Intro:
Experience is the greatest teacher. We really don't get the things until we feel it and experience it for ourselves. Yet, we don't have to reinvent the wheel when we have so many great people who have come before us, faced same problems and frustrations that we have been facing. They gave us their solutions in the form of brilliant sayings. There are thousands available online, I have compiled the ones that hit me, I have read them over and over to motivate myself. I wanted them to reflect my core belief system; see if they help you as well.
I may not always be able to follow these, I have my own share of transgressions. If you happen to observe one of those transgressions, I need a punch (punch padaali…). That is one of the selfish motives behind posting them online. Read on my top favorites in that order,
Begin
Become the change you seek in the world – Mahatma Gandhi
What it means to me: This has always made me look at myself before complaining about others. Whenever I find fault with the things around me, I come back and read this quote. It just settles me down. Makes me think about what I can do to help. It is such a motivating quote that I have put this as a banner in my website so that it will constantly stare me and remind me what I need to do.
Would the child that you were, respect the person you have become? –Unknown
What it means to me: This makes me not to compromise in the dreams I want to fulfill. I don’t want to let that little boy down.
I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something; and because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do something I can do. - Edward Everett Hale
What it means to me: Edward, who are you man. Thank you, Thank you and Thank you for such a wonderful attitude.
The only victory that counts is the one over yourself. - Jesse Owens
What it means to me: So true, it makes me so happy when I get myself to do something that I planned but has lot of inertia due to patience, confusion, inferiority complex, fear and laziness
Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will. – Mahatma Gandhi
What it means to me: It helps me find my inner strength
When you hate, only person that suffers is you; because most of the people you hate don’t know and others don’t care – Dialogue in movie “Ghosts of Mississippi”, delivered by Whoopi Goldberg
What it means to me: This one really hit me when I was watching this movie. Hatred just consumes you, its better to channelize it into more constructive things
In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
What it means to me: There is lot of hurt in Dr. King's words. I feel it. When my friend is in distress, I can empathize the hurt I cause because of my inaction
If a man hasn’t discovered something he will die for, he isn’t fit to live – Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Speech in Detroit, June 23, 1963
If a person hasn’t discovered something he/she will die for, he/she isn’t fit to live – Dr. King’s soul
What it means to me: However trivial it may be, I should have a purpose in this life.
Sorry I just made up the second one. I don’t want Dr. King’s soul to feel that it is gender biased. Quote is a tricky thing, I don’t think anybody wants to be gender biased but first quote looks pretty compared to second one. Old quotes may have “he” preferred over “she” but its changing. It will continue to change; I guess we need to be patient.
It is not the critic who counts. Not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause. Who, at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat. – Theodore Roosevelt
What it means to me: Sorry that Teddy is gender biased. Those were old times, hope all women understand this. But what a quote, I have read this thousand times yet I want to read this again and again.
Simple message: don’t pay attention to critics if they are not constructive.
Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I am not sure about the universe. - Albert Einstein
What it means to me: Now I know why I am such a stupid. Its basic human instinct, right Albert?
Courage, its said, is not the absence of fear, but the ability to act in its presence – Unknown source
What it means to me: I thought courage and fear are opposite virtues - thank you for correcting me
Courage is the knowledge of how to fear what ought to be feared and how not to fear what ought not to be feared. - David Ben-Gurion
What it means to me: After all, I am not such a coward
Highest form of Human Excellence is to question oneself and others – Socrates
What is means to me: I am never shy of asking questions however stupid they are
The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing. - Albert Einstein
What it means to me: Thanks Socrates and Albert for such a nice quote
To believe in something, and not to live it, is dishonest – Mahatma Gandhi
What it means to me: I had so may fears before starting this website, I overcame because I believe in it
Strong people make as many mistakes as weak people. Difference is that strong people admit their mistakes, laugh at them, learn from them. That is how they become strong.-Richard Needham
What it means to me: I don’t hesitate a second to admit my mistake after that I can focus on what I need to do next instead of covering up my mistakes
The true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no good – Unknown source
What it means to me: I will make sure that I am treating people with respect;
punch me if you find it otherwise
More often than not, truth is not interesting to talk about, it is bald, but then you have to make a choice between pursuing truth or looking for interesting stuff –Unknown
Pacino’s Take:
"When I try to explain anything I always end up trying to be right usually, but not truthful necessarily. Trying to give the right answer or what I think is the right answer. It's a human instinct. You try to be as clever as you can be. You're trying to come off like you really know what the hell's going on, when you don't!" - Al Pacino
What it means to me: Sometimes it's so hard to speak the truth when it hurts us. Its better to keep quiet than speak something rubbish
You're only as good as the best thing you've ever done – Billy Wilder (director of the Apartment)
What it means to me: Don’t read this quote in the negative sense, read it other way round, it really pumps you up when you are down because at that point you will forget best things you have done in life.
