William James

"All the most beautiful and valuable things in the world are those which help to relieve suffering and promote happiness."

"The human heart refuses to believe in the absence of an ultimate purpose."

"Fear is the worst enemy of progress."

"You can't be brave if you've only had wonderful things happen to you."

"The main use of your brain is to help you get from where you are to where you want to be."

"The secret source of humor is not joy but sorrow."

"Humans are not rational creatures; we are rationalization creatures."

"My first act of free will shall be to believe in free will."

"Mature love between human beings is a possibility but not a natural state."

"The principle of habit dominates all human nature."

"Every genuine religious experience begins with a cry of distress."

"The conscious self is not the only consciousness in operation, though it is the only one that gets named."

"The difference between great people and everyone else is that great people create meaning; they don't just consume it."

"Only in the struggle does meaning emerge."

"There is no more miserable human being than one in whom nothing is habitual but indecision."

"The deepest craving of human nature is the need to be understood and appreciated as a unique individual."

"What holds attention determines action."

"To change one's life, one must change one's choices."

"The moral equivalent of war—and the only substitute for it—is human cooperation for the common good."

"The greatest discovery of my generation is that human beings can alter their lives by altering their attitudes of mind."

"Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does."

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

"Belief creates the actual fact."

"The greatest use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it."

"Human beings, by changing the inner attitudes of their minds, can change the outer aspects of their lives."

"There is no more miserable human being than one in whom nothing is habitual but indecision."

"The exclusive worship of the bitch-goddess SUCCESS."

"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."

"Knowledge about life is one thing; effective occupation of a place in life is another."

"The art of being wise is knowing what to overlook."