Entrepreneurs are simply those who understand that there is little difference between obstacle and opportunity and are able to turn both to their advantage. – Niccolò Machiavelli What does that mean? This quote is so spot on. I have known several entrepreneurs, and all have this quality. They tend to view obstacles as the best thing…
Life is like a game of cards. The hand that is dealt you represents determinism; the way you play it is free will. – Jawaharlal Nehru What does that mean? This is an interesting quote, in that it attempts to place both determinism and free will in play simultaneously. In this case, I would estimate…
The basic quality that any great story must have is a story that illustrates the human condition. – William Shatner What does that mean? While this quote is about telling a story, I’m going to use an old quote from Ben Franklin and discuss this quote in terms of living the story, or writing it…
I was obliged to be industrious. Whoever is equally industrious will succeed equally well. – Johann Sebastian Bach What does that mean? This quote says it all. If you wish to be successful, you need to be industrious. Being industrious means to be busy, like a beaver. There is also the implication that the work you…
You know, you don’t have to look like everybody else to be acceptable and to feel acceptable. – Fred Rogers What does that mean? I like the quote. While the guy was a bit quirky, and definitely from a different era, the quote hits home for me. The quote says that you don’t have to look…
After the game, the king and the pawn go into the same box. – Italian Proverb What does that mean? In the literal sense, it means that when you’re done playing chess, all the pieces go back in the same box, no matter how lofty or lowly their position was in the game, no matter…
While revenge weakens society, forgiveness gives it strength. – Dalai Lama What does that mean? The quote starts by saying that revenge weakens society. Think about all those angry people, all looking to take revenge on those they feel have done wrong to them. How cohesive would that society be? Will people be looking to lend…
Men are so simple and so much inclined to obey immediate needs that a deceiver will never lack victims for his deceptions. – Niccolò Machiavelli What does that mean? In this statement to the Princes of Renaissance Italy, the point is that their subjects are fairly simple folk. Their primary focus is their needs, such as food,…
He who deliberates fully before taking a step will spend his entire life on one leg. – Chinese Proverb What does that mean? The quote opens by considering someone who spends the time to fully deliberate all possible outcomes and ramifications of an action before acting. The implied question is ‘How long will that take…
You can tell a man is clever by his answers. You can tell a man is wise by his questions. – Naguib Mahfouz What does that mean? Clever answers are one of my favorite things. But, according the quote, all that clever answers tells us is how clever the person providing the answers happens to…
I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious. – Albert Einstein What does that mean? In this quote, Einstein tries to explain his genius. He says that he has no special talents. While there are many theories on that portion of the quote, some of the leading explanations include how ‘folded’ his brain…
Experience is the name everyone gives to their mistakes. – Oscar Wilde What does that mean? This quote is also listed in several places as “Experience is simply the name we give our mistakes.” So, what do you call your mistakes? “My Ex” might work for some of them, but what about the rest? Does…
To be conquered by yourself is of all things most shameful and vile. – Plato What does that mean? This is a Twitter friendly version of the full quote: “The first and greatest victory is to conquer yourself; to be conquered by yourself is of all things most shameful and vile.” To me, this quote…
The human capacity to care for others isn’t something trivial or something to be taken for granted. Rather it is something we should cherish. – Dalai Lama What does that mean? This quote is about the gentle side of human nature. It urges us to cherish the ability we have to care for others. It asks us…
Of mankind we may say in general they are fickle, hypocritical, and greedy of gain.– Niccolò Machiavelli What does that mean? Kind of scathing, wouldn’t you say? I’m sure he wasn’t talking about us, specifically. Those other guys, yeah, that’s who he was talking about. Not to put too fine a point on it, that’s a…
