5 Awesome Quotes (With Analysis)

Who doesn’t love a good quote? Oh, that one guy? Don’t talk to him.
Just a sentence or two of the right words can blow your mind. Here are a few quotes that I like, with my thoughts beneath them.

“Never ruin an apology with an excuse.” (Benjamin Franklin)

Ben Franklin is one of my favorite people ever. The way he thought about (and lived) life was fascinating.
Here he points out a common mistake. “I’m sorry. [excuse].” An excuse dilutes the sincerity of an apology. Sometimes it’s best to sincerely say you’re sorry and leave it at that.
Something similar could be said for accepting a compliment. Don’t dilute it with a forced return compliment or self-deprecation. Sincerely thank the person for seeing something positive about you and telling you about it! If you do have a genuine return compliment for them, wait for a little bit before you tell them, and it will be much more impactful. Even waiting 5 minutes could be enough to let them know you’re saying it sincerely and not merely reacting to their comment.

“Life is a long lesson in humility.” (James M. Barrie)

James Barrie gets it. No matter how high a human can possibly ascend into their (or the world’s) idea of greatness, we all get sick sometimes, we all have bad days, we all have problems, and we all die eventually. Human beings are frail, temporal creatures. We can do amazing things in our limited time here, but no person is above being humble. There’s no argument!
It’s okay that life eventually forces us into humility, because humility makes for a better experience on Earth. It’s best to recognize and accept your imperfections earlier as opposed to later.

“I am thankful to all who said ‘no’ to me. It is because of them that I’m doing it myself.” (Albert Einstein)

This one is close to the heart for me. I couldn’t get a job out of college despite a full year of trying. I thought all of the companies who passed on me made a mistake, and it angered me. But now, all I can do is thank them, because it forced/enabled me to carve my own path. Now, my career is 10x better than what it would have been. Rejection and failure are not fun when they happen, but sometimes they can lead you to a better path.

“All generalizations are false, including this one.” (Mark Twain)

Mark Twain is always good for a funny quote. This one makes me laugh because of how it plays with logic. Is it a true or false statement? Or both?

“Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple.” (Dr. Seuss)

This is impressively insightful. It makes me think of Mini Habits right away, which is a simple and effective solution to the extremely complex problem of how to approach behavior change. Behavior change involves neuroscience, cognitive and behavioral psychology, human nature, and abstract ideas like motivation and willpower. For all that complexity, “one push-up a day” changed my life. Go figure.







SOURCE: stephenguise.com