Showing 50 of 907 quotes
"to be gentle and meek, and to refrain from all anger and passion"
Be kind and calm, and avoid getting angry or overly emotional.
"to be religious, and bountiful; and to forbear, not only to do, but to intend any evil"
Be spiritual and generous. Avoid doing evil things, and don't even think about doing them.
"to content myself with a spare diet, and to fly all such excess as is incidental to great wealth"
Be satisfied with simple living and avoid the wasteful habits that come with being wealthy.
"to endure labour; nor to need many things; when I have anything to do, to do it myself rather than by others; not to meddle with many businesses; and not easily to admit of any slander"
Work hard and don't need much. Do things yourself instead of relying on others. Don't get involved in too many projects, and don't quickly believe gossip.
"not to busy myself about vain things, and not easily to believe those things, which are commonly spoken, by such as take upon them to work wonders, and by sorcerers, or prestidigitators, and impostors"
Don't waste time on meaningless activities, and don't easily believe claims from people who pretend to perform miracles or con artists.
"Not to be offended with other men's liberty of speech, and to apply myself unto philosophy"
Don't get upset when others speak freely, and dedicate yourself to philosophy.
"that my life wanted some redress and cure"
Recognize that your life needs improvement and healing.
"to write letters without any affectation, or curiosity"
Write letters in a simple, straightforward way without trying to show off.
"to be easy and ready to be reconciled, and well pleased again with them that had offended me, as soon as any of them would be content to seek unto me again"
Be quick to forgive and make peace with people who have wronged you when they want to reconnect.
"To read with diligence; not to rest satisfied with a light and superficial knowledge, nor quickly to assent to things commonly spoken of"
Read carefully and deeply. Don't settle for shallow understanding, and don't quickly agree with popular opinions.
"true liberty, and unvariable steadfastness, and not to regard anything at all, though never so little, but right and reason"
Achieve real freedom through unwavering consistency, and care only about what is right and reasonable.
"always, whether in the sharpest pains, or after the loss of a child, or in long diseases, to be still the same man"
Stay true to yourself even during intense pain, the death of a child, or long illness.
"it was possible for the same man to be both vehement and remiss"
A person can be both passionate and relaxed at different times.
"how to receive favours and kindnesses (as commonly they are accounted:) from friends, so that I might not become obnoxious unto them, for them, nor more yielding upon occasion, than in right I ought"
Accept help from friends without becoming overly indebted to them or compromising your principles.
"to live according to nature"
Live in harmony with the natural order of things.
"to be grave without affectation"
Be serious without being fake or pretentious.
"to observe carefully the several dispositions of my friends, not to be offended with idiots, nor unseasonably to set upon those that are carried with the vulgar opinions, with the theorems, and tenets of philosophers"
Pay attention to your friends' personalities. Don't get angry at foolish people, and don't attack those who follow popular beliefs at the wrong time.
"A man without ever the least appearance of anger, or any other passion; able at the same time most exactly to observe the Stoic Apathia, or unpassionateness, and yet to be most tender-hearted"
Be calm and free from strong emotions while still being kind and compassionate.
"to be un-reprovable myself, and not reproachfully to reprehend any man for a barbarism, or a solecism, or any false pronunciation, but dextrously by way of answer, or testimony, or confirmation of the same matter (taking no notice of the word) to utter it as it should have been spoken"
Don't make mistakes yourself, and when correcting others' errors in speech, do it tactfully by simply using the correct form in your response rather than pointing out their mistake.
"not often nor without great necessity to say, or to write to any man in a letter, 'I am not at leisure'; nor in this manner still to put off those duties, which we owe to our friends and acquaintances (to every one in his kind) under pretence of urgent affairs"
Don't regularly tell people you're too busy, and don't use urgent business as an excuse to avoid your duties to friends.
"not to contemn any friend's expostulation, though unjust, but to strive to reduce him to his former disposition"
Don't dismiss a friend's complaint even if it's unfair, but try to restore the friendship to its previous state.
"freely and heartily to speak well of all my masters upon any occasion"
Speak positively about your teachers whenever you can.
"to love my children with true affection"
Love your children with genuine feeling.
"to be kind and loving to all them of my house and family"
Be kind and loving to everyone in your household and family.
"to observe a constant tenor, (not interrupted, with any other cares and distractions,) in the study and esteem of philosophy"
Stay consistently dedicated to studying and valuing philosophy without letting other worries distract you.
