Deep within man dwell those slumbering powers; powers that would astonish him, that he never dreamed of possessing; forces that would revolutionize his life if aroused and put into action.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the untapped potential within individuals that, if awakened, could transform their lives.
Orison Swett Marden's quote highlights the inherent abilities and strengths that reside within every person, often unnoticed. It suggests that once we recognize and harness these latent powers, we can bring about significant changes in our lives, leading to personal growth and success. The idea is that personal transformation lies dormant, waiting to be unleashed through action and awareness.
In practice
In a motivational speech to inspire young graduates to harness their potential.
Opportunity is latent in the very foundation of human society. Opportunity is everywhere about us. But the preparation to seize upon the opportunity, and to make the most of it, is to be made by every one for himself ... he will be self-made or never made.
We lift ourselves by our thought, we climb upon our vision of ourselves. If you want to enlarge your life, you must first enlarge your thought of it and of yourself. Hold the ideal of yourself as you long to be, always, everywhere - your ideal of what you long to attain - the ideal of health, efficiency, success.
You know from past experiences that whenever you have been driven to the wall, or thought you were, you have extricated yourself in a way which you never would have dreamed possible had you not been put to the test. The trouble is that in your everyday life you don't go deep enough to tap the divine mind within you.
You cannot measure a man by his failures. You must know what use he makes of them. What did they mean to him. What did he get out of them.
Something greater than wealth, grander even than fame β that manhood, character, stand for success, and that nothing else really does.
Many a man has finally succeeded only because he has failed after repeated efforts. If he had never met defeat he would never have known any great victory.
We were young, but we had good advice and good ideas and lots of enthusiasm.
There are going to be times when we can't wait for somebody. Now, you're either on the bus or off the bus.
My generation of Americans, the scions of daring dreamers, the children of the fearlessly faithful and the offspring of many of history's most audacious actors - we, together, drink deeply from wells of freedom, liberty and opportunity that we did not dig.
Building a better you is the first step to building a better America.
Some men have thousands of reasons why they cannot do what they want to, when all they need is one reason why they can.
I hope our hopes and aspirations are bigger than setting records.
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