Quotes of Wisdom

  1. The Road to Hell is Paved with Good Intentions: The earliest instance of this quote is found in Virgil‘s Aeneid: “facilis descensus Averno” (the descent to hell is easy).
  2. He Who Fights With Monsters: I think the reason this quote resonates with many people is that it is an archetypal truth.
  3. The Busiest People Harbor The Greatest Weariness: Our intuition tells us that the opposite of work is depression.
  4. The Reasonable Person Adapts Himself Meaning: Progress, if it is at all possible, we are taught, can only come from rational thought.
  5. Don’t Try: Charles Bukowski, today known as a celebrated author, found success only in his fifties.
  6. Hard Times Create Strong Men: The quote is from a post-apocalyptic novel called “Those Who Remain” by the author G. Michael Hopf.
  7. The Mind is an Excellent Servant (Reversal) : A proper education will give you the capacity to think.
  8. The Only Path to Serenity Meaning (Lao Tzu Quote): Difficult but necessary tasks lead to burnout.
  9. Forever Reading, Never to be Read: Schopenhauer makes an interesting remark about the pitfalls of reading too much.
  10. A Foolish Consistency is the Hobgoblin of Little Minds: No area in life is not affected by the inner compulsion to remain consistent.
  11. There is More Wisdom in your Body than in your Deepest Philosophy: First, let’s start with a definition.
  12. The Perfect is the Enemy of the Good: In his writings, a wise Italian says that the best is the enemy of the good.
  13. “Everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler”: An Isaac Newton quote.
  14. I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable – Analysis: Don’t forget trial and error.
  15. A clever person turns great troubles into little ones. A way to test out truth of a sentence, is to examine its opposite.
  16. The Road Not Taken (or Less Travelled): There’s never one way of looking at something.
  17. “All Truth Passes Through Three Stages” Meaning: Arthur Schopenhauer is one of the most underrated philosophers of all time.
  18. “The Only True Wisdom is Knowing You Know Nothing” – Meaning :A Socrates quote.
  19. Smooth seas do not make skillful sailors – Meaning: The ancient wisdom encapsulated in the African proverb.
  20. The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago – Meaning A Chinese proverb.
  21. “He who asks a question remains a fool for five minutes. He who does not ask remains a fool forever.” – Chinese Proverb
  22. “The obstacle is the path.” – Zen Proverb In the late 19th century, the world of science and innovation was rapidly evolving.
  23. “Do not wait for the last judgment. It takes place every day.” – In the tumultuous era of the American Civil Rights Movement.
  24. “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”-Meaning: Balance between individualism and cooperation.
  25. “A wise man learns more from his enemies than a fool from his friends.” – Meaning Confront limitations.
  26. “The quieter you become, the more you can hear.” – Meaning The antidote to constant noise, distractions, and stimulation.
  27. “You cannot discover new oceans unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore” – Meaning André Gide’s timeless proverb.
  28. “Great things are done by a series of small things brought together.” – Meaning Vincent van Gogh quote.
  29. “To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson: A challenge against conformity.
  30. Man is born free, and everywhere he is in chains.” – Jean-Jacques Rousseau: On societal restrictions.
  31. Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.” – James Baldwin: Facing challenges head-on.
  32. Hell is other people.” – Jean-Paul Sartre: On social relationships and existential angst.
  33. The limits of my language mean the limits of my world.” – Ludwig Wittgenstein: The relationship between language and thought.
  34. What is necessary is never unwise.” – Seneca: On pragmatic action.
  35. Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” – Lord Acton: On the dangers of unchecked power.
  36. Liberty cannot be preserved without general knowledge among the people.” – John Adams: The need for an informed citizenry.
  37. The sleep of reason produces monsters.” – Francisco Goya: The perils of abandoning rational thought
  38. If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent Him.” – Voltaire: On the human need for belief.
  39. Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn’t go away.” – Philip K. Dick: On the persistence of the objective world.
  40. We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” – Aristotle: On the cultivation of virtues.
  41. Man is condemned to be free; because once thrown into the world, he is responsible for everything he does.” – Jean-Paul Sartre: On existential responsibility.
  42. Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” – George Santayana: On the role of history.
  43. Appear weak when you are strong, and strong when you are weak.” – Sun Tzu: Strategic deception.
  44. “Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.” – Carl Sagan: On empirical limitations.
  45. “Ignorance is bliss.” – Thomas Gray: On the paradox of knowledge.
  46. “Time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time.” – Marthe Troly-Curtin: A challenge to conventional wisdom about productivity.
  47. “The map is not the territory.” – Alfred Korzybski: On the gap between perception and reality.
  48. “This too shall pass.” – Persian Adage: On the impermanence of states.
  49. “When you want to know how things really work, study them when they’re coming apart.” – William Gibson: On the revelation of systems under stress.
  50. “You are what you pretend to be.” – Kurt Vonnegut: On the power of self-perception.
  51. “It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society.” – Jiddu Krishnamurti: On societal norms.
  52. The obstacle is the way.” – Ryan Holiday: On counterintuitive paths to success.
  53. “The quieter you become, the more you are able to hear.” – Rumi: On the virtues of silence.
  54. “The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.” – J.K. Rowling: On the human confrontation with mortality.
  55. “Beware the barrenness of a busy life.” – Socrates: On the emptiness of mere activity.
  56. “The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity.” – Dorothy Parker: On the endless pursuit of knowledge
  57. “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.” – Buckminster Fuller: On the mechanics of change.