Quotes about talent (1048 quotes) | Quotes of famous people

“Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships.”

Michael Jordan (1963) American retired professional basketball player and businessman

Source: Jordan, Michael. I Can't Accept Not Trying : Michael Jordan on the Pursuit of Excellence. San Francisco, CA: HarperSanFrancisco, 1994. p. 129
Context: I can accept failure. Everyone fails at something. But I can't accept not trying [no hard work].
Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships. (p. 20, 24)

Motivational , For Team , Success , Life

“I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious.”

Albert Einstein (1879–1955) German-born physicist and founder of the theory of relativity

Ich habe keine besondere Begabung, sondern bin nur leidenschaftlich neugierig.
Letter to Carl Seelig http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Seelig (11 March 1952), Einstein Archives 39-013
1950s

Passion

“When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bonds: Your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction, and you find yourself in a new, great, and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive, and your discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be.”

Patañjali (-200–-150 BC) ancient Indian scholar(s) of grammar and linguistics, of yoga, of medical treatises

As quoted by Wayne Dyer http://n-spire.com/archives/011802.html
The Mahābhāṣya

World , Dreams , Personality

“Everybody has talent, but ability takes hard work.”

Michael Jordan (1963) American retired professional basketball player and businessman

“Talent is a gift, but character is a choice.”

John C. Maxwell (1947) American author, speaker and pastor

“This fall, and this was a very tough decision for me, but this fall I will be taking my talents to South Beach and play with the Miami Heat.”

LeBron James (1984) American basketball player

The King of South Beach: LeBron James will Sign with Miami Heat, Tom D'Angelo, The Palm Beach Post, July 8, 2010 http://www.palmbeachpost.com/sports/heat/the-king-of-south-beach-lebron-james-will-791556.html,
James announcing his decision to leave the hometown Cleveland Cavaliers for the Miami.

Decision

“Liza, in terms of sheer talent, just oozes with it.”

Freddie Mercury (1946–1991) British singer, songwriter and record producer

As quoted in "Queen's Freddie Mercury Shopping For An Image In London" by Scott Cohen in Circus Magazine (April 1975).
Context: Liza, in terms of sheer talent, just oozes with it. She has sheer energy and stamina, which she gets across the stage, and the way she delivers herself to the public is a good influence. There is a lot to learn from her

“Happiness is a how, not a what. A talent, not an object.”

Hermann Hesse (1877–1962) German writer

Happy

“It is the duty of every man, as far as his ability extends, to detect and expose delusion and error. But nature has not given to everyone a talent for that purpose; and among those to whom such a talent is given, there is often a want of disposition or of courage to do it.”

Thomas Paine book The Age of Reason

1790s, The Age of Reason, Part III (1807)

Courage , Nature , Error

“I have feelings too. I am still human. All I want is to be loved, for myself and for my talent.”

Marilyn Monroe (1926–1962) American actress, model, and singer

Love , Feeling

“As a teenager I was so insecure. I was the type of guy that never fitted in because he never dared to choose. I was convinced I had absolutely no talent at all. For nothing. And that thought took away all my ambition too.”

Johnny Depp (1963) American actor, film producer, and musician

Guy

“When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, 'I used everything you gave me.”

Erma Bombeck (1927–1996) When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent le…

Inspirational , Deep , Life , Life

“Talent hits a target no one else can hit; Genius hits a target no one else can see.”

Arthur Schopenhauer book The World as Will and Representation

Das Talent gleicht dem Schützen, der ein Ziel trifft, welches die Uebrigen nicht erreichen können; das Genie dem, der eines trifft, bis zu welchem sie nicht ein Mal zu sehn vermögen...
Vol. II, Ch. III, para. 31 (On Genius), 1844
As cited in The Little Book of Bathroom Philosophy: Daily Wisdom from the Greatest Thinkers‎ (2004) by Gregory Bergman, p. 137
The World as Will and Representation (1819; 1844; 1859)

“No talent, but a character.”