"to be bountiful and liberal in the largest measure; always to hope the best; and to be confident that my friends love me"
Be extremely generous, always expect the best outcomes, and trust that your friends care about you.
"in all things to endeavour to have power of myself, and in nothing to be carried about"
In everything, try to have self-control and don't let external forces push you around.
"to be cheerful and courageous in all sudden chances and accidents, as in sicknesses"
Stay positive and brave when unexpected things happen, like getting sick.
"to love mildness, and moderation, and gravity"
Value gentleness, balance, and seriousness.
"to do my business, whatsoever it be, thoroughly, and without querulousness"
Do your work completely and without complaining, whatever it is.
"never to wonder at anything; never to be in haste, and yet never slow: nor to be perplexed, or dejected, or at any time unseemly, or excessively to laugh: nor to be angry, or suspicious"
Don't be amazed by things. Don't rush but don't be slow either. Don't be confused, sad, inappropriate, or laugh too much. Don't be angry or suspicious.
"ever ready to do good, and to forgive, and to speak truth"
Always be prepared to do good things, forgive others, and tell the truth.
"his meekness; his constancy without wavering in those things, which after a due examination and deliberation, he had determined"
Be humble and stay firm in your decisions after you've carefully thought them through.
"How free from all vanity he carried himself in matter of honour and dignity"
Don't be vain about honors and status.
"his readiness to hear any man, that had aught to say tending to any common good"
Be willing to listen to anyone who has something to say about the common good.
"how generally and impartially he would give every man his due"
Give everyone what they deserve fairly and without bias.
"His accurate examination of things in consultations, and patient hearing of others. He would not hastily give over the search of the matter, as one easy to be satisfied with sudden notions and apprehensions"
Examine issues carefully in discussions and listen patiently to others. Don't quit searching for answers too quickly or accept the first idea that comes to mind.
"His care to preserve his friends; how neither at any time he would carry himself towards them with disdainful neglect, and grow weary of them; nor yet at any time be madly fond of them"
Take care of your friendships by neither ignoring friends and getting tired of them, nor being obsessively attached to them.
"His contented mind in all things, his cheerful countenance"
Be content with everything and maintain a happy expression.
"how all acclamations and flattery were repressed by him"
Reject praise and flattery.
"How he was neither a superstitious worshipper of the gods, nor an ambitious pleaser of men, or studious of popular applause; but sober in all things"
Don't be overly religious, don't try too hard to please people or seek approval, but be moderate in everything.
"as he did freely enjoy them without any anxiety or affectation when they were present; so when absent, he found no want of them"
Enjoy comforts naturally without worry when you have them, and don't miss them when they're gone.
"how much he did honour all true philosophers, without upbraiding those that were not so"
Respect genuine philosophers without insulting those who aren't philosophical.
"his care of his body within bounds and measure, not as one that desired to live long, or over-studious of neatness, and elegancy; and yet not as one that did not regard it"
Take care of your body in a balanced way - not obsessing over living long or looking perfect, but not neglecting it either.
"how ingeniously he would yield to any that had obtained any peculiar faculty, as either eloquence, or the knowledge of the laws, or of ancient customs, or the like; and how he concurred with them, in his best care and endeavour that every one of them might in his kind, for that wherein he excelled, be regarded and esteemed"
Respect people who have special skills and help them get the recognition they deserve for what they're good at.
"how he was not easily moved and tossed up and down, but loved to be constant, both in the same places and businesses"
Don't let yourself be easily disturbed or distracted; stay consistent in your locations and work.
"secrets he neither had many, nor often, and such only as concerned public matters"
Don't keep many secrets, and only keep them when they involve public affairs.
"In all these things, having a respect unto men only as men, and to the equity of the things themselves, and not unto the glory that might follow"
In everything, care about people as human beings and what's fair, not about the praise you might receive.
"In all his conversation, far from all inhumanity, all boldness, and incivility, all greediness and impetuosity"
In all interactions, avoid cruelty, rudeness, greed, and recklessness.
"never doing anything with such earnestness, and intention, that a man could say of him, that he did sweat about it: but contrariwise, all things distinctly, as at leisure; without trouble; orderly, soundly, and agreeably"
Don't work so intensely that you're stressed. Instead, do everything calmly, without rushing, in an organized and pleasant way.