Samuel Johnson

Pleasure that is obtained by unreasonable and unsuitable cost, must always end in pain.

If you are idle, be not solitary; if you are solitary, be not idle.

To be idle and to be poor have always been reproaches, and therefore every man endeavors with his utmost care to hide his poverty from others, and his idleness from himself.

A short letter to a distant friend is, in my opinion, an insult like that of a slight bow or cursory salutation — a proof of unwillingness to do much, even where there is a necessity of doing something.

Courage is a quality so necessary for maintaining virtue, that it is always respected, even when it is associated with vice.

Parents and children seldom act in concert: each child endeavors to appropriate the esteem or fondness of the parents, and the parents, with yet less temptation, betray each other to their children.

I constantly ask myself if what I’m doing is for me or somebody else. It’s tripping me out!

Ahh, that mountain of self-discovery. Every time you have reached the summit, the clouds clear and you see there is still a ways to go. Don’t look up with thoughts of despair; thinking how much further do I have to go?! Take a moment and look back to see how far you have come. Don’t lose sight of your accomplishments, and focus on the continued commitment to self-discovery and development.

When you cease to make a contribution, you begin to die.

Do or do not. There is no try.

As to conforming outwardly, and living your own life inwardly, I have not a very high opinion of that course.

The civilized man has built a coach, but has lost the use of his feet.

Cultivate kindness today and always.

I have a great deal of company in the house, especially in the morning when nobody calls.

One must be an inventor to read well. There is then creative reading as well as creative writing.

Music causes us to think eloquently.

There’s much more stupidity than there is malice in the world.

What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have never been discovered.

Beware the barrenness of a busy life.

There are few things that we so unwillingly give up, even in advanced age, as the supposition that we still have the power of ingratiating ourselves with the fair sex.

Money is the most important thing in the world. It represents health, strength, honor, generosity, and beauty as conspicuously as the want of it represents illness, weakness, disgrace, meanness, and ugliness.