“We can’t direct the wind but we can adjust the sails”
Here is a completely new style of blog to start the New Year. It quotes this very apt remark by Aristotle as well as numerous other wise sayings that question the status quo or reveal new points of view and may capture your attention or even bring a smile to your face – these are my personal favorites. I hope they will inspire you and give you food for thought.
- It is not that we have little time but more that we waste a good deal of it. Lucius Annaeus Seneca, Roman philosopher and poet
- If we only wanted to be happy, it would be easy; but we want to be happier than other people, and that is almost always difficult, since we think them happier than they are. Charles-Louis de Montesquieu, French writer and state theorist
- Happiness is an achievement brought about by man’s inner productiveness and not a gift of the gods. Erich Fromm, German-American psychoanalyst and philosopher
- The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts. Marcus Aurelius, Roman emperor and philosopher
- If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change. Wayne Dyer, American psychologist.
- Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Reinhold Niebuhr, American theologian and philosopher
- The greatest decision of your life is that you can change your life by changing your frame of mind. Albert Schweitzer, German-French doctor and philosopher
- It is not happy people who are thankful, it is thankful people who are happy. Francis Bacon, English philosopher and statesman
- I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work. Thomas Alva Edison, American inventor and entrepreneur
- If you always do what you’ve always done, then you will always get what you always got.“ Henry Ford, American entrepreneur
- We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them. Albert Einstein, German physicist
- It is better taking imperfect decisions than constantly searching for perfect decisions that you will never find. Charles de Gaulle, French President and general
- Where would we go if everyone said where would we go, and no one went to see where you would go if you went. Kurt Marti, Swiss priest and author
- The biggest mistake you can make in your life is to be always afraid of making a mistake. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, German theologian and resistance fighter
- Success is going from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm. Winston Churchill, British Prime Minister
- Whether you think you can or whether you think you can’t, you’re right. Henry Ford, American entrepreneur
- If we don‘t seize the opportunity in the present, we will look back at our past in the future and regret that we have not changed anything. Jojo Moyes, British journalist and author
- The only constant is change. Heraclitus, Greek philosopher
- When the wind of change blows, some people build walls, others build windmills. Chinese proverb
- We can’t direct the wind but we can adjust the sails. Aristotle, Greek philosopher
- If you run in the wrong direction, there’s no point in speeding up. Brigit Breuel, German politician
- If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude. Maya Angelou, American author
- It’s not enough to talk about facts. You have to talk to people. Stanislaw Jerzy Lec, Polish poet
- Only the one who walks his own way can’t be overtaken. Marlon Brando, American actor
- Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Steve Jobs, American entrepreneur
- The desire to appear clever often prevents one from becoming so. François de La Rochefoucauld, French author
- If you don’t do something for the good of your health each day, you will one day have to sacrifice a lot of time to illness. Sebastian Kneipp, German priest and naturopath
Do you also have favorite quotes? If so, please send them to: claudia.kraaz@stressandbalance.ch. I can then begin a new collection that I will publish at the start of 2020. I look forward to hearing from you!
