Quotes About Motives

Beware of the person who gives advice, telling you that a certain action on your part is "good for you" while it is also good for him, while the harm to you doesn't directly affect him.

Thus, I can recognize that I have been unfair and hurtful to my child (or my spouse or my friend) and need to make amends. But I don't want to admit I made a mistake, so I procrastinate, claiming that I am still "thinking" about the situation. This is the opposite of living consciously. At a fundamental level, it is an avoidance of consciousness—avoidance of the meaning of what I am doing; avoidance of my motives; avoidance of my continuing cruelty.

His was the profession at that era in which intellectual ability displayed itself far more than in political life; for—leaving a higher motive out of the question it offered inducements powerful enough in the almost worshipping respect of the community, to win the most aspiring ambition into its service. Even political power—as in the case of Increase Mather—was within the grasp of a successful priest.

Unable to penetrate to the secret place of his soul where his motives lay hidden, he believed that a supernatural voice had called him onward, and that a supernatural power had obstructed his retreat.

They were too focused on their own inner lives to appreciate the subtleties of character that might have alerted them to the true motives of those who did not share in their beliefs. Time and time again during their preparations to sail for America, the Pilgrims demonstrated an extraordinary talent for getting duped.

Human nature is both predictable and mysterious; prone to great and sudden advances, yet still mired in despicable self-interest.

You see, there are some who seek celebrity to change the world, and others who seek it to ensnare the world. Goddard is of the second kind.

Selfishness is the most constant of human motives. Patriotism, humanity, or the love of God may lead to sporadic outbursts which sweep away the heaped-up wrongs of centuries; but they languish at times, while the love of self works on ceaselessly, unwearyingly, burrowing always at the very roots of life, and heaping up fresh wrongs for other centuries to sweep away.

I think for really good-hearted people, that idea of putting yourself in the shoes of a monster to figure out why they acted that way, that's a really frightening idea.

Is hacking ever acceptable? It depends on the motive.

I think everything is a motive for money. Every thought, every belief, everything we're taught in school.

I am convinced that the majority of people would be generous from selfish motives, if they had the opportunity.

It's the millenium, motives are incidental.

I get to play a 58-year-old time-traveling assassin. The role had a lot of layers to it that I knew would be fun to break down and figure out the motives behind.

We should often blush for our very best actions, if the world did but see all the motives upon which they were done.

What we believe to be the motives of our conduct are usually but the pretexts for it.

We have nothing less to do than to get inside of whole peoples and change their motives and dispositions.

I always thought it hadn't influenced me very much, but I heard from many people from England that many motives from German fairytales are to be found in my books.

When you're a woman with a certain amount of fame and money, you are never certain what someone's motives are.

I really believe that 'Saw' makes us stop and think and question our motives and what we're doing here on Earth.

Relationships, for me, have been elusive. And I would say mostly it's been my fault. I was always more concentrated on my career. And yes, you do question people's motives. Is it just because I'm him - I'm Nathan Lane?

When you do well, everybody's after you, and sometimes the motives are legitimate, and sometimes it's envy and jealousy.

There's no recreating what Michael Jackson and Diana Ross did in 'The Wiz'. We're trying to figure out who these characters are in 2015. How would these times change their motives, change the things they would say and do?

As I got older, I was able to articulate why I was rebelling against authority - because their motives were much more forceful and hurtful than I had ever thought.