I have always believed, and I still believe, that whatever good or bad fortune may come our way we can always give it meaning and transform it into something of value.

I would love to continue in music, with writing… but I am not the kind of person who will hang around if I start to become irrelevant. If that happens, I will bow down gracefully, raise my kids, and have a garden. And I am going to let my hair go gray when I am older. I don’t need to be blonde when I’m 60!

I was born with a happy heart, and I try to keep a good attitude. It’s not true that I’m happy all the time because nobody is, and we all go through our things.

Changing is not just changing the things outside of us. First of all we need the right view that transcends all notions including of being and non-being, creator and creature, mind and spirit. That kind of insight is crucial for transformation and healing.

Women, like men, should try to do the impossible. And when they fail, their failure should be a challenge to others.

I am an ordinary man who worked hard to develop the talent I was given. I believed in myself, and I believe in the goodness of others.

Every day is a gift from God, no matter how old we are.

In two decades I’ve lost a total of 789 pounds. I should be hanging from a charm bracelet.

It takes considerable knowledge just to realize the extent of your own ignorance.

A woman is like a tea bag – you can’t tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water.

Not only does God play dice, but… he sometimes throws them where they cannot be seen.

Even with all the advantages of retrospect, and a lot of witnesses dead and gone, you can’t make your life look as if you intended it or you were consistent. All you can show is how you dealt with various hands.

If you are part of a religion that very strongly insists that you believe then to decide not to do that is quite a big hurdle to jump over. You never forget the thought process you went through. It becomes part of your whole intellectual picture.

We grow older, but we do not change. We become more sophisticated, but at bottom we continue to resemble our young selves, eager to listen to the next story and the next, and the next.

When you seek the presence of your creative Spirit and are filled with passion about virtually everything you undertake, you’ll successfully remove the roadblocks from your life and enjoy the active presence of Spirit.

I always thought it was wrong for me to take credit for the work that I did. I don’t think that anymore.

I will be conquered; I will not capitulate.

The idea of going to school and getting a job is the most destructive one in your brain.

I’m not the sort of person who gives up on things. The first time we crossed the Atlantic in the balloon, it crashed, and we went on and did the Pacific. First time we crossed the Atlantic in a boat, it sank, and we went on and got the record. So, generally speaking, we will pick ourselves up, brush ourselves down, and carry on.

Whatever role I play is a positive role; it’s a strong role. Never negative.

We don’t stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.

I will not be triumphed over.

No matter what happens in life, be good to people. Being good to people is a wonderful legacy to leave behind.

Within us there is someone who knows everything, wills everything, does everything better than we ourselves.

The resistance that you fight physically in the gym and the resistance that you fight in life can only build a strong character.

Memories are the key not to the past, but to the future.

I’m a bold Christian, not a scaredy-cat Christian.

You’re just left with yourself all the time, whatever you do anyway. You’ve got to get down to your own God in your own temple. It’s all down to you, mate.

As I followed my dream – stayed in-Spirit, that is, inspired – I made more money in the first year after I gave up my employment than I had made in the previous 35 years of my life.

I have practically no private life. I’m already used to this and ready for it. Yes, sometimes it is hard, but it is the choice I made.

Worshipping the Lord means giving Him the place that he must have; worshipping the Lord means stating, believing – not only by our words – that He alone truly guides our lives; worshipping the Lord means that we are convinced before Him that He is the only God, the God of our lives, the God of our history.

Everybody has goals, aspirations or whatever, and everybody has been at a point in their life where nobody believed in them.

When I was writing ‚Kitchen Confidential,‘ I was in my 40s, I had never paid rent on time, I was 10 years behind on my taxes, I had never owned my own furniture or a car.

Vanity is the healthiest thing in life.

We are not to expect to be translated from despotism to liberty in a featherbed.

A great mind becomes a great fortune.

I didn’t have nothin‘ going for me… school, home… until I found something I loved, which was music, and that changed everything.

I have always been pushed by the negative. The apparent failure of a play sends me back to my typewriter that very night, before the reviews are out. I am more compelled to get back to work than if I had a success.

I believe in singing.

The man who is dissatisfied with himself, what can he do?

Virtually nothing is impossible in this world if you just put your mind to it and maintain a positive attitude.

Truth is mysterious, elusive, always to be conquered. Liberty is dangerous, as hard to live with as it is elating. We must march toward these two goals, painfully but resolutely, certain in advance of our failings on so long a road.

Man is made by his belief. As he believes, so he is.

Most of us have far more courage than we ever dreamed we possessed.

You will be as much value to others as you have been to yourself.

If selfishness is the key to being miserable, then selflessness must be the key to being happy!

I was bullied as a boy – lots of kids are, but hopefully most of us get on with our lives and grow up.

Oh, you weak, beautiful people who give up with such grace. What you need is someone to take hold of you – gently, with love, and hand your life back to you.

My fans saw me get engaged, saw me make that woman my wife, me having kids, me divorcing, me talking about divorce before the divorce, me talking about my kids‘ reaction to that divorce.

We must, all of us, learn actually not to have enemies, but only confused adversaries who are ourselves in disguise.

At twelve I looked like a girl of seventeen. My body was developed and shapely. I still wore the blue dress and the blouse the orphanage provided. They made me look like an overgrown lummox.

I’ve had no contact with my daughter for years. That’s her choice. Anyway, you move on. If people don’t want to bother with me, fine. You know, God bless them, and move on.

I was never particularly fond of my voice.

Being a full human being is difficult, frightening, and problematical.

Words are powerful; if you change your words, you can change your life.

Most people don’t like change. They revolt against it unless they can clearly see the advantage it brings. For that reason, when good leaders prepare to take action or make changes, they take people through a process to get them ready for it.

Begin noticing and being careful about keeping your imagination free of thoughts that you do not wish to materialize. Instead, initiate a practice of filling your creative thoughts to overflow with ideas and wishes that you fully intend to manifest. Honor your imaginings regardless of others seeing them as crazy or impossible.

I’ve always believed that you can think positive just as well as you can think negative.

‚9 to 5,‘ that little song, that little story, just won’t ever end. Just like ‚I Will Always Love You,‘ it just keeps comin‘ back, popping up its head in one way or another.

I am an over-achiever, and I want to be known for the good things in my life.

Because a thing seems difficult for you, do not think it impossible for anyone to accomplish.