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away – Unknown (I first heard from Pat riley, Basketball coach praising that Dwayne Wade provides plenty of such moments)
What it means to me: I don’t want to live just like that
Inheritance doesn’t come if you’re born to; it comes if you’re still born to – Unknown Source
What it means to me: It reminds me of my responsibilities as a son – not to forget my roots
The most incomprehensible thing about the world is that it is comprehensible. - Albert Einstein
What it means to me: Along with Occam’s razor, “All other things being equal, the simplest solution is the best”, this makes me always search for simple solutions
I told my psychiatrist that everyone hated me. He told me I was being ridiculous. Everyone hadn't met me yet. — Rodney Dangerfield
What it means to me: Luckily, I am fortunate to have such wonderful people around me. It is a nice quote though
Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex and more violent. It takes a touch of genius - and lot of courage to move in the opposite direction. - Albert Einstein
What it means to me: Don’t be afraid when you don’t want to follow the crowd
Imagination is more important than knowledge. - Albert Einstein
My take: but knowledge is pre-requisite to imagination
What it means to me: Probably this is the only quote that I like but disagree. You cannot be imaginative when you have missing pieces of knowledge. We can’t invent things, we will get no where.
The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources - Albert Einstein
RamGopal Varma’s take: Genius is in revealing those sources
What it means to me: Probably this is one of those rare moments I agreed with RamGopal varma.
In true love, we should learn to 'know' and love the other with their imperfections and faults, not after their removal. – Unknown Source
What it means to me: I don’t believe there is a thing called true love, its not Boolean algebra. If there is one, it will be really boring. To me, it is a gray area.
Anyhow, we have to look at this quote with a caveat – pointing out faults in your partner may not be wrong because you want them to get better. To me, being indifferent to them because of faults is wrong.
Marriage breakdowns do not happen because of 'differences'; they happen because a couple can't handle those differences. – Unknown Source
What it means to me: Who said happily married couples don’t have differences
A good marriage is both a mystery and a miracle. It depends less on finding the right partner than being the right partner – Unknown Source
What it means to me: I want to apply this to all the relationships, not just marriage
Winners never quit, and quitters never win. - Vince Lombardi 1913-1970 American Football Coach
What it means to me: Let me not be modest, I want to be winner. Every time I want to quit, thanks to Mr. Lombardi, there is voice screaming in my ear
Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new - Albert Einstein
What it means to me: Albert has come up with another gem, thank you; From now on, I will keep on making mistakes. Just kidding, now I know its OK to fail before I achieve the success I have been dreaming about
Iron rusts from disuse; stagnant water loses its purity and in cold weather becomes frozen; even so does inaction sap the vigor of the mind. -Leonardo da Vinci
What it means to me: Come on, Ramu, time to wake up from the slumber. Enough is enough…
Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results - Albert Einstein
What it means to me: Please remind me whenever I go insane
Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent. - Isaac Asimov, Salvor Hardin in "Foundation" US science fiction novelist & scholar (1920 - 1992)
What it means to me: As a generation, we need to rid this world of violence wherever we can.
When you look at yourself from a universal standpoint, something inside always reminds or informs you that there are bigger and better things to worry about. - Albert Einstein
What it means to me: what is it Albert J Big picture. Big picture and Big picture. Have you got it Ramu?
Silence is golden when you can't think of a good answer. -Muhammad Ali
What it means to me: Brain and Brawn are not opposite qualities, we give to you Ali. Wonderful quote
It is better to be hated for who you are… than loved for who you are not. – Unknown source
What it means to me: Let me be honest with my feelings and actions, let the other people judge whether I am right or wrong.
Following are the quotes on the walls of St. Jude, my second home – Most of them are self-explanatory so I spare you the pain of reading my comments:
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital – Quotations
Persistence: The race goes not always to the swift… But to those who keep on running
Innovation: If there is a better solution… find it. –Thomas Edison
Opportunity: You will always miss 100% of the shots you don’t take
Achievement: Unless you try to do something beyond what you have
already mastered, you will never grow
Challenges: Life is a journey… take one shot at a time
Excellence: Many times the difference between failure and success is doing something nearly right… or doing it exactly right
Team work: Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision. The ability to direct individual accomplishment toward organizational objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results.
Growth: Small opportunities are often the beginning of great accomplishments
Dare to soar: Your attitude, almost always determines your altitude in life
Brilliance: When a collection of brilliant minds, hearts and talents come together… expect a master piece
Quality: Countless, unseen details are often the only difference between mediocre and magnificent
Success: Success is a journey. Not a destination
Believe and succeed: Courage does not always soar; sometimes, it is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, “I will try again tomorrow”