Heinrich Heine (1797–1856) German poet, journalist, essayist, and literary critic

Atta Troll, ch. 24 (1843)

“Talent is perhaps nothing other than successfully sublimated rage.”

Theodor W. Adorno (1903–1969) German sociologist, philosopher and musicologist known for his critical theory of society

Rage

“If you're young and talented, it's like you have wings.”

Haruki Murakami book What I Talk About When I Talk About Running

Source: What I Talk About When I Talk About Running

“A man of ordinary talent will always be ordinary, whether he travels or not; but a man of superior talent will go to pieces if he remains forever in the same place.”

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) Austrian Romantic composer

Letter to Leopold Mozart (11 September 1778), from Wolfgang Amadé Mozart by Georg Knepler (1991), trans. J. Bradford Robinson [Cambridge University Press, 1994, ], p. 12.
Variant: A fellow of mediocre talent will remain a mediocrity, whether he travels or not; but one of superior talent (which without impiety I cannot deny that I possess) will go to seed if he always remains in the same place.

Travel

“I started painting as a hobby when I was little. I didn't know I had any talent. I believe talent is just a pursued interest. Anybody can do what I do.”

Bob Ross (1942–1995) American painter, art instructor, and television host

Cathy Hainer (October 28, 1993) "PBS' stroke of serenity / Bob Ross brings brush of zen to 'Joy of Painting'", USA Today, p. 3D.

Painting

“I think it is a mistake to hire huge numbers of people to get a complicated job done. Numbers will never compensate for talent in getting the right answer (two people who don't know something are no better than one), will tend to slow down progress, and will make the task incredibly expensive.”

Elon Musk (1971) South African-born American entrepreneur

Conversation: Elon Musk on Wired Science (2007)

People , Thinking

“I wasn't given the genetics for football. This is my gift right here. I was always well-built. You can't do certain sports without the genetics, and talent, too, of course.”

Ronnie Coleman (1964) American bodybuilder

Ellen Mazo (May 1, 1999) "Building the Image of a Role Model", Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, p. A-1.

Sport , Football

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people will not feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone and as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give others permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

Marianne Williamson (1952) American writer

Source: A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of "A Course in Miracles" (1992), Ch. 7 : Work, §3 : Personal Power, p. 190 (p. 165 in some editions). This famous passage from her book is very often erroneously attributed to Nelson Mandela. About the mis-attribution Williamson said, "Several years ago, this paragraph from A Return to Love began popping up everywhere, attributed to Nelson Mandela's 1994 inaugural address. As honored as I would be had President Mandela quoted my words, indeed he did not. I have no idea where that story came from, but I am gratified that the paragraph has come to mean so much to so many people."

Variant which appears in the film Coach Carter (2005): "Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine as children do. It's not just in some of us; it is in everyone. And as we let our own lights shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."

Variant which appears in the film Akeelah and the Bee (2006), displayed in a picture frame on the wall, attributing it to Mandela: "Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same."

God , Light , Children , People

“When I examine myself and my methods of thought I come to the conclusion that the gift of fantasy has meant more to me than my talent for absorbing positive knowledge.”

Albert Einstein (1879–1955) German-born physicist and founder of the theory of relativity

A comment recalled by János Plesch in János, the Story of a Doctor (1947), p. 207. Also quoted in Einstein: the Life and Times by Ronald W. Clark (1971), p. 118 http://books.google.com/books?id=6IKVA0lY6MAC&lpg=PP1&pg=PA118#v=onepage&q&f=false.
1940s
Variant: "When I examine myself and my methods of thought, I come close to the conclusion that the gift of imagination has meant more to me than my talent for absorbing absolute knowledge." From The Ultimate Quotable Einstein by Alice Calaprice (2010), p. 26 http://books.google.com/books?id=G_iziBAPXtEC&lpg=PP1&pg=PA26#v=onepage&q&f=false. This book attributes it to Einstein and the Humanities (1979) by Dennis Ryan, p. 125, but Calaprice seems to have copied it wrong, since searching "inside the book" on this book's amazon page http://www.amazon.com/Einstein-Humanities-Contributions-Dennis-Ryan/dp/0313253803 using the word "gift" shows that p. 125 actually gives the same quote as in János, the Story of a Doctor.

