We are proud of a human nature that could be so passionately extreme, but we shrink from advising others to follow the example. WILLIAM JAMES ExampleHuman NatureProud
If you care enough for a result, you will most certainly attain it. WILLIAM JAMES LeadershipMotivationPhilosophical
Fear of life in one form or another is the great thing to exorcise. WILLIAM JAMES FearsFormGreatLifeThings
The most peculiar social self which one is apt to have is in the mind of the person one is in love with. WILLIAM JAMES MindPeculiarSelf
Democracy is still upon its trial. The civic genius of our people is its only bulwark. WILLIAM JAMES DemocracyGeniusPeople
The general law is that no mental modification ever occurs which is not accompanied or followed by a bodily change. WILLIAM JAMES LawMedicinePhilosophy
To study the abnormal is the best way of understanding the normal. WILLIAM JAMES AbnormalPhilosophicalUnderstanding
Our faith is faith in someone else’s faith, and in the greatest matters this is most the case. WILLIAM JAMES CasesMatterPhilosophical
He who refuses to embrace a unique opportunity loses the prize as surely as if he had failed. WILLIAM JAMES EncouragementEncouragingInspirational
A new idea is first condemned as ridiculous and then dismissed as trivial, until finally, it becomes what everybody knows. WILLIAM JAMES ChangeDreamInspirational
With no attempt there can be no failure; with no failure no humiliation. WILLIAM JAMES AttemptFailureHumiliationNo
The aim of a college education is to teach you to know a good man when you see one. WILLIAM JAMES DieEducationPhilosophical
So to feel brave, act as if we were brave, use all our will to that end…and a courage-fit will very likely replace the fit of fear. WILLIAM JAMES AnticipationBraveUse
To neglect the wise sayings of great thinkers is to deny ourselves the truest education. WILLIAM JAMES DenyNeglectWise
The emotions aren’t always immediately subject to reason, but they are always immediately subject to action. WILLIAM JAMES ActionEmotionalFeelings
Give your dreams all you’ve got, and you’ll be amazed at the energy that comes out of you. WILLIAM JAMES BasketballDreamPerseverance
The ideas gained by men before they are twenty-five are practically the only ideas they shall have in their lives. WILLIAM JAMES IdeasMenTwenties
But facts are facts, and if we only get enough of them theyare sure to combine. WILLIAM JAMES CombineEnoughFactFacts
All of our life is but a mass of small habits – practical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual – that bear us irresistibly toward our destiny. WILLIAM JAMES DestinyMilitarySpiritual
The mind, in short, works on the data it receives very much as the sculptor works on his block of stone. WILLIAM JAMES BlockDataMind
I myself believe that the evidence for God lies primarily in inner personal experiences. WILLIAM JAMES BeliefBelieveExperienceLying
Effort is the one strictly undervalued and original contribution we make to this world. WILLIAM JAMES ContributionEffortWorld
The impulse to take life strivingly is indestructible in the race. WILLIAM JAMES FreeRaceVaguenessWill
The greatest weapon we have to combat stress is the ability to choose our thoughts. WILLIAM JAMES CombatStressWeapons
The question of free will is insoluble on strictly psychological grounds. WILLIAM JAMES Free WillPsychological
