Loyalty means nothing unless it has at its heart the absolute principle of self-sacrifice.
Woodrow WilsonRead
Surely a man has come to himself only when he has found the best that is in him, and has satisfied his heart with the highest achievement he is fit for.
Interpretation
True self-awareness is achieved when one realizes their potential and fulfills their highest aspirations.
This quote by Woodrow Wilson emphasizes the importance of self-discovery and the pursuit of personal excellence. It suggests that a man truly finds himself not just through introspection but by achieving the highest goals that align with his true capabilities and passions, leading to deep satisfaction and fulfillment.
In practice
At a graduation speech to inspire students to pursue their passions.
Loyalty means nothing unless it has at its heart the absolute principle of self-sacrifice.
Since trade ignores national boundaries and the manufacturer insists on having the world as a market, the flag of his nation must follow him, and the doors of the nations which are closed against him must be battered down. Concessions obtained by financiers must be safeguarded by ministers of state, even if the sovereignty of unwilling nations be outraged in the process. Colonies must be obtained or planted, in order that no useful corner of the world may be overlooked or left unused.
The history of liberty is the history of limitations on the power of government, not the increase of it. When we resist, therefore, the concentration of power, we are resisting the processes of death, because concentration of power is what always precedes the destruction of human liberties.
We grow great by dreams. All big men are dreamers.
The way to stop financial joyriding is to arrest the chauffeur, not the automobile.
Once lead this people into war, and they'll forget there ever was such a thing as tolerance. To fight, you must be brutal and ruthless, and the spirit of ruthless brutality will enter into the very fiber of our national life, infecting Congress, the courts, the policeman on the beat, the man in the street.
The lion cannot protect himself from traps, and the fox cannot defend himself from wolves. One must therefore be a fox to recognize traps, and a lion to frighten wolves.
Curiosity is lying in wait for every secret.
I find as long as I acknowledge the truth of something, then that's it. I know what it is and then I can operate. But if I overestimate the downside of something or the challenge of something and I get too obsessed about the difficulty of it, then I don't leave enough room to be open to the upside, the possibility.
To thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man.
Every part of you that you do not love will regress and become hostile towards you.
Your mental attitude is the most dependable key to your personality.
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