William Arthur Ward
American author and motivational writer, 1921-1994
81 quotes.
Quotes by William Arthur Ward
- It is wise to direct your anger towards problems - not people; to focus your energies on answers - not excuses.
- Judge each day not by the harvest you reap but by the seeds you plant.
- Kindness to others adds fragrance to our friendships, love to our labors, warmth to our words, rainbows to our relationships, and harmony to our homes.
- Life without faith is a tree without root.
- Life without hope is a year without spring.
- Life without work is a bloom without fruit.
- Man, like the bridge, was designed to carry the load of the moment, not the combined weight of a year at once.
- Marriage requires the fuel of mature love to get it off the launching pad, trust to give it thrust, and patience to keep it in orbit.
- Opportunities are like sunrises. If you wait too long, you miss them.
- Optimism and encouragement are umbrellas that safely shield us from daily downpours of doubt and discouragement.
- Our ideals mould our convictions. Our convictions determine our decisions. Our decisions shape our habits. Our habits fashion our future.
- Our words reveal our thoughts; our manners mirror our self-esteem; our actions reflect our character; our habits predict the future.
- Perils pale in the presence of prayer.
- Prayer puts pressing problems into proper perspective.
- Real optimism is the smile of faith, the song of confidence, and the expression of hope.
- Retirement can be... a rocking chair or a launching pad.
- Study while others are sleeping; work while others are loafing; prepare while others are playing; and dream while others are wishing.
- The bee can never be an eagle, but it can make honey.
- The cloak of forgiveness cannot be worn over the coat of resentment.
- The harvest of happiness is most often reaped by the hands of helpfulness.
- The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.
- The more forgiving we are, the freer we become.
- The more we count the blessings we have, the less we crave the luxuries we haven't.
- The optimist listens for notes of joy; the pessimist hears sounds of gloom.
- The person who is busy counting his blessings has no time to take inventory of his injuries.
- The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails.
- The price of excellence is discipline. The cost of mediocrity is disappointment.
- The surest cure for loneliness, the quickest way to happiness, is found in this, a simple creed: Go serve someone in greater need.
- The tidal waves of tyranny always begin as tiny ripples of indifference.
- The winds of misfortune always bring some seeds of opportunity.
- Three enemies of personal peace: regret over yesterday’s mistakes, anxiety over tomorrow’s problems, and ingratitude for today’s blessings.
- To make mistakes is human; to stumble is commonplace; to be able to laugh at yourself is maturity.
- To the optimist, all doors have handles and hinges; to the pessimist, all doors have locks and latches.
- Today is a most unusual day, because we have never lived it before; we will never live it again; it is the only day we have.
- We can learn much from wise words, little from wisecracks, and less from wise guys.
- We can throw stones, complain about them, stumble on them, climb over them, or build with them.
- What you believe is more important than what you possess. What you live is more lasting than what you profess. Whom you inspire is more significant than whom you impress.
- When glad, we owe the world our joy; when mad, we owe it our self-control.
- When we seek to discover the best in others, we somehow bring out the best in ourselves.
- Worry is wasting today's time by cluttering up tomorrow's opportunities with yesterday's troubles.