Booker T. Washington

"In the long run, what will tell is not what a man says, but what he does."

"The Negro race possesses within itself the materials necessary for its own elevation."

"Every obstacle overcome is a step toward success."

"The Negro must learn to value himself and his people."

"Common decency and common sense demand that we treat all men as brothers."

"The Negro must learn that dependency is the road to degradation."

"Success is the sum of small efforts repeated day in and day out."

"The Negro who educates himself will educate his race."

"A man cannot respect himself if he allows others to dictate his thoughts and actions."

"The most valuable asset a man can have is a good reputation."

"The Negro must learn to look forward, not backward."

"In the end, what matters is not what you wanted to do, but what you actually accomplished."

"The individual who owns the soil owns the wealth produced from the soil. This is the foundation of all lasting prosperity."

"We should not permit our grievances to overshadow our opportunities."

"Excellence is not a skill; it is an attitude that becomes a habit."

"The man who makes no mistakes does not try new things. Progress requires the willingness to fail."

"Your reputation is your most valuable asset. Guard it as you would guard your life."

"Do not wait for opportunity to come knocking; go out and build the door yourself."

"The Negro race, like all races, is going to be saved by its exceptional men."

"Poverty is a curse; ignorance is a greater curse still."

"I have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached as by the obstacles he has overcome."

"Cast down your bucket where you are. Make the most of what you have."

"The world cares little for what a man intends to do; it judges him by what he does."

"Education should prepare people not merely for earning a living but for living a life."

"There is another class of colored people who make a business of keeping the troubles, the wrongs, and the hardships of the Negro race before the public eye."

"No race can permanently succeed in rising to a high plane of civilization until its women are elevated to the same plane with the men."

"Dignity does not consist in possessing honors, but in deserving them."

"The Negro should strive in every manly way to secure recognition for his work in the field of invention and discovery."

"I would permit no man, no matter what his color, to narrow and degrade my soul by making me hate him."

"The happiest people are those who lose themselves in service to others."