The will to win, the desire to succeed, the urge to reach your full potential... these are the keys that will unlock the door to personal excellence.

The more man meditates upon good thoughts, the better will be his world and the world at large.

If you look into your own heart, and you find nothing wrong there, what is there to worry about? What is there to fear?

By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.

There are three methods to gaining wisdom. The first is reflection, which is the highest. The second is limitation, which is the easiest. The third is experience, which is the bitterest.

They must often change, who would be constant in happiness or wisdom.

Without feelings of respect, what is there to distinguish men from beasts?

It is easy to hate and it is difficult to love. This is how the whole scheme of things works. All good things are difficult to achieve; and bad things are very easy to get.

If we don't know life, how can we know death?

Death and life have their determined appointments; riches and honors depend upon heaven.

Study the past, if you would divine the future.

If you think in terms of a year, plant a seed; if in terms of ten years, plant trees; if in terms of 100 years, teach the people.

Heaven means to be one with God.

He who learns but does not think, is lost! He who thinks but does not learn is in great danger.

An oppressive government is more to be feared than a tiger.

He who exercises government by means of his virtue may be compared to the north polar star, which keeps its place and all the stars turn towards it.

Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.

The strength of a nation derives from the integrity of the home.

Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance.

To know what you know and what you do not know, that is true knowledge.

I am not one who was born in the possession of knowledge; I am one who is fond of antiquity, and earnest in seeking it there.

When you know a thing, to hold that you know it, and when you do not know a thing, to allow that you do not know it - this is knowledge.

The cautious seldom err.

Wherever you go, go with all your heart.

When it is obvious that the goals cannot be reached, don't adjust the goals, adjust the action steps.

If I am walking with two other men, each of them will serve as my teacher. I will pick out the good points of the one and imitate them, and the bad points of the other and correct them in myself.

How to play music may be known. At the commencement of the piece, all the parts should sound together. As it proceeds, they should be in harmony while severally distinct and flowing without break, and thus on to the conclusion.

The superior man is distressed by the limitations of his ability; he is not distressed by the fact that men do not recognize the ability that he has.

I will not be concerned at other men's not knowing me; I will be concerned at my own want of ability.

The object of the superior man is truth.

Speak the truth, do not yield to anger; give, if thou art asked for little; by these three steps thou wilt go near the gods.

You cannot open a book without learning something.

Learning without thought is labor lost; thought without learning is perilous.

Virtue is not left to stand alone. He who practices it will have neighbors.

The expectations of life depend upon diligence; the mechanic that would perfect his work must first sharpen his tools.

To see the right and not to do it is cowardice.

Faced with what is right, to leave it undone shows a lack of courage.

To see what is right and not to do it is want of courage, or of principle.

The superior man does not, even for the space of a single meal, act contrary to virtue. In moments of haste, he cleaves to it. In seasons of danger, he cleaves to it.

We should feel sorrow, but not sink under its oppression.

Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.

I have looked into your eyes with my eyes. I have put my heart near your heart.

The family is the first essential cell of human society.

Italians come to ruin most generally in three ways, women, gambling, and farming. My family chose the slowest one.

Consult not your fears but your hopes and your dreams. Think not about your frustrations, but about your unfulfilled potential. Concern yourself not with what you tried and failed in, but with what it is still possible for you to do.

The true and solid peace of nations consists not in equality of arms, but in mutual trust alone.

I am able to follow my own death step by step. Now I move softly towards the end.

In this world of ours, every believer must be a spark of light, a center of love, a vivifying ferment for the mass; and it will be that all the more as, in the depths of his being, he lives in communion with God.

See everything, overlook a great deal, correct a little.

Men are like wine - some turn to vinegar, but the best improve with age.