determination

By patience and determination, rather than by a harsh upsetting of tradition, we move toward our national aspirations.... This is the way we get things done in America. One man tells another, does what he can, till the sum of these efforts grows into a national aspiration-a precious goal. Then occurs our miracle of democracy: because the groundwork has been surely laid, the goal is already within our grasp.

A resolute determination is the truest wisdom.

"Success Is Gauged By Self-Mastery" I should like to say a few words about self-discipline, self-control, or self-mastery which is so important to all of us if we are to accomplish what we set out to do and enjoy the blessings which we desire so much. First, I should like to quote some of the philosophers. Plato said: "The first and best victory is to conquer self; to be conquered by self is, of all things, the most shameful and vile." And da Vinci once said: "You will never have a greater or lesser dominion than that over yourself." Then he goes on to say that "the height of a man's success is gauged by his self-mastery; the depth of his failure by his self-abandonment. . . . And this law is the expression of eternal justice. He who cannot establish dominion over himself will have no dominion over others." In other words,he cannot be a worthy father or leader. Solomon in all his wisdom made this meaningful statement: "He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city." (Proverbs 16:32) There are two important elements in self-mastery. The first is to determine your course or set the sails, so to speak, of moral standards; the other is the willpower, or the wind in the sails carrying one forward. As I said before, character is determined by the extent to which we can master ourselves toward good ends. It is difficult to say just what builds good character, but we know it when we see it. It always commands our admiration, and the absence of it our pity. But it is largely a matter of willpower.

In 1963, when I assigned the name "quark" to the fundamental constituents of the nucleon, I had the sound first, without the spelling, which could have been "kwork." Then, in one of my occasional perusals of Finnegans Wake, by James Joyce, I came across the word "quark" in the phrase "Three quarks for Muster Mark." Since "quark" (meaning, for one thing, the cry of a gull) was clearly intended to rhyme with "Mark," as well as "bark" and other such words, I had to find an excuse to pronounce it as "kwork." But the book represents the dreams of a publican named Humphrey Chimpden Earwicker. Words in the text are typically drawn from several sources at once, like the "portmanteau words" in Through the Looking Glass. From time to time, phrases occur in the book that are partially determined by calls for drinks at the bar. I argued, therefore, that perhaps one of the multiple sources of the cry "Three quarks for Muster Mark" might be "Three quarts for Mister Mark," in which case the pronunciation "kwork" would not be totally unjustified. In any case, the number three fitted perfectly the way quarks occur in nature.

In fighting and in everyday life you should be determined though calm. Meet the situation without tenseness yet not recklessly, your spirit settled yet unbiased. . . . An elevated spirit is weak and a low spirit is weak. Do not let the enemy see your spirit.

Sitting in your garden is a feat to be worked at with unflagging determination and single-mindedness. . . . I am deeply committed to sitting in the garden.

There is a place in God's sun for the youth "farthest down" who has the vision, the determination, and the courage to reach it.

We are the painters of own self-portraits. Who we become will be determined by our attitudes, our actions and what we learn.

The miracle, or the power, that elevates the few is to be found in their industry, application, and perseverance under the promptings of a brave, determined spirit.

Desire is the key to motivation, but it's determination and commitment to an unrelenting pursuit of your goal - a commitment to excellence - that will enable you to attain the success you seek.