John Irving Quotes

It is easier to prevent bad habits than to break them.

Depending on what they are, our habits will either make us or break us. We become what we repeatedly do.

People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing - that's why we recommend it daily.

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

I will form good habits and become their slave. And how will I accomplish this difficult feat? Through these scrolls it will be done, for each scroll contains a principle which will drive a bad habit from my life and replace it with one which will bring me closer to success.

It's really hard to be consistent, and you have to know your body and know yourself.

Staying consistent with positive habits can be a challenge.

Motivation gets you going, but discipline keeps you growing.

The difference between an amateur and a professional is in their habits. An amateur has amateur habits. A professional has professional habits. We can never free ourselves from habit. But we can replace bad habits with good ones.

I do things because I enjoy it. That used to be my downfall, but now it's the upside.

I don't have a lot of discipline.

Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.

If I sleep in and don't run, I'll feel a little bit off because I didn't do what I was supposed to do. But I'm not going to beat myself up because of it. I'll just get right back on track.

One day of practice is like one day of clean living. It doesn't do you any good.

I think of discipline as the continual everyday process of helping a child learn self-discipline.

The secret of your future is hidden in your daily routine.

The only routine I have is that I finish everything I start. I wake up early every day - about 6.30 A.M. - but I do not work every day. I could laze for a day or two, but I wouldn't do it for three.

I think it's good to have pressure on yourself. The worst crime is to get kind of really complacent.

Even as you make progress, you need the discipline to keep from backtracking and sabotaging the success as it's happening.

At the end of the day, I write down an 'L' or a 'W,' whether or not the day was a 'Loss' or if it was a 'Win.' It really bothers you to have to write down an 'L.' An 'L' looks like a day I ate a lot of junk food, or I didn't work out when I was supposed to or train when I was supposed to train, or if I felt that I had a bad performance in the ring.

Whether it is my shooting or going to bed on time. There are so many things you can do to be consistent.

I get up when I feel like getting up. That's the deal I've made with myself: I can stay in bed as long as my dog's bladder holds. The other half of that deal is that once the dog is walked, the very next thing I do is write. It's mechanical. It's programming, very nearly brainwashing.

Motivation gets you going and habit gets you there. Make motivation a habit and you will get there more quickly and have more fun on the trip.

The one human quality that must be developed is self discipline for success. The will power to force yourself to do what you know you should do when you should do it, whether you like it or not, whether you feel like it or not. Success is tons of discipline.

If I must be a slave to habit let me be a slave to good habits.