Gentleness is the antidote for cruelty.
PhaedrusRead
It is the part of a fool to give advice to others and not himself to be on his guard.
Interpretation
Giving advice while neglecting self-awareness is foolish.
This quote emphasizes the irony of offering advice to others while failing to apply the same wisdom to oneself. It suggests that self-reflection and personal accountability are essential before guiding others, highlighting the importance of introspection in the realm of wisdom.
In practice
In a motivational speech about personal growth.
Gentleness is the antidote for cruelty.
In a change of masters the poor change nothing except their master's name.
Everyone is bound to bear patiently the results of his own example.
Strangers he gulls, but friends make fun of him.
Everyone ought to bear patiently the results of his own conduct.
For each illness that doctors cure with medicine, they provoke ten in healthy people by inoculating them with the virus that is a thousand times more powerful than any microbe: the idea that one is ill.
A military man can scarcely pride himself on having 'smitten a sleeping enemy'; it is more a matter of shame, simply, for the one smitten. I would rather you made your appraisal after seeing what the enemy does, since it is certain that, angered and outraged, he will soon launch a determined counterattack.
There's no point in being complete on the outside when you're broken in the inside.
Expectations are not based on reality. They are observations, expected realities, or beliefs of what you think will happen. Expectations of others stop us from acting as our highest selves and reaching our full potential.
Wishing you happiness always! Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons. . . . . Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be. And whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.
Reckon then that to acquire soul-winning power, you will have to go through mental torment and soul distress. You must go into the fire if you are going to pull others out of it, and you will have to dive into the floods if you are going to draw others out of the water. You cannot work a fire escape without feeling the scorch of the conflagration, nor man a lifeboat without being covered with the waves.
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