Lewis Mumford Quotes

I am where I am because I believe in all possibilities.

I invented my life by taking for granted that everything I did not like would have an opposite, which I would like.

We fail to see that we can control our destiny; make ourselves do whatever is possible; make ourselves become whatever we long to be.

We are the creative force of our life, and through our own decisions rather than our conditions, if we carefully learn to do certain things, we can accomplish those goals.

Life can be either of two things: What it makes of you or what you make of it.

Every attainment, every step forward in knowledge, follows from courage, from hardness against oneself, from cleanliness in relation to oneself.

There are things one must do for oneself.

Work out your own salvation. Do not depend on others.

The strongest principle of growth lies in the human choice.

Practice rather than preach. Make of your life an affirmation, defined by your ideals, not the negation of others. Dare to the level of your capability then go beyond to a higher level.

I think the future is whatever I'm willing to make it.

It's a kind of philosophy of my own life, to create the energy enough to keep on going.

It's all in how you look at your life, because no one has a wonderful life. But you can make it what you want it to be.

I know of no more encouraging fact than the unquestionable ability of man to elevate his life by conscious endeavor.

Success means having the courage, the determination, and the will to become the person you believe you were meant to be.

We can change our lives. We can do, have, and be exactly what we wish.

Is life so wretched? Isn't it rather your hands which are too small, your vision which is muddled? You are the one who must grow up.

Accept responsibility for your life. Know that it is you who will get you where you want to go, no one else.

Regardless of who you are or what you have been, you can be what you want to be.

You are the master of your environment. You've got your own head, your own mind. So once you figure out what you want for yourself, you have to create the proper environment to make sure you can live out all the things you want.

Principles are the most important thing to me. One of the things I think my dad taught me was there are people who accept the world they live in and there are people who change the world they live in. I don't accept my circumstances.

Dream and give yourself permission to envision a You that you choose to be.

The only things standing between you and the compassionate, wise, and creative person you want to be are matters of choice. Your choice. No one can occupy your generosity except you.

I think if I ever stopped pushing myself, I would revert quickly to quite repetitive, restrictive behaviour. But in pushing myself and concentrating on what I can do, I think I can contribute to society. And that gives me the desire to keep pushing, to see what I'm capable of. The thing to do is not to stop.

The best thing we can do is develop our own.