Knowledge

“I believe that anyone can be successful in life, regardless of natural talent or the environment within which we live. This is not based on measuring success by human competitiveness for wealth, possessions, influence, and fame, but adhering to God's standards of truth, justice, humility, service, compassion, forgiveness, and love.”

Jimmy Carter (1924) American politician, 39th president of the United States (in office from 1977 to 1981)

Page 28
Post-Presidency, Our Endangered Values (2005)
Source: Our Endangered Values: America's Moral Crisis

Love , Life , God , Truth

“Genius is 1% talent and 99% percent hard work…”

Albert Einstein (1879–1955) German-born physicist and founder of the theory of relativity

“But we know that people are complicated and have a mixture of flaws and talents and sins. So why do we pretend that we don’t?”

Jon Ronson book So You've Been Publicly Shamed

Source: So You've Been Publicly Shamed

People

“Throughout my lifetime I've left pieces of my heart here and there. And now, there's almost barely enough to stay alive. But I force a smile, knowing that my ambition far exceeded my talent.”

Johnny Depp (1963) American actor, film producer, and musician

Smile , Heart

“People who are unable to motivate themselves must be content with mediocrity, no matter how impressive their other talents.”

Andrew Carnegie (1835–1919) American businessman and philanthropist

People , Motivation

“Strategy will compensate the talent.
The talent will never compensate the strategy.”

Marco Pierre White (1961) English chef and restaurateur

“Our talents are the gift that God gives to us… What we make of our talents is our gift back to God”

Leo Buscaglia (1924–1998) Motivational speaker, writer

God

“The talent works, the genius creates.”

Robert Schumann (1810–1856) German composer, aesthete and influential music critic

Attributed to Schumann in: The Atlantic Monthly, Vol. 112, 1913, p. 811

“To tell the story of how and why we chose to do what we did, no one can ignore the personalities and characteristics of those individuals engaged in making decisions. For military command is as much a practice of human relations as it is a science of tactics and a knowledge of logistics. Where there are people, there is pride and ambition, prejudice and conflict. In generals, as in all other men, capabilities cannot always obscure weaknesses, nor can talents hide faults.”

Omar Bradley (1893–1981) United States Army field commander during World War II

Source: A Soldier's Story (1951), p. x.

Men , People , Knowledge , Decision

“Russian students? you ask. Yes, we have white Russians but not the Soviets. They have a wonderful school of their own which has produced superb musicians such as Sviatoslav Richter, Oistrakh, and Rostropovich. Those Russians that we have here chose freedom, but their Slavic temperament manifests itself just the same, and they have a marked talent for music.”

Alfred Cortot (1877–1962) Franco-Swiss pianist and conductor

in "Visit with Alfred Cortot" by Alexander Kosloff, Music Educators Journal (Feb.-Mar., 1962)

School , Music , Freedom

“If you really don’t enjoy the type of music I make and that’s not you, OK. But don’t say I’m not talented. If you haven’t noticed, I wasn’t made — I was found.”

Justin Bieber (1994) Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer, and actor

Billboard Interview, January 28, 2013, as quoted in Elite Daily http://elitedaily.com/elite/2013/justin-bieber-feels-entitled-winning-grammy/, 'Justin Bieber Feels That He Is Entitled To Winning A Grammy'.

Music

“Like other women writers of my class, I am expected to tame my talent to suit the comfort of my family.”

Kamala Surayya (1934–2009) Indian author

Kamala Suraiyya Das (Wages of Love)

Women , Family

“Just when you think that you thought that the guys in Billy Talent partied and did coke and had sex with all these hookers, we actually talk about architecture and, eh…history.”

