“I’d rather see a sermon than hear one any day;
I’d rather one should walk with me than merely tell the way.
The eye’s a better pupil and more willing than the ear,
Fine counsel is confusing, but example’s always clear…”
Edgar Guest, The Sermons We See (via Will page 301)
“Talking and reasoning does not even have one thousandth the influence a true example has. All lessons about how to behave are worthless when children see the opposite in real life.”
Leo Tolstoy, A Calendar of Wisdom (Page 373)
“A man is wise who does three things: first, he does by himself those things which he advises others to do; secondly, he does not do anything that contravenes the truth; and thirdly, he is patient with the weaknesses of those who surround him.”
Leo Tolstoy, A Calendar of Wisdom (Page 116)
“You’re welcome to take all of the words of the great philosophers and use them to your own liking (they’re dead; they don’t mind). Feel free to tweak and edit and improve as you like. Adapt them to the real conditions of the real world. The way to prove that you truly understand what you speak and write, that you truly are original, is to put them into practice. Speak them with your actions more than anything else.”
Ryan Holiday, The Daily Stoic (Page 241)
“It is no use walking anywhere to preach unless our walking is our preaching.”
St. Francis of Assisi, via Sunbeams (Page 115)
“Today, or anytime, when you catch yourself wanting to condescendingly drop some knowledge that you have, grab it and ask: Would I be better saying words or letting my actions and choices illustrate that knowledge for me?“
Ryan Holiday, The Daily Stoic (Page 137) | Read Matt’s Blog on this quote ➜
“Those who receive the bare theories immediately want to spew them, as an upset stomach does its food. First digest your theories and you won’t throw them up. Otherwise they will be raw, spoiled, and not nourishing. After you’ve digested them, show us the changes in your reasoned choices, just like the shoulders of gymnasts display their diet and training, and as the craft of artisans show in what they’ve learned.”
Epictetus, Discourses, The Daily Stoic (Page 137)
“A dog is not considered a good dog because he is a good barker. A man is not considered a good man because he is a good talker.”
Chuang Tzu, via Sunbeams (Page 64)
“When the stomach is full, it is easy to talk of fasting.”
St. Jerome, Sunbeams (Page 14)
“The only relationship between work and chatter is that one kills the other.” ~ Ryan Holiday, Ego is the Enemy
“You can say you love someone – but unless you demonstrate that love through your actions, your words become meaningless.” ~ Stephen M. R. Covey, The Speed of Trust