The young have aspirations that never come to pass, the old have reminiscences of what never happened. – Saki aka H.H.Munro What does that mean? While this may have been a comment about human foibles of memory and imagination, it is a very precise description of those who do not live in the present. The young,…
The happiness he gives, is quite as great as if it cost a fortune. – Charles Dickens (speaking as Ebenezer Scrooge) What does that mean? On this day in 1842, Charles Dickens published his famous book “A Christmas Carol.” This quote is by Ebenezer Scrooge, reflecting on his younger self. He is speaking about his boss when…
There aren’t shortcuts. Merely direct paths. Most people don’t take them, because they frighten us. – Seth Godin What does that mean? Here is a more complete version of the quote: “There aren’t many actual shortcuts. There are merely direct paths… Most people don’t take them, because they frighten us–too direct, I guess. It’s easy to…
Use your human intelligence in the best way you can; transform your emotions in a positive way. – Dalai Lama What does that mean? We all have a level of intelligence which we can use to change our nature and our attitudes. The question is how often do we think or attempt to do so? We can…
Until we have begun to go without them, we fail to realize how unnecessary many things are. – Seneca What does that mean? This is a great minimalist quote. Not in that it is as brief as some of the famous ancient quotes, but because of what it implies. So much of what we have, we…
We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures. – Thornton Wilder What does that mean? That is profound. It posits that there is one time when we are truly alive, and feel the full vigor and vibrancy of the life of the world around us. The…
Action without vision is only passing time, vision without action is merely day dreaming, but vision with action can change the world. – Nelson Mandela and Joel A. Barker What does that mean? This quote apparently has some dispute regarding the proper attribution. Regardless of who said it, I believe it is an interesting quote…
If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem. – Eldridge Cleaver What does that mean? This quote, and variations of it, shows up attributed to a couple people, including as an African Proverb, but the longer version is his, and goes as follows: ‘There is no more neutrality in the world. You…
There are many things in life that will catch your eye, but only a few will catch your heart. Pursue these. – Michael Nolan What does that mean? To me, the quote is about having ADD. Everything around me is shiny. Everything around me catches my eye. If I don’t keep it together, I get side tracked…
The beginning is the most important part of the work. – Plato What does that mean? The wikiquote translation of the quote is “the beginning in every task is the chief thing” which I consider to be close enough to be the same thing. This quote is accurate in so many ways, it’s hard to know…
As human beings, we have a common responsibility to build a more peaceful society. – Dalai Lama What does that mean? I like this quote, as it is simple common sense. We wouldn’t run a family or a business the way we run the world. That just wouldn’t make sense. We have our own voice, and our…
The mind unlearns with difficulty what it has long learned. – Seneca What does that mean? This is the ‘old dog, new tricks’ quote. Most of us are creatures of habit. We learn something, we do it for a while, and it becomes second nature. Then comes the day we have to change that routine. Whether the…
There is no wisdom without love. – Sri Ram What does that mean? This is kind of a cryptic quote, and can be taken a number of ways. I want to focus on the difference between knowledge and wisdom. It takes action to move from simple knowledge to wisdom. Sometime it takes a lack of…
We are not trying to entertain the critics. I’ll take my chances with the public. – Walt Disney What does that mean? I think this is a great way to live our lives. No matter what we do, there will always be critics, people who don’t like what we are doing. So what. The most certain…
Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go. – T. S. Eliot What does that mean? I like this quote, as it says something perfectly logical, but which few people have actually considered. That something is the answer to the question, “How far can you go?” To…