Ben Kowalewicz (1975) musician

From "The Diary of Billy Talent":

Sex , Guy , History , Thinking

“Effort is the oxygen for talent.”

P. L. Deshpande (1919–2000) Marathi writer, humourist, actor, dramatist

From his various literature
Source: These words are uttered by the lead character of his work with the same name - Sakharam Gatne.

Effort

“What men want is not talent, it is purpose,—in other words, not the power to achieve, but the will to labour.”

Edward Bulwer-Lytton (1803–1873) English novelist, poet, playwright, and politician

Lucretia, Part II, Chapter XII
Context: The most useless creature that ever yawned at a club, or counted the vermin on his rags under the suns of Calabria, has no excuse for want of intellect. What men want is not talent, it is purpose,—in other words, not the power to achieve, but the will to labour.

Men

“No matter how educated, rich, talented or famous you believe you are, how you treat people is ultimately what will tell all.”

Ralph Smart

Education , People

“When men of talents are punished, authority is strengthened.”

Tacitus book Annals

Punitis ingeniis, gliscit auctoritas.
Book IV, 35.
Annals (117)

Men

“A really great talent finds its happiness in execution.”

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) German writer, artist, and politician

Happiness , Happy

“Would you like to know the great drama of my life? It is that I have put my genius into my life… I have put only my talent into my works.”

Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) Irish writer and poet

Life

“I've said it before, and I'll say it again. When you find something at which you have talent, you do that thing (what ever it is) until your fingers bleed or your eyes pop out of your head.”

Stephen King (1947) American author

“Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself; but talent instantly recognizes genius.”

Arthur Conan Doyle book The Valley of Fear

Source: The Valley of Fear

“Everybody is talented because everybody who is human has something to express.”

Brenda Ueland (1891–1985) Journalist and writer

“People in their right minds never take pride in their talents.”

Harper Lee book To Kill a Mockingbird

Pt. 1, ch. 10
Miss Maudie
Source: To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

People

“Where your talents and the needs of the world cross; there lies your vocation.”

Aristotle (-384–-321 BC) Classical Greek philosopher, student of Plato and founder of Western philosophy

World

“I told her once I wasn’t good at anything. She told me survival is a talent.”

Susanna Kaysen book Girl, Interrupted

Source: Girl, Interrupted

“Well, God give them wisdom that have it; and those that are fools, let them use their talents.”

William Shakespeare Twelfth Night

Source: Twelfth Night

Wisdom , God , Fools

“Talent is God-given; be humble. Fame is man-given; be thankful. Conceit is self-given; be careful.”

John Wooden (1910–2010) American basketball coach

They Call Me Coach (1972)
Variant: Talent is God-given; be humble. Fame is man-given; be thankful. Conceit is self-given; be careful.

God

“Ordinary people merely think how they shall 'spend' their time; a man of talent tries to 'use' it.”

Arthur Schopenhauer (1788–1860) German philosopher

People , Thinking , Time

“So much technology, so little talent.”

Vernor Vinge book Rainbows End

Source: Rainbows End (2006)

“Nothing in the world is more common than unsuccessful people with talent, leave the house before you find something worth staying in for.”

Banksy pseudonymous England-based graffiti artist, political activist, and painter

People , World , Housing

“…because talent isn't genius, and no amount of energy can make it so. I want to be great, or nothing.”

Louisa May Alcott book Little Women

Source: Little Women

“It would seem that you have no useful skill or talent whatsoever, he said. Have you thought of going into teaching?”

Terry Pratchett book Mort

Source: Mort

“We may not pay Satan reverence, for that would be indiscreet, but we can at least respect his talents.”

Mark Twain (1835–1910) American author and humorist

“Do research. Feed your talent. Research not only wins the war on cliche, it's the key to victory over fear and it's cousin, depression.”

