Success and Failure

Prophecy is many times the principal cause of the events foretold.

Thomas Hobbes, in Science and Religion and Success and Failure

Hofstadter's Law: It always takes longer than you expect, even when you take Hofstadter's Law into account.

Doug Hofstadter, in Success and Failure

Success is like a fart -- only your own smells nice.

James P. Hogan, in Success and Failure

Action cures fear, inaction creates terror.

Doug Horton, in Success and Failure

Change occurs in direct proportion to dissatisfaction, but dissatisfaction never changes.

Doug Horton, in Success and Failure

Desperation is like stealing from the mafia: you stand a good chance of attracting the wrong attention.

Doug Horton, in Success and Failure

First rule of Economics 101: our desires are insatiable. Second rule: we can stomach only three Big Macs at a time.

Doug Horton, in Success and Failure

Good ideas are a dime a dozen, bad ones are free.

Doug Horton, in Success and Failure

If wishes were fishes we'd all be throwing nets. If wishes were horses we'd all ride.

Doug Horton, in Success and Failure

If you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there.

Doug Horton, in Success and Failure

Perfection is perfectly simple; fouling things up requires true skill.

Doug Horton, in Success and Failure

Most of life is choices, and the rest is pure dumb luck.

Marian Erickson, in Success and Failure

With every passing hour, our solar system comes forty-three thousand miles closer to globular cluster M13 in the constellation Hercules, and still there are some misfits who continue to insist that there is no such thing as progress.

Ransom K. Ferm, in Success and Failure

If at first you don't succeed, try, and try again. Then give up. There's no sense in being a damned fool about it.

W. C. Fields, in Success and Failure

If you're strong enough, there are no precedents.

F. Scott Fitzgerald, in Success and Failure

Failure is the opportunity to begin again more intelligently.

Henry Ford, in Success and Failure

Hitch your wagon to a star.

Ralph Waldo Emerson, in Success and Failure

No man can get through me but through my act.

Ralph Waldo Emerson, in Success and Failure

Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.

Ralph Waldo Emerson, in Success and Failure

The reward of a thing well done is to have done it.

Ralph Waldo Emerson, in Success and Failure and Work and Recreation