Jonathan Swift Quotes

Sometimes when people ask you to do things you think you are above, you need to evaluate why you think you are above it.

True humility is intelligent self respect which keeps us from thinking too highly or too meanly of ourselves. It makes us modest by reminding us how far we have come short of what we can be.

It's good to like yourself, and that only comes from hard work, from doing. But vanity is dangerous; it can trip you badly.

You should be smart enough to know that you don't know everything. But you have to believe in yourself. I certainly do.

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

I've been enormously fortunate. People say, 'How do you feel about your reputation?' My real belief is that I have exactly the reputation I deserve... on the whole, I feel comfortable with myself.

Don't forget your own self while preaching to others.

I don't like to appoint myself to nothing, knowing I'm no better than anybody else. But it always makes me feel good to know I try to do the best I can, and those who might observe say, 'Hey, I can take a little something from that person.'

I was always taught that you don't think you are anything special 'cause there's always someone who is more special than you. Just be the best you that you can be.

What I'm trying to do is maintain some mindfulness about being popular - I wasn't so great at that last time around.

If you desire to know or learn anything to your advantage, then take delight in being unknown and unregarded. A true understanding and humble estimate of oneself is the highest and most valuable of all lessons.

A noble man compares and estimates himself by an idea which is higher than himself, and a mean man, by one lower than himself.

One that does not think to highly of himself is more than he thinks.

Hopefully, other successes aren't like me. It carries much more meaning to other people; my success story is irrelevant. It doesn't make any sense.

If you would improve, submit to be considered wihout sense and foolish with respect to externals. Wish to be considered to know nothing; and if you shall seem to someone to be a person of importance, distrust yourself.

I regret that I do not have the dignity of Ricardo Montalban, the class of Dean Martin, or the humor of Bill Cosby. I do have the heart of a lion.

Extirpate two thoughts within thyself: do not consider thyself worthy of anything great, and do not think that any other man is much lower than thou in worthiness. Learn humble mindedness beforehand, which the Lord commanded in word and showed forth in deed. Hence, do not expect obedience from others, but be ready for obedience thyself.

We should be slower to think that the man at his worst is the real man, and certain that the better we are ourselves the less likely is he to be at his worst in our company. Every time he talks away his own character before us he is signifying contempt for ours.

This new meta-system is very much in favor of the self, but a self that is based on a proper sense of dignity, not on an inflated ego. A person who dare not admit he is wrong inflates his ego but weakens his self.

In this day and age, especially with all the media and television, social media, and the Internet, we are constantly being compared and comparing ourselves to others' lives and journeys. Keep your eyes on your own road.

Maybe at the same time as I'm more confident today, I'm also more humble.

I showed myself a lesser version of myself that night, and I’m glad I learned from it.

Only madmen and fools are pleased with themselves; no wise man is good enough for his own satisfaction.

Were we not proud ourselves, we should not complain of the pride of others.

Victory is sweetest when you've know defeat. Ability will never catch up with the demand for it. You pay for everything, even including speaking your mind (with or without one). Too many people overvalue what they are not and undervalue what they are.