Quotes from H. Jackson Brown Jr.

Talent without discipline is like an octopus on roller skates. There's plenty of movement, but you never know if it's going to be forward, backwards, or sideways.

Watch the sunrise at least once a year, put a lot of marshmallows in your hot chocolate, lie on your back and look at the stars, never buy a coffee table you can't put your feet on, never pass up a chance to jump on a trampoline, don't overlook life's small joys while searching for the big ones.

Live and learn and pass it on.

If you're doing your best, you won't have time to worry about failure.

Commit yourself to constant improvement. Commit yourself to quality. Be persistent, persistent, persistent...and have a grateful heart!

Judge your success by the degree that you're enjoying peace, health, and love.

Opportunity dances with those who are already on the dance floor.

Wear audacious underwear under the most solemn business attire.

Nothing is more expensive than a missed opportunity.

Remember that everyone you meet is afraid of something, loves something and has lost something. People take different roads seeking fulfillment and happiness. Just because they're not on your road doesn't mean they've gotten lost. If you know someone who tries to drown their sorrows, you might tell them sorrows know how to swim...

Choose your life's mate carefully. From this one decision will come 90 percent of all your happiness or misery.

Don't delay acting on a good idea. Chances are someone else has just thought of it, too. Success comes to the one who acts first.

Let people know what you stand for and what you won't stand for.

Remember that the biggest gap in the world is between 'I should' and 'I did.

Resist telling people how something should be done. Instead, tell them what needs to be done. They will often surprise you with creative solutions.

Let the refining and improving of your own life keep you so busy that you have little time to criticize others.

Turn off the tap when brushing your teeth.

Encourage anyone who is trying to improve mentally, physically, or spiritually.

Understand that happiness is not based on possessions, power, or prestige, but on relationships with people you love and respect.

I've learned that when a man with money meets a man with experience, the man with experience ends up with the money and the man with the money ends up with experience.

Live your life as an exclamation, not an explanation.

When you're lost, admit it, and ask for directions.

Good manners sometimes means simply putting up with other people's bad manners.

Practice empathy. Try to see things from other people's points of view.