal plant that grows in a forest, saves lives.
—Hitopadesha

I sincerely believe that the word relationships is the key to the prospect of a decent world. It seems abundantly clear that every problem you will have-in your family, in your work, in our nation, or in this world-is essentially a matter of relationships, of interdependence.
—Clarence Francis (American Business Executive)

In hell, people starve because their hands are chained to six-foot-long chopsticks, too long to bring the rice to their mouths. Heaven is the same, only there, people feed each other.
—Vietnamese Proverb