Treat all disasters as if they were trivialities but never treat a triviality as if it were a disaster.
—Quentin Crisp
The unhappy person resents it when you try to cheer him up, because that means he has to stop dwelling on himself and start paying attention to the universe. Unhappiness is the ultimate form of self-indulgence. When you’re unhappy, you get to pay a lot of attention to yourself. You get to take yourself oh so very seriously.
—Tom Robbins in Jitterbug Perfume
Things get to me all the time—I just don’t see the point in making a big deal out of it.
—Hannah Harrington in Saving June
The last of the human freedoms—to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances; to choose one's own way.
—Viktor Frankl
The real existence of an enemy upon whom one can foist off everything evil is an enormous relief to one's conscience. You can then at least say, without hesitation, who the devil is; you are quite certain that the cause of your misfortune is outside, and not in your own attitude.
—Carl Jung
You can change the place you live, your clothes, your interests, your friends, your religion and even your partner. However, if you forgot to change your mind, attitude, beliefs about the world, how you treat people and how you plan to be different this time around, why did you even bother?
—Shannon L. Alder
When you're young, you always think you'll meet all sorts of wonderful people, that drifting apart and losing friends is natural. You don't worry, at first, about the friends you leave behind. But as you get older, it gets harder to build friendships. Too many defenses, too little opportunity. You get busy. And by the time you realize that you've lost the dearest best friend you've ever had, years have gone by and you're mature enough to be embarrassed by your attitude and, frankly, by your arrogance.
—Kate Jacobs in The Friday Night Knitting Club
Being assertive does not mean attacking or ignoring others feelings. It means that you are willing to hold up for yourself fairly-without attacking others.
—Edith Sitwell
A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort.
—Lisa Alther
I happen to feel that the degree of a person's intelligence is directly reflected by the number of conflicting attitudes she can bring to bear on the same topic.
—Lynn Johnston
Complaining is good for you as long as you're not complaining to the person you're complaining about.
—Martha Washington
I am still determined to be cheerful and happy, in whatever situation I may be; for I have also learned from experience that the greater part of our happiness or misery depends upon our dispositions, and not upon our circumstances.
—Patricia Neal
A strong positive mental attitude will create more miracles than any wonder drug.
—William James
Human beings, by changing the inner attitudes of their minds, can change the outer aspects of their lives.
—William James
The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind.
—Unknown