I would rather try to persuade a man to go along, because once I have persuaded him, he will stick. If I scare him, he will stay just as long as he is scared, and then he is gone.

Not what I have, but what I do is my kingdom.

A word after a word after a word is power.

We are twice armed if we fight with faith.

Opportunity dances with those already on the dance floor.

Men are moved by two levers only: fear and self interest.

Every government degenerates when trusted to the rulers of the people alone. The people themselves are its only safe depositories.

Pretension is a poor joke that you play on yourself. Snap out of it. Recognise your strengths, work on your weaknesses. Real achievement is liking what you see in the mirror every morning.

Those who write clearly have readers, those who write obscurely have commentators.

No one would talk much in society if they knew how often they misunderstood others.

If all you’re doing is grinding for the man, it’s going to burden you. Once you say, ‚Hey, I’m grinding for the man, but I’m putting money away, and this is part of my exit strategy,‘ you’re working for you.

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.

The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.

Think of yourself as on the threshold of unparalleled success. A whole, clear, glorious life lies before you. Achieve! Achieve!

I kept writing not because I felt I was so good, but because I felt they were so bad, including Shakespeare, all those. The stilted formalism, like chewing cardboard.

Nobody climbs mountains for scientific reasons. Science is used to raise money for the expeditions, but you really climb for the hell of it.

Be a player; don’t play yourself. And don’t play basketball. That’s not your sport, Jeb Bush.

The greatest mistake you can make in life is continually fearing that you’ll make one.

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.

Above anything else, I hate to lose.

The presidency has made every man who occupied it, no matter how small, bigger than he was; and no matter how big, not big enough for its demands.

When you are in any contest, you should work as if there were – to the very last minute – a chance to lose it. This is battle, this is politics, this is anything.

I don’t go to bed at 1 A.M. and wake up at 5 A.M. and say, ‚Let’s see if I can get this done today.‘

Words do not express thoughts very well. They always become a little different immediately after they are expressed, a little distorted, a little foolish.

If you want to succeed you should strike out on new paths, rather than travel the worn paths of accepted success.

If you tell people where to go, but not how to get there, you’ll be amazed at the results.

To go beyond is as wrong as to fall short.

Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far.

At Facebook, we build tools to help people connect with the people they want and share what they want, and by doing this we are extending people’s capacity to build and maintain relationships.

It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves.

It’s considered acceptable in our culture to approach perfect strangers, as often or not who may be in extremis, and evangelise. I don’t see why that’s considered a normal thing.

If you must speak ill of another, do not speak it, write it in the sand near the water’s edge.

Be a yardstick of quality. Some people aren’t used to an environment where excellence is expected.

Money has a language of its own.

A lot has happened over the years. And while this nation has been tested by war, and it’s been tested by recession and all manner of challenges – I stand before you again tonight, after almost two terms as your president, to tell you I am more optimistic about the future of America than ever before.

When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro.

Love. Fall in love and stay in love. Write only what you love, and love what you write. The key word is love. You have to get up in the morning and write something you love, something to live for.

When dealing with people, remember you are not dealing with creatures of logic, but creatures of emotion.

I’m going to be so much better a president for having been at the CIA that you’re not going to believe it.

Whether you believe you can do a thing or not, you are right.

The authority you establish must emerge naturally from your character, from the particular strengths you possess.

The one way to get me to work my hardest was to doubt me.

If you are first you are first. If you are second you are nothing.

I am a leader by default, only because nature does not allow a vacuum.

If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on.

In difficult times, we’re not supposed to quit believing; we’re not supposed to quit growing.

Leaders in all spheres who are living with HIV should be encouraged, not coerced, to lead by example and disclose their HIV status.

We want everybody to act like adults, quit playing games, realize that it’s not just my way or the highway.

Tell the audience what you’re going to say, say it; then tell them what you’ve said.

I don’t want to hear the word ‚can’t.‘

Never hold discussions with the monkey when the organ grinder is in the room.

I just want you to know that, when we talk about war, we’re really talking about peace.

When defeat comes, accept it as a signal that your plans are not sound, rebuild those plans, and set sail once more toward your coveted goal.

Every first-term president has to learn something after he comes into office. Nobody can be completely ready for the inevitable crises.

I’m honored that everybody’s inspired off my inspiration.

The high destiny of the individual is to serve rather than to rule.

You have to motivate yourself with challenges. That’s how you know you’re still alive.

My interest in life comes from setting myself huge, apparently unachievable challenges and trying to rise above them.

Rational discussion is useful only when there is a significant base of shared assumptions.

There have to be reasons that you get up in the morning and you want to live. Why do you want to live? What’s the point? What inspires you? What do you love about the future? If the future does not include being out there among the stars and being a multi-planet species, I find that incredibly depressing.

Coffee is a language in itself.