Francois de La Rochefoucauld Quotes

To accuse others for one's own misfortunes is a sign of want of education. To accuse oneself shows that one's education has begun. To accuse neither oneself nor others shows that one's education is complete.

I try to keep myself on an even keel by trying to be as critical of myself as I am of other people. I try to separate my performance from myself.

It is better to destroy one's own errors than those of others.

Self criticism must be my guide to action, and the first rule for its employment is that in itself it is not a virtue, only a procedure.

Observe all men, thyself most.

To learn to know oneself, to judge oneself with truth and impartiality, must be the great objects of one's exertion; they are only attainable by constant and cool self-examination.

I'm highly critical of myself. There's not something someone else might say that makes me feel I need to be motivated in a different way. I'm a self-motivated guy.

I'm super self-critical, which I think is good, because then I get exactly what I want. I'm critical of other people, too - I try not to be, though.

You know, I analyze my faults and my weaknesses very carefully. I'm very hypercritical of myself.

Really, when you take a step back and you really know yourself, you're able to make better decisions.

The very purpose of religion is to control yourself, not to criticize others. Rather, we must criticize ourselves. How much am I doing about my anger? About my attachment, about my hatred, about my pride, my jealousy? These are the things which we must check in daily life.

It is easy to be wise on behalf of others than to be so for ourselves.

He who knows much about others may be learned, but he who understands himself is more intelligent. He who controls others may be powerful, but he who has mastered himself is mightier still.

Solitude cherishes great virtues and destroys little ones.

I can't judge the way other people behave. I can only look at myself.

We are what our thoughts have made us; so take care about what you think. Words are secondary. Thoughts live; they travel far.

It is much easier to find fault with others, than to be faultless ourselves.

I find it valuable to watch what I do. I like to know when I'm making a choice if it actually works or not.

The preacher's sharpest and strongest preaching should be to himself. His most difficult, delicate, laborious, and thorough work must be with himself.

My goal in life is to make decisions that minimize regrets. I don't regret anything I've done.

Solitude can be used well by very few people. They who do must have a knowledge of the world to see the foolishness of it, and enough virtue to despise all the vanity.

So then, when I speak to you, I speak to myself. If I seem to warn or to rebuke you, it is not so much you, as myself, to whom the warning or the rebuke is addressed.

The practice mirror is to be used for the correction of faults, not for a love affair, and the figure you watch should not become your dearest friend.

I work on myself daily to be a better person. When I react in a negative way to somebody, I sit back and think about why I did it, so I'm always working on myself, and my music is the same.

Every day I have many choices to make about who I want to be.