Great people aren't those who are happy at times of convienience and content, but of how they are in times of catastrophy and controversy.

The only mistake is not to risk making one.

Failure is a form of quicksand. Take immediate action or you'll be sucked under.

From disappointment, I gradually ascended the emotional ladder to haughty indignation, and finally to that state of stubbornness where the mind is locked like the jaws of an enraged bulldog.

When he finished, more triumphant stories rainbowed around the room riding the shoulders of laughter. By all accounts these storytellers, born Black and male before the turn of the twentieth century, should have been ground into useless dust. Instead they used their intelligence to pry open the door of rejection and not only became wealthy but got some revenge in the bargain. It wasn't possible for me to regard them as criminals or be anything but proud of their achievements.

You may write me down in history With your bitter, twisted lies, You may trod me in the very dirt But still, like dust, I'll rise. Does

Centered on the world's stage, she sings to her loves and beloveds, to her foes and detractors: However I am perceived and deceived, however my ignorance and conceits, lay aside your fears that I will be undone, for I shall not be moved.

How important it was to learn your own strengths and weaknesses from your mistakes.

I'm convinced that much of the success I have experienced in life is a result of learning from my failures.

I had focused on the failure because I had not yet acquired the wisdom necessary to attain a better perspective.

My reputation grows with every failure.

It's not the writing part that's hard. What's hard is sitting down to write. What keeps us from sitting down is Resistance.