Aim at perfection in everything, though in most things it is unattainable. However they who aim at it, and persevere, will come much nearer to it than those whose laziness and despondency make them give it up as unattainable.
Few men are of one plain, decided colour, most are mixed, shaded, and blended; and vary as much, from different situations as changeable silks do from different lights.
Firmness of purpose is one of the most necessary sinews of character and one of the best instruments of success. Without it, genius wastes its efforts in a maze of inconsistencies.
I find, by experience, that the mind and the body are more than married, for they are most intimately united and when one suffers, the other sympathizes.
Know the true value of time; snatch, seize, and enjoy every moment of it. No idleness, no laziness, no procrastination: never put off till tomorrow what you can do today.
Learning is acquired by reading books, but the much more necessary learning, the knowledge of the world, is only to be acquired by reading men, and studying all the various facets of them.
Never hold any one by the button or the hand in order to be heard out; for if people are unwilling to hear you, you had better hold your tongue than them.
Never seem more learned than the people you are with. Wear your learning like a pocketwatch and keep it hidden. Do not pull it out to count the hours, but give the time when you are asked.
