Robert Herrick Quotes

To be ambitious of true honor, of the true glory and perfection of our natures, is the very principle and incentive of virtue.

High aims form high characters, and great objects bring out great minds.

Never stop working on your statue until the divine glory of virtue shines out on you, until you see self-mastery enthroned upon its holy seat.

Every complete man has his genius. True virtue is genius.

There is no real excellence in all of this world which can be separated from right living.

The quality of a person's life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor.

Few men can be said to have inimitable excellencies: let us watch them in their progress from infancy to manhood, and we shall soon be convinced that what they attained was the necessary consequence of the line they pursued, and the means they used.

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.

I did not work hard in order to achieve more and to remain at the level of the player that I am and that I can be.

I'm not bothered about what others are doing. All I want to do is excel in whatever it is that I do.

The chief factor in any man's success or failure must be his own character.

In order for good to blossom it must be cultivated and exercised by constant practice, and to be truly righteous there is required a daily pruning of the evil growth of our characters by a daily repen- tance from sin.

It is not in everyone's power to secure wealth, office, or honors; but everyone may be good, generous, and wise.

To enjoy the things we ought and to hate the things we ought has the greatest bearing on excellence of character.

To know what virtue is is not enough; we must endeavor to possess and to practice it, or in some other manner actually ourselves to become good.

There is but one pursuit in life which it is in the power of all to follow, and of all to attain. It is subject to no disappointments, since he that perseveres, makes every difficulty an advancement, and every contest a victory; and this is the pursuit of virtue.

Respect for self is the beginning of cultivating virtue in men and women.

Temptation is as old as time; or at least, the history of temptation extends as far back as the moment Eve gave Adam that serpent's apple. But what sets the lady apart from the tramp is the ability to acknowledge she needs to clean up her act - and then, of course, the fact that she actually does clean up her act.

Accomplish something every day of your life.

My wife taught me the importance of living well.

I know I want to always do the best I can.

The good man is the man who, no matter how morally unworthy he has been, is moving to become better.

I don't want to be interesting. I want to be good.

Know then this truth, enough for man to know virtue alone is happiness below.

Virtue comes by nature, learning, and practice, and thanks to virtue, all of the aforesaid may deserve approval.