The best ideas come as jokes…

Posted on by ben Alexander

There is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so.

–William Shakespeare (1564 – 1616)

Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking.

–Marcus Aurelius (121 – 180)

Thinking: the talking of the soul with itself.

–Plato (~423 – ~347 BCE)

If everyone is thinking alike, then somebody isn’t thinking.

–George S. Patton (1885 – 1945)

Thinking is the hardest work there is, which is probably the reason why so few engage in it.

–Henry Ford (1863 – 1947)

If you spend too much time thinking about a thing, you’ll never get it done.

–Bruce Lee (1940 – 1973)

The best ideas come as jokes. Make your thinking as funny as possible.

–David Ogilvy (1911 – 1999)

You can’t have a better tomorrow if you are thinking about yesterday all the time.

–Charles F. Kettering (1876 – 1958)

Thinking is easy, acting is difficult, and to put one’s thoughts into action is the most difficult thing in the world.

–Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 – 1832)

Thinking will not overcome fear but action will.

–W. Clement Stone (1902 – 2002)

37 thoughts on “The best ideas come as jokes…”

  2. Nice list of quotes! I have the greatest admiration for Henry Ford – who paid his workers enough they too, could afford to own the car they were building – for his standing in court of law, being fed questions by the defense, when he sued for libel, newsprints that accused him of being ignorant/stupid, lacking in education – his