Quotes About Self-control

Who ever is out of patience is out of possession of their soul.

Whoever is out of patience is out of possession of his soul.Men must not turn bees, and kill themselves in stinging others.

It is a strange desire, to seek power, and to lose liberty or to seek power over others, and to lose power over a man's self.

This is certain, that a man that studieth revenge keeps his wounds green, which otherwise would heal and do well.

We can be sure that the greatest hope for maintaining equilibrium in the face of any situation rests within ourselves.

Give not thy tongue too great a liberty, lest it take thee prisoner. A word unspoken is like thy sword in thy scabbard; if vented, the sword is in another?s hand.* If thou desire to be held wise, be so wise as to hold thy tongue.

My mind is my kingdom.

If we resist our passions, it is more through their weakness than from our strength

A child, like your stomach, doesn't need all you can afford to give it.

Habits are safer than rules you don't have to watch them. And you don't have to keep them either. They keep you.

Seek freedom and become captive of your desires. Seek discipline and find your liberty.

A man is a fool if he drinks before he reaches the age of 50, and a fool if he doesn't afterward.

Each of our powers seeks its own outlet, each of our needs its own immediate gratification; we have not the subordination of all our powers to reason and of reason to God which would unify all our striving; every one of us is a civil war. At two points principally the disorder is at its worst, the passions and the imagination.

A drug is not bad. A drug is a chemical compound. The problem comes in when people who take drugs treat them like a license to behave like an asshole.

What makes resisting temptation difficult for many people is they don't want to discourage it completely.

Be kind and generous to your fellows, but hard and relentless with yourself.

Temptations are a compliment to our power, not our weakness.

Our goal is to learn how to resist temptation, but desperate attempts at iron willpower can produce frustration and disappointment. What's needed is watchfulness—in Greek, nepsis. Since temptation begins with a thought, we need to start noticing the thoughts that appear in our minds, that weave around and through, seeking a weak spot. The idea is to notice them early, and shut them off. Block them before they get stronger and harder to resist.

Greedy eaters dig their graves with their teeth.

Battle not with monsters, lest ye become a monster

Virtues are dangerous as vices insofar as they are allowed to rule over one as authorities and not as qualities one develops oneself.

It is the most sensual men who need to flee women and torment their bodies.

Master your emotions.

I try to avoid having thoughts. They lead to other thoughts, and—if you're not careful—those lead to actions. Actions make you tired. I have this on rather good authority from someone who once read it in a book.