Category: Quotes

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Quotes

Marrying a Good Person

Today is Harpo Marx’s birthday. He was born on November 23, 1888. He’s the Marx brother who never spoke during their films. So it’s quite a delight for me to have a quote for him about marrying a good person.

By Ralph F. Stitt – This image is available from the United States Library of Congress’s Prints and Photographs division under the digital ID cph.3c26207. Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1629215

“Harpo, she’s a lovely person. She deserves a good husband. Marry her before she finds one.”

Harpo Marx

On this week of Thanksgiving, I am thankful I married a good person. For one, she has made me a better person. Not only that, she is a born leader and someone with a caring heart. Plus, she is the closest thing I’ve seen to a superwoman balanced with a heart for God and people.

Therefore, like Harpo Marx, I am glad I married her before she found a good husband. You may want to pity her. The poor woman gets annoyed when I run around the house in a curly, blonde wig and only communicate with a bicycle horn. That’s what happens when you let a former vaudevillian influence you.

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Quotes

Leading With Integrity

Quote from Warren Buffett: “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.”

We all admire someone who leads with integrity. We admire the whistleblower who risks their reputation to make the truth known. We like to believe we support a company with strong values that align with ours. We want to work with someone we know we can trust. Of course, that means we need to be that person too.

Leading with integrity is a practical trait in many circumstances. This article in Inc. Magazine reminds me of one of Warren Buffett’s famous quotes:

“Lose money for the firm, and I will be understanding.
Lose a shred of reputation for the firm, and I will be ruthless.”

Warren Buffett

A good reputation comes with living a life of integrity. It is humbling to think that a moment of dishonesty can ruin one’s reputation. Lead with integrity! Be on the guard for temptation that causes you to consider sacrificing it. That moment of indiscretion may do more to your ruin your life than you could ever imagine.

“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.”

Warren Buffett
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motivation Quotes

Courage is Contagious

Quote from Billy Graham: "Courage is contagious. When a brave man takes a stand, the spines of others are often stiffened."

Today would have been Billy Graham’s 103rd birthday. There appear to be other people that have made this statement. Looks like my former governor wrote a book with this title. But I think Graham says it best.

“Courage is contagious. When a brave man takes a stand, the spines of others are often stiffened.”

Billy Graham

I see courage as less of an emotion and more of a virtue. You can be afraid, yet courageous. The odds may be stacked against you, and your anxiety is high, yet you can still be courageous. First responders and soldiers show courage every day thanks to their commitment and training.

The average man or woman can show it as well. It may be less because of training, but more of a commitment to virtue or a cause. When we know what we stand for, we are willing to stand up for it. That commitment to courage can inspire others to do the same.

When courage is combined with commitment and kindness, the world is a much better place. Billy Graham showed that kind of courage. May we show commitment, kindness, and courage on his birthday.

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Quotes

Happy Birthday, Will Rogers!

Quote from Will Rogers: "Things ain't the way they used to be and never were."

Things ain’t what they used to be and never were.

Will Rogers

On November 4, 1879, a humorist and cowboy philosopher was born in Oklahoma, Indian Territory. He began his show business career as a trick roper, ended up in Vaudeville, movies, the newspapers, and radio. It wasn’t a bad career for a cowboy!

When I was in high school, a graphic artist-teacher introduced me to his humor. He thought I could relate to his wit and the way he could turn a phrase. Though he was right, it didn’t help my social standing much. Nothing stood out like a sore thumb more than an Indiana teen in the nineteen-eighties who was into Will Rogers! Throw in my love for Marx Brothers movies and I was an odd duck!

Photo of Will Rogers from Filmplay Journal. Public Domain.
Will Rogers in Filmplay Journal, January 1922 (Public Domain)

Will Rogers is worth remembering because his humor was not only witty but was for the most part kind. He didn’t have to tear somebody down to make a point. He could laugh at himself and shine a light on the absurdity of culture and politics. And he could make you think before you realized it.

The worst thing that happens to you may be the best thing for you if you don’t let it get the best of you.

Will Rogers

So happy birthday to Will Rogers! He’s a guy worth remembering today.

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motivation Quotes

Leading an Excellent Life

“One cannot lead a life that is truly excellent without feeling that one belongs to something greater and more permanent than oneself.”

MIHALY CSIKSZENTMIHALYI in Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us

Daniel Pink’s book, Drive, reminded me that all of us long for something more permanent and eternal. We know we are limited by our abilities and age. We can delude ourselves into thinking we are immortal, but deep down, we know we aren’t. If anything good can come from the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s that all of us are forced to face our mortality. This disease may not take us down. But sooner or later, something will.

Who or what do you belong to? Is it a firm foundation that will carry you through difficulties? Is it something that will last long after you are gone? Is it something that gives you hope and a future when everything else crumbles around you?

Businesses and organizations have life cycles just like people. Governments will rise and fall. The latest fad and fashion will look so dated in a few years. Where you put your faith will determine if and how you can lead a life of excellence.