Archive for the ‘Great Quote Monday’ Category
Great Quote Monday — Eleanor Hibbert
“Never regret. If it’s good, it’s wonderful. If it’s bad, it’s experience.”
- Attributed to Eleanor Hibbert, British author
While the above quote is overly broad, I think it’s useful in the context of work and accomplishments. I mean, if you are addicted to clubbing baby seals, well, maybe you should give that some thought and perhaps a dash of regret should be part of that cognitive cocktail.
Is regret bad? Good? Useful sometimes? Overrated? What do you think?
- Matthew Porter
Great Quote Monday — E. B. White
“If the world were merely seductive, that would be easy. If it were merely challenging, that would be no problem. But I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve (or save) the world and a desire to enjoy (or savor) the world. This makes it hard to plan the day.”
- E.B. White
Quoted in profile by Israel Shenker, “E. B. White: Notes and Comment by Author”, The New York Times – July 11, 1969
- Matthew Porter
Great Quote Monday — Henry David Thoreau
Henry David Thoreau: Poet, Thinker, Dapper Dan
Depending on how you look at it, today’s Great Quote could either be inspiring or kind of sober, a’ la J. M. Barrie. Maybe it’s both. In any case, hope it helps get your week started well…
“The youth gets together his materials to build a bridge to the moon, or, perchance, a palace or temple on the earth, and, at length, the middle-aged man concludes to build a woodshed with them.”
- Henry David Thoreau
July 14, 1852 — Journals (1838-1859)
- Matthew Porter
Great Quote Monday — Harold S. Dodge via W. Edwards Deming
W. Edwards Deming: The management guru women wanted and men wanted to be...
Today’s quote– about quality– comes from Harold S. Dodge as delivered by management guru W. Edwards Deming (also a statistician, college professor, author, lecturer, and consultant).
‘Quality’ isn’t the sexiest of concepts, as concepts go. Still, the idea of quality is inextricable from the idea of excellence. And, of course, the phrase ‘striving for excellence’ is just a fancy pants way of saying ‘we aim to stare our competition directly in the eye, except that the competition will be lying on the ground and we’ll be standing over them.’
Hey, when you put it that way, I think I could get behind this ‘quality’ thing.
Dodge’s / Deming’s quote reminds me of the work of Phil Crosby and his ‘quality is free’ and ‘do it right the first time’ concepts. Mr. Crosby was an author, management theorist, and quality management guru whom I had the pleasure of meeting several times. Which is to say, he attended the same church I did when I was growing up and I later dated his daughter for a time. Which is to say, now I’m not saying anything useful whatsoever, just doing some ham-handed name-dropping. [Shakes head] Not efficient at all…
“As Harold S. Dodge said many years ago, ‘You cannot inspect quality into a product.’ The quality is there or it isn’t by the time it’s inspected.”
- W. Edwards Deming
Out Of The Crisis (1982)
- Matthew Porter
Great Quote Monday — Elizabeth Barrett Browning
Note from Matthew: Thanks to the wifey for turning me on to this lovely quote / poem from Elizabeth Barrett Browning. And this would be as good a time as any to say I welcome your suggestions for Great Quote Monday. Drop your favorite quotes (and anything else that’s on your mind) to me here.
Now, on with the show…
Earth’s crammed with heaven,
And every common bush afire with God:
But only he who sees, takes off his shoes,
The rest sit round it, and pluck blackberries…
- Elizabeth Barrett Browning
Aurora Leigh (1857) Bk. VII, l. 812-826
- Matthew Porter
Great Quote Monday — Helen Keller
Years ago, while in Northwest Alabama for a film festival, a local guy offered to take me and the only other filmmaker at the fest– the hilarious Terry Ray– on a tour of the area. I had no idea, but the region has a lot of significant history. Scores of major artists and musical acts recorded in Muscle Shoals in the 60s and 70s. Florence was home to ‘the father of the blues’ W.C. Handy. Plus, Helen Keller was born in Tuscumbia. And all of these places, just a matter of miles apart.
When our host took us to Keller’s childhood home in Tuscumbia, I remember being happily surprised with how unremarkable it was. The place was small, quiet. Probably not too different from when the woman herself lived there — okay, it was originally a plantation, so there are some significant (and positive) differences. What I’m trying to say is that had Helen Keller grown up where I did, in Central Florida, things would have turned out a little differently. Instead of a modest home, it would have been ‘Helen Keller: The Theme Park!’ complete with rides, costumed characters, and sprawling gift shops featuring souvenir coffee mugs and tacky tourist t-shirts that read ‘Helen Keller didn’t see her house, but I did!’
In all, I was impressed with three things: One, the generosity of our volunteer tour guide. Two, how great people often have humble beginnings. And three, the folks who have every reason in the world to say they got a raw deal, but don’t, steadfastly refusing to be victims.
Ms. Keller was one such person and today’s quote from her reflects that unconquerable spirit:
“Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing.”
- Helen Keller
from The Open Door (1957)
- Matthew Porter
Great Quote Monday — John F. Kennedy
“For of those to whom much is given, much is required. And when at some future date the high court of history sits in judgment on each of us, recording whether in our brief span of service we fulfilled our responsibilities to the state, our success or failure, in whatever office we hold, will be measured by the answers to four questions: First, were we truly men of courage… Second, were we truly men of judgment… Third, were we truly men of integrity… Finally were we truly men of dedication?”
- John F. Kennedy
Speech to Massachusetts State Legislature
January 9, 1961
- Matthew Porter
Great Quote Monday — Lee Iacocca
'By the time I finish this stogie, you better have dried those tears and gotten yourself a plan.'
“Boys, there ain’t no free lunches in this country. And don’t go spending your whole life commiserating that you got the raw deals. You’ve got to say, ”I think that if I keep working at this and want it bad enough I can have it.” It’s called perseverance.”
- Attributed to Lee Iacocca: businessman, author, former CEO of Chrysler, former president of Ford, and ‘Father of the Mustang’
- Matthew Porter
Great Quote Monday — Dr. Jonas Salk
'Hey, I cured polio. What's say we try these bottles of Scotch I've been saving?'
Today marks the 55th anniversary of Dr. Jonas Salk’s polio vaccine being declared safe and effective. I know that had I created the vaccine, I would have gone to every high school reunion: ‘You say you made VP, huh? That’s just terrific. Me? I cured an epidemic that annually killed thousands and crippled tens of thousands. But hey, good for you, right?’
In honor of Dr. Salk, here’s a syringeful of wisdom from the man who pimp-slapped polio…
“I feel that the greatest reward for doing is the opportunity to do more.”
-Dr. Jonas Salk, upon receiving the Congressional Medal for Distinguished Civilian Achievement (April 23, 1956)
- Matthew Porter
Great Quote Monday — Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein
Fantastic quote for you this morning in honor of Holy Week:
“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed.”
- Albert Einstein in Mein Weltbild (1931)
- Matthew Porter
