When I was young, I observed that nine out of ten things I did were failures. So I did ten times more work.
—George Bernard Shaw
I have not failed. I have found ten thousand ways that won't work.
—Thomas Edison
Much sheer effort goes into avoiding the truth: left to itself, it sweeps in like the tide.
—Fay Weldon
I loved her more than she loved me, that was the problem. A basic imbalance. Relationships like that never last, however hard you try.
—Lisa Jewell in Vince and Joy
I'm not saying it's going to be easy. Nothing in life is easy. But that's no reason to give up. You'll be surprised what you can accomplish if you set your mind to it. After all, you only have one life, so you should try to make the most of it.
—Louis Sachar in Holes
Be a bit of a challenge; not because you're playing games but because you realize you're worth the extra effort.
—Mandy Hale in The Single Woman
If you're going through hell, keep going.
—Winston Churchill
To change one's life: Start immediately. Do it flamboyantly. No exceptions.
—William James
People universally tend to think that happiness is a stroke of luck, something that will maybe descend upon you like fine weather if you are fortunate enough. But that's not how happiness works. Happiness is the consequence of personal effort. You fight for it, strive for it, insist upon it, and sometimes even travel around the world looking for it.
—Elizabeth Gilbert in Love
I'm just trying to make a smudge on the collective unconscious.
—David Letterman
God is not dead but alive and well and working on a much less ambitious project.
—Unknown
Do you want me to tell you something really subversive? Love is everything it's cracked up to be. That's why people are so cynical about it. . . . It really is worth fighting for, being brave for, risking everything for. And the trouble is, if you don't risk anything, you risk even more.
—Erica Jong
You can't expect to hit the jackpot if you don't put a few nickels in the machine.
—Flip Wilson
The belief that unhappiness is selfless and happiness is selfish is misguided. It's more selfless to act happy. It takes energy, generosity, and discipline to be unfailingly lighthearted, yet everyone takes the happy person for granted. No one is careful of his feelings or tries to keep his spirits high. He seems self-sufficient; he becomes a cushion for others. And because happiness seems unforced, that person usually gets no credit.
—Gretchen Rubin in The Happiness Project
A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort.
—Lisa Alther