Robert McKee (1941) American academic specialised in seminars for screenwriters

Source: Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting

War , Fear , Victory

“If I have ever made any valuable discoveries, it has been due more to patient attention, than to any other talent”

Isaac Newton (1643–1727) British physicist and mathematician and founder of modern classical physics

“A little talent is a good thing to have if you want to be a writer. But the only real requirement is the ability to remember every scar.”

Stephen King (1947) American author

“I never knew I could hate someone as deeply as I do you.”
“I often help others discover the outer limits of their hatred. It’s a talent of mine.”

Kresley Cole American writer

Source: Lothaire

Hate , Help

“My family had a lot of characteristics—achievements, ambitions, talents, expectations—that all seemed to be recessive in me.”

Susanna Kaysen book Girl, Interrupted

Source: Girl, Interrupted (1994)

Family

“An absolutely necessary part of a writer's equipment, almost as necessary as talent, is the ability to stand up under punishment, both the punishment the world hands out and the punishment he inflicts upon himself.”

Irwin Shaw (1913–1984) American politician

World , Parting

“The swan who goes on living in its parents' tree will die; this is why those who are beautiful and talented bear the burden of finding their own way in the world.”

Arthur Golden (1956) American novelist

World , Beauty , Way , Parent

“Every talent must unfold itself in fighting.”

Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900) German philosopher, poet, composer, cultural critic, and classical philologist

Fight

“To THINK BIG and to use our talents doesn't mean we won't have difficulties along the way. We will—we all do. How we view those problems determines how we end up. If we choose to see the obstacles in our path as barriers, we stop trying. “We can't win,” we moan. “They won't let us win.”However, if we choose to see the obstacles as hurdles, we can leap over them. Successful people don't have fewer problems. They have determined that nothing will stop them from going forward.Whatever direction we choose, if we can realize that every hurdle we jump strengthens and prepares us for the next one, we're already on the way to success.”

Ben Carson book Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story

Source: Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story
Source: Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story (1990), p. 232

People , Way , Problem , Thinking

“Friendship is everything. Friendship is more than talent. It is more than the government. It is almost the equal of family.- Don Corleone”

Mario Puzo The Godfather

Source: The Godfather

Friendship , Family

“Every work of art is aggressive, Isabella. And every artist's life is a small war or a large one, beginning with oneself and one's limitations. To achieve anything you must first have ambition and then talent, knowledge, and finally the opportunity.”

Carlos Ruiz Zafón book The Angel's Game

Source: The Angel's Game

Life , War , Art , Knowledge

“Talent is a wonderful thing, but it won't carry a quitter.”

Stephen King book Duma Key

Source: Duma Key

“When we grow up, we lose the talent for loving without restrictions.”

Nora Roberts (1950) American romance writer

Love

“Talent is cheap; dedication is expensive. It will cost you your life.”

Irving Stone book The Agony and the Ecstasy

Source: The Agony and the Ecstasy

Life

“Talent is cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work.”

Stephen King (1947) American author

Back To Work , Success

“Many are they who have a taste and love for drawing, but no talent; and this will be discernible in boys who are not diligent and never finish their drawings with shading.”

Leonardo Da Vinci (1452–1519) Italian Renaissance polymath

The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci (1883), IX The Practice of Painting

Love , Boy , Drawing

“One might say: Genius is talent exercised with courage.”

Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889–1951) Austrian-British philosopher

Man könnte sagen: „Genie ist Mut im Talent.”
Source: Culture and Value (1980), p. 38e

Exercises , Courage

Simón Bolívar (1783–1830) Venezuelan military and political leader, South American libertador

Letter from Jamaica (Summer 1815)

Perfection

“Genius still means to me, in my Russian fastidiousness and pride of phrase, a unique dazzling gift. The gift of James Joyce, and not the talent of Henry James.”

Vladimir Nabokov (1899–1977) Russian-American novelist, lepidopterist, professor

As quoted in What Is the Sangha?: The Nature of Spritual Community (2001) by Sangharakshita, p. 136.

“Superficial knowledge … is hurtful to those who possess true genius; for it necessarily draws them away from their main object, wastes their industry over details and subjects foreign to their needs and natural talent, and lastly does not serve, as they flatter themselves, to prove the breadth of their mind. In all ages there have been men of very moderate intelligence who knew much, and so on the contrary, men of the highest intelligence who knew very little. Ignorance is not lack of intelligence, nor knowledge a proof of genius.”

Luc de Clapiers, Marquis de Vauvenargues (1715–1747) French writer, a moralist

Source: Reflections and Maxims (1746), p. 178.

Men , Age , Intelligence , Nature

“I put all my genius into my life; I put only my talent into my works.”

Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) Irish writer and poet

J’ai mis tout mon génie dans ma vie; je n’ai mis que mon talent dans mes œuvres.
Conversation with André Gide in Algiers, quoted in letter by Gide to his mother (30 January 1895); popularized by Gide and often subsequently quoted in Gide’s later work and in "Gide, André (1869-1951)" at Standing Ovations http://www.mr-oscar-wilde.de/about/g/gide.htm; the conversation was again recalled in Gide’s journal of (3 July 1913), quoted in “André Gide’s ‘Hommage à Oscar Wilde’ or ‘The Tale of Judas’”, Victoria Reid (University of Glasgow, UK), Chapter 5 in [Reception of Oscar Wilde in Europe], edited by Stefano Evangelista (8 July 2010) part of a Continuum series The Reception of British and Irish Authors in Europe, ISBN 978-1-84706005-1, pp. 98–99 http://books.google.com/books?id=-oBmdCTSJ5IC&pg=PA98#v=onepage&q=%22I%20put%20all%20my%20genius%22, also footnote 6 (p. 99), quoting 1996 edition of Gide’s journal, pp. 746–47]

Life

“I thank you most sincerely for your polite notice of me, in the elegant Lines you enclosed; and however undeserving I may be of such encomium and panegyrick, the style and manner exhibit a striking proof of your great poetical Talents. In honour of which, and as a tribute justly due to you, I would have published the Poem, had I not been apprehensive, that, while I only meant to give the World this new instance of your genius, I might have incurred the imputation of Vanity. This and nothing else, determined me not to give it place in the public Prints.”

George Washington (1732–1799) first President of the United States

1770s, Letter to Phyllis Wheatley (1776)

World , Sincerity

“Peace with justice means free enterprise that unleashes the talents and creativity that reside in each of us; in other models, direct economic growth from the top down or relies solely on the resources extracted from the earth. But we believe that real prosperity comes from our most precious resource -- our people.”

Barack Obama (1961) 44th President of the United States of America

2013, Brandenburg Gate Speech (June 2013)

People , Peace , Justice

“If you have been given a talent, exercise it freely and happily like the sun: give everyone from your splendour.”

Paracelsus (1493–1541) Swiss physician and alchemist

Paracelsus - Doctor of our Time (1992)

Exercises , Sun

“Unforced, as conversation passed,
he had the talent of saluting
felicitously every theme,
of listening like a judge-supreme
while serious topics were disputing,
or, with an epigram-surprise,
of kindling smiles in ladies' eyes.”

Aleksandr Pushkin book Eugene Onegin

Source: Eugene Onegin (1823), Ch. 1, st. 5.

Smile

“The interpreter is really an executant, carrying out the composer's intentions to the letter. He doesn't add anything that isn't already in the work. If he is talented, he allows us to glimpse the truth of the work that is in itself a thing of genius and that is reflected in him. He shouldn't dominate the music, but should dissolve into it.”

Sviatoslav Richter (1915–1997) Soviet pianist

Sviatoslav Richter: Notebooks and Conversations

Truth , Music

“And that’s why we support societies that empower women -- because no country will reach its potential unless it draws on the talents of our wives and our mothers, and our sisters and our daughters.”

Barack Obama (1961) 44th President of the United States of America

2013, Cape Town University Address (June 2013)

Women , Support , Sister , Drawing

“Although I am new in the business, my team is not. I would say that, person for person, there has never been a better rocket company in existence, in history. I don’t think there has ever been a group this talented in one place, in one company, developing a rocket – ever.
If you have millions of dollars it changes your lifestyle, and anyone who says differently is talking ########. I don’t need to work, from a standard of living point of view, but I do, you know. I work every day and on weekends and I haven’t taken a vacation for years.”

Elon Musk (1971) South African-born American entrepreneur

Conversation: Elon Musk on Wired Science (2007)

History , Business , Thinking , Change

“In every society, a few individuals acquire the status of an elite through talent. Due to superior achievements of wealth, wisdom, and bravery, these individuals come to possess natural authority, and their opinions and judgments enjoy wide-spread respect. Moreover, because of selective mating, marriage, and the laws of civil and genetic inheritance, positions of natural authority are likely to be passed on within a few noble families. It is to the heads of these families with long-established records of superior achievement, farsightedness, and exemplary personal conduct that men turn to with their conflicts and complaints against each other. These leaders of the natural elite act as judges and peacemakers, often free of charge out of a sense of duty expected of a person of authority or out of concern for civil justice as a privately produced "public good."”

Hans-Hermann Hoppe (1949) Austrian school economist and libertarian anarcho-capitalist philosopher

Natural Elites, Intellectuals, and the State http://www.mises.org/etexts/intellectuals.asp (21 July 2006)

Wisdom , Men , Marriage , Family

“In the performance of a task thus generally delineated I shall endeavor to select men whose diligence and talents will insure in their respective stations able and faithful cooperation, depending for the advancement of the public service more on the integrity and zeal of the public officers than on their numbers.”

Andrew Jackson (1767–1845) American general and politician, 7th president of the United States

First Inaugural Address (4 March 1829).
1820s

Men , Faith , Dependency

“It appears to general observation, that revolutions create genius and talents; but those events do no more than bring them forward. There is existing in man, a mass of sense lying in a dormant state, and which, unless something excites it to action, will descend with him, in that condition, to the grave. As it is to the advantage of society that the whole of its faculties should be employed, the construction of government ought to be such as to bring forward, by a quiet and regular operation, all that extent of capacity which never fails to appear in revolutions.”

Thomas Paine book Rights of Man

Part 2.5 Chapter III. Of the old and new systems of government
1790s, Rights of Man, Part 2 (1792)

Lying , Sense , Appearance

“The talents of young people must not be stifled. Education is not just about getting the right grades in exams but it should encourage all students to develop their optimum capacity, whatever that may be. Schools and colleges should prepare young people for life.”

Richard Branson (1950) English business magnate, investor and philanthropist

From Branson's Foreword to the book: [Marcouse, Ian, 1996, Understanding Industry, Bath, Hodder & Stoughton, ix, 034067927-1, 2014]

Life , People , Education , School

“Sex is difficult; yes. But those tasks that have been entrusted to us are difficult; almost everything serious is difficult; and everything is serious. If you just recognize this and manage, out of yourself, out of your own talent and nature, out of your own experience and childhood and strength, to achieve a wholly individual relation to sex (one that is not influenced by convention and custom), then you will no longer have to be afraid of losing yourself and becoming unworthy of your dearest possession.”

Rainer Maria Rilke book Letters to a Young Poet

Letter Four (16 July 1903)
Letters to a Young Poet (1934)

Sex , Nature , Childhood

“[Corporate programming] is often done to the point where the individual is completely submerged in corporate "culture" with no outlet for unique talents and skills. Corporate practices can be directly hostile to individuals with exceptional skills and initiative in technical matters. I consider such management of technical people cruel and wasteful.”

Bjarne Stroustrup (1950) Danish computer scientist, creator of C++

The Problem with Programming (Interview with Bjarne Stroustrup), MIT Technology Review, November 28, 2006, Jason Pontin, 2007-11-15 http://technologyreview.com/Infotech/17831/page3/,

Hostility , People

“I had always dreamt of participating in a beauty pageant and I got a chance to live my dream. It was a very good learning experience. However, due to my hectic schedule, I did not get enough time to prepare for the Talent round. But I am happy as I won the Miss Bollywood Diva.”

Sukirti Kandpal (1987) Indian actress

Beauty , Dreams , Learning , Chance

“The less somebody knows and understand himself the less great he is, however great may be his talent. For this reason our scientists are not great.”

Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889–1951) Austrian-British philosopher

Source: Culture and Value (1980), p. 51e

Understanding

“There is not less wit nor invention in applying rightly a thought one finds in a book, than in being the first author of that thought. Cardinal du Perron has been heard to say that the happy application of a verse of Virgil has deserved a talent.”

Pierre Bayle (1647–1706) French philosopher and writer

Pierre Bayle, Works, Volume II, p. 779; in Hoyt's New Cyclopedia Of Practical Quotations (1922), p. 653-54: About quotation.

Books , Happiness

“There was a dodgy digital period when things didn't sound that great, but now we are figuring that out. The basics haven't changed, which is talented human beings playing together in a room.”

Hans Zimmer (1957) German film composer and music producer

Source http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-13964918.

Change

“Jesus appeared to the disciples after the resurrection in various forms. He appeared to Mary Magdalene so that they might take him for a gardener. Very ingeniously these manifestation of Jesus is to our minds difficult to penetrate. (He appears) as a gardener. The gardener plants seedlings in prepared soil. The soil must exert a physical and chemical influence so that the seed of the plant can grow. Yet this is not sufficient. The warmth and light of the sun must be added, together with rain, in order that growth may result. The seed of supernatural life, of sanctifying grace, cleanses from sin, so preparing the soul of man, and man must seek to preserve this life by his good works. He still needs the supernatural food, the body of the Lord, which received continually, develops and brings to completion of the life. So natural and supernatural must unite to the realization of the holiness to the people. Man must contribute his minimum work of toil, and God gives the growth. Truly, the seed, the talent, the grace of God is there, and man has simply to work, take the seeds to bring them to the bankers. So that we "may have life, and abundantly."”

Gregor Mendel (1822–1884) Silesian scientist and Augustinian friar

Mendel makes several allusions to biblical verses, including John 20:15, Matthew 25:26 and John 10:10.
Sermon on Easter
Original: Jesus erschien den Jüngern nach der Auferstehung in verschiedener Gestalt. Der Maria Magdalena erschien er so, daß sie ihn für einen Gärtner halten mochte. Sehr sinnreich sind diese Erscheinungen Jesu und unser Verstand vermag sie schwer zu durchdringen. (Er erscheint) als Gärtner. Dieser pflanzt den Samen in den zubereiteten Boden. Das Erdreich muss physikalisch-chemisch Einwirkung ausüben, damit der Same aufgeht. Doch reicht das nicht hin, es muß noch Sonnenwärme und Licht hinzukommen nebst Regen, damit das Gedeihen zustandekommt. Das übernatürliche Leben in seinem Keim, der heiligmachenden Gnade wird in die von der Sünde gereinigte, also vorbereitete Seele des Menschen hineingesenkt und es muß der Mensch durch seine guten Werke dieses Leben zu erhalten suchen. Es muss noch die übernatürliche Nahrung dazukommen, der Leib des Herrn, der das Leben weiter erhält, entwickelt und zur Vollendung bringt. So muss Natur und Übernatur sich vereinigen, um das Zustandekommen der Heiligkeit des Menschen. Der Mensch muß sein Scherflein Arbeit hinzugeben, und Gott gibt das Gedeihen. Es ist wahr, den Samen, das Talent, die Gnade gibt der liebe Gott, und der Mensch hat bloß die Arbeit, den Samen aufzunehmen, das Geld zu Wechslern zu tragen. Damit wir »das Leben haben und im Überflusse haben.

Life , God , People , Food