Elbert Hubbard
Elbert Hubbard
Elbert Green Hubbardwas an American writer, publisher, artist, and philosopher. Raised in Hudson, Illinois, he had early success as a traveling salesman for the Larkin Soap Company. Presently Hubbard is known best as the founder of the Roycroft artisan community in East Aurora, New York, an influential exponent of the Arts and Crafts Movement. Among his many publications were the nine-volume work Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great and the short publication A Message to Garcia. He and...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionWriter
Date of Birth19 June 1859
CountryUnited States of America
Don't lose faith in humanity; think of all the people in the United States who have never played you a single nasty trick.
If I supply you with a thought, you may remember it and you may not. But if I can make you think a thought for yourself, I have indeed added to your stature.
Put yourself in the other man's place and then you will know why he thinks certain things and does certain deeds.
Forbid a man to think for himself or to act for himself and you may add the joy of piracy and the zest of smuggling to his life.
To supply a thought is mental massage; but to evolve a thought of your own is an achievement. Thinking is a brain exercise and no faculty grows save as it is exercised.
People who are able to do their own thinking should not allow others to do it for them.
You can go wrong by being too skeptical as readily as by being too trusting. You can lead a boy to college but you cannot make him think.
No book is of much importance; the vital thing is, What do you yourself think?
Man is not what he thinks he is, but what he thinks, he is.
Happiness is a habit—cultivate it.
Good health! Whenever you go out of doors, draw the chin in, carry the crown of your head high, and fill the lungs to the utmost; drink in sunshine; greet your friends with a smile, and put soul into every handclasp. Do not fear being misunderstood and never waste a minute thinking about your enemies.
If you work for a man, in heavens name work for him! If he pays you wages that supply you your bread and butter, work for him speak well of him, think well of him, stand by him and stand by the institution he represents. I think if I worked for a man I would work for him. I would not work for him a part of the time, and the rest of the time work against him. I would give an undivided service or none. If put to the pinch, an ounce of loyalty is worth a pound of cleverness.
The hundred-point man is one who is true to every trust; who keeps his word; who is loyal to the firm that employs him; who does not listen for insults nor look for slights; who carries a civil tongue in his head; who is polite to strangers without being fresh; who is considerate toward servants; who is moderate in his eating and drinking; who is willing to learn; who is cautious and yet courageous.
The finest flowers are those transplanted, for transplanting means difficulty, a readjusting to new conditions, and through the effort put forth to find adjustment does the plant progress.