Do you want to be a man of today or a man of tomorrow?
Interpretation
The quote encourages individuals to think about their aspirations and the impact of their actions on the future.
Mustafa Kemal Ataturk's quote challenges us to consider whether we want to be defined by our present circumstances or to strive for a greater vision that shapes the future. It emphasizes the importance of ambition and planning for a legacy, urging us to be forward-thinking individuals who contribute meaningfully to societal growth and progress.
In practice
A motivational speaker might quote this in an address to young professionals to inspire them to take proactive steps in their careers.
Would not obeying to my mother's warnings, who is at least 25 years older than me, be returning to the past? And rebelling against her would mean ruining my mother's, who, I am convinced that, is a virtuous high woman, heart and evaluations. I do not find this right, either.
I have no religion, and at times I wish all religions at the bottom of the sea. He is a weak ruler who needs religion to uphold his government; it is as if he would catch his people in a trap. My people are going to learn the principles of democracy, the dictates of truth and the teachings of science. Superstition must go. Let them worship as they will; every man can follow his own conscience, provided it does not interfere with sane reason or bid him against the liberty of his fellow-men.
God is my witness that up to now, my only aspiration in life is to be a useful element within the army! I have for long been convinced that, to safeguard the country and give happiness to the people, it is necessary first of all to prove once more to the world that our army is still the old Turkish army.
The necessary thing for anyone to be happy and contented as long as he lives is working for the ones who will come after him rather than working for himself... One can reach the true delight and happiness in the life only by working for the existence, honor, and happiness of the future generations.
On the meeting point of two worlds, the ornament of Turkish homeland, the treasure of Turkish history, the city cherished by the Turkish nation, Δ°stanbul, has its place in the hearts of all citizens.
A nation which makes the final sacrifice for life and freedom does not get beaten.
There lives more faith in honest doubt, believe me, than in half the creeds.
The Negro enslaved by his inferiority, the white man enslaved by his superiority alike behave in accordance with a neurotic orientation.
Submitting to censorship is to enter the seductive world of 'The Giver': the world where there are no bad words and no bad deeds. But it is also the world where choice has been taken away and reality distorted. And that is the most dangerous world of all.
Ask most people who live in a home and have a mortgage on it whether they own their own home and the answer is almost guaranteed to be a resounding 'yes'. Yet it's the wrong answer. Technically speaking, until they have paid the mortgage off, they don't own it. Herein lies the difference between reality and illusion, between ownership and control. This confusion lies not only at the individual level, but also at the heart of government thinking.
Man's chief moral deficiency appears to be not his indiscretions but his reticence.
When I was younger I was looking for this magic meaning of life. It's very simple now. Making the lives of others better, doing something of lasting value. That's the meaning of life, it's that simple.
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