Quotations by Author

William James

A chain is no stronger than its weakest link, and life is after all a chain.

Action seems to follow feeling, but really action and feeling go together; and by regulating the action, which is under the more direct control of the will, we can indirectly regulate the feeling, which is not.

Compared to what we ought to be, we are only half awake. We are making use of only a small part of our mental and physical resources.

Could the young but realize how soon they will become mere walking bundles of habits, they would give more heed to their conduct while in the plastic state.

Human beings can alter their lives by altering their attitudes of mind.

If any organism fails to fulfill its potentialities, it becomes sick.

Man can alter his life by altering his thinking.

Metaphysics means nothing but an unusually obstinate effort to think clearly.

One hearty laugh together will bring enemies into a closer communion of heart than hours spent on both sides in inward wrestling with the mental demon of uncharitable feeling.

The 'I think' which Kant said must be able to accompany all my objects, is the 'I breathe' which actually does accompany them.

The deepest principle in human nature is the craving to be appreciated.

The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another.

The world we see that seems so insane is the result of a belief system that is not working. To perceive the world differently, we must be willing to change our belief system, let the past slip away, expand our sense of now, and dissolve the fear in our minds.

There is but one cause of human failure. And that is man's lack of faith in his true Self.

To study the abnormal is the best way of understanding the normal.

Whenever you're in conflict with someone, there is one factor that can make the difference between damaging your relationship and deepening it. That factor is attitude.

What we attend to becomes our reality, and what we don't attend to fades out of reality.