Marcus Aurelius

"To accuse others for one's own misfortunes is a sign of want of education; to accuse oneself shows that one's education has begun."

"All is ephemeral—fame and the famous as well."

"How much trouble he avoids who does not look at what his neighbor says, does, or thinks, but only to what he himself is doing, that it may be just and pure."

"When you face obstacles and difficulties, remember: difficulty is the opportunity to show your character."

"Our anger and annoyance are more detrimental to us than the things themselves which anger or annoy us."

"The first rule is to keep an untroubled spirit. The second is to look things in the face and know them for what they are."

"You are not harmed by someone holding a bad opinion of you."

"A man's true greatness lies in the consciousness of an honest purpose in life."

"He is a wise man who does not give the right answer to an enemy."

"If it is not right do not do it; if it is not true do not say it."

"Dig deep within yourself, for there is a spring of goodness ever ready to flow if you will keep digging."

"Remember that to change your life you do not need to be liked or praised. You need only to stop being wrong."

"The honey is sweet, but the bee stings."

"Do the difficult things while they are easy and do the great things while they are small."

"Since you will die anyway, are you not a fool to make yourself a slave to your passions?"

"It is impossible for a man to be truly free while enslaved to his passions."

"The universe is transformation; our life is what our thoughts make it."

"Treat with utmost respect your power of forming opinions, for this power alone guards you against making assumptions you ought not to make."

"If you wish to improve, be content to appear foolish and stupid regarding externals."

"Concentrate every minute like a Roman and like a man on doing what's in front of you with precise and genuine seriousness."

"Be rigorous in your training so you can be flexible in battle."

"Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth."

"Your task is not to foresee the future, but to enable it."

"The keys to a better life: stop blaming others, stop making excuses, and stop overthinking."

"Failure is the path to success. Each mistake teaches you something new."

"Never feel cheated or at a disadvantage. You have a choice at every moment to change your path."

"Today I escaped anxiety. Or wait—I discarded it, because it was within me, not in my surroundings."

"Frightened of death? Then you are frightened of change."

"Do external things distract you? Then make time by yourself to calm and restore your senses."

"Your mind will take the shape of what you frequently hold in thought, for the human spirit is colored by such impressions."