Posts Tagged ‘Great Quote Monday’
Great Quote Monday — Blaise Pascal
Blaise Pascal: Philosopher, Scientist, Overachiever
In his scant 39 years here on Earth, Blaise Pascal left an indelible mark in the worlds of mathematics, science, theology, and philosophy. His legacy includes numerous inventions, books, and mathematic axioms, all of which he created while living with considerable pain that plagued him all his adult life.
Would he have lived longer and been happier if he abandoned his sissy French name ‘Blaise’ for something tougher like ‘Blaze’?
That, we’ll never know.
What we do know is Pascal had a gift for crafting thought-provoking ideas. Ideas that won’t leave you alone until you wrestle with them a bit. Ideas like today’s quote:
“People almost invariably arrive at their beliefs not on the basis of proof but on the basis of what they find attractive.”
- From De L’Art De Persuader (”On the Art of Persuasion”)
Agree or disagree with Monsieur Pascal? Leave a reply and let us know, see vou play.
-Matthew Porter
Great Quote Monday — J.M. Barrie
James Barrie -- Author of 'Peter Pan' and a quote that's been haunting me for more than ten years.
This week’s Great Quote Monday comes to us from Scottish novelist and playwright Sir James Matthew Barrie. Barrie is best known as the creator of Peter Pan, a truly archetypal character that has transcended every medium of entertainment. However, nine years before the first appearance of ‘the boy who refused to grow up’, Barrie published a book titled ‘The Little Minister’:
“The life of every man is a diary in which he means to write one story, and writes another; and his humblest hour is when he compares the volume as it is with what he vowed to make it.”
- J.M. Barrie
Chapter 1, The Little Minister (1891)
When I first came across this quote in college, I found it bracing; an out-and-out dare to live your dreams. But as I got older, the truth of Barrie’s words began to sink in: there is indeed a gap– a chasm at times– between the life you promised to write for yourself and the life you find yourself in. In this context, Barrie’s was not invigorating at all. On the contrary, it felt like Marley’s chains.
But I’ve come to appreciate Barrie’s quote again in a new way. Life is largely comprised of two things: who you are and what you do. While related to each other, they are separate things. We have a great deal of control over the latter insofar as our accomplishments. But for the former, who we are, it’s all on us.
As far as becoming the person I believe God wants me to be, I don’t have to strive anymore to win His approval because as a Christian, I’m forgiven. But because I’m forgiven, I do want to try hard, out of gratitude.
As far as accomplishments, I believe in the end there will be a stark difference between what I thought I would accomplish in the beginning and what I tallied up by the end of the race. Thank goodness, too, because for a while I thought I wanted to be an actor. So when I compare those two volumes, yes, there will be a contrast and– with all due respect to Sir Barrie– that will be just fine with me.
So, what do you think about Barrie’s quote? Inspiring challenge or ponderous maxim? Leave a reply and let us know.
- Matthew Porter
Great Quote Monday — Ronald Reagan
President Ronald Reagan
Great leadership is not promising those you lead that you will meet their every need and fulfill their every desire. A great leader calls forth the forgotten– maybe even undiscovered– strength in those he or she leads, exhorting them that ‘you have what it takes. You make it happen.’
This Thursday, January 28, 2010, marks the 24th anniversary of the Challenger disaster. Like the Kennedy assassination and the terrorist attacks on 9/11, we all remember exactly where we were and what we were doing that sad January morning.
The evening of January 28, 1986, President Ronald Reagan addressed a still-bewildered nation and provided a shining moment of leadership, doing his best to speak words of comfort and hope at time when talk– no matter how eloquent– couldn’t make things right:
“The future doesn’t belong to the fainthearted; it belongs to the brave.”
- Ronald Reagan
Where were you and what were you doing at 11:39am EST on January 28, 1986? Share what you remember about the day in Comments.
PS: The full text of Reagan’s speech is available here: http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/ronaldreaganchallenger.htm Worth the quick read.
- Matthew Porter
Great Quote Monday — Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
“On some positions, Cowardice asks the question, “Is it safe?” Expediency asks the question, “Is it politic?” And Vanity comes along and asks the question, “Is it popular?” But Conscience asks the question “Is it right?” And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must do it because Conscience tells him it is right.”
–Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
“Remaining Awake Through a Great Revolution”
An address at the Episcopal National Cathedral, Washington D.C.
March 31, 1968
Great Quote Monday — Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln: Emancipator, Statesman, Hustler
Great line spoken by Wayne in Wayne’s World:
“Was it Kierkegaard or Dick Van Patten who said, ‘If you label me, you negate me?’”
Today’s quote isn’t from Mike Myers or Søren Kierkegaard. But the line above does remind me of how lazy people can be with quote attributions. That’s how we get these pithy little sayings floating around the Interwebs that, while clever, clearly didn’t come from the source cited. Seems like half of these quotes and sayings get attributed to Mark Twain.
All of this to say, I do everything possible to get you the quote, source, and context whenever possible. And when I’m unable to verify a quote, I will make sure to list it as ‘attributed to’, versus definitively stating somebody said/wrote something. I believe that words matter, so to me it’s worth the little extra effort.
Now, on to today’s quote, attributed to Abraham Lincoln:
“Good things may come to those who wait, but only those things left by those who hustle.”
Hope this quote inspires you as you start your week. Now, in the immortal words of Mark Twain, ‘go forth and kick some booty!’
- Matthew Porter
Great Quote Monday — Alvin Toffler
Writer / Futurist Alvin Toffler
A thought-provoking quote from writer / futurist Alvin Toffler to start your week:
“The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.”
- Alvin Toffler
That’s a really intriguing idea, that what you know isn’t as important as the ability to acquire and implement knowledge. It doesn’t take long to see there are some exceptions to this broad statement, e.g. I’m not letting someone operate on me who says ’sure I’m dentist, but I got some books on surgery this weekend and I’m a quick study.’ So does that disprove Toffler’s idea or is it just an exception? With the rapid development of technology, haven’t ‘learning, unlearning, and relearning’ become the new 3 R’s?
Do you agree with Toffler? Disagree? Share your thoughts on this quote in the comments section.
- Matthew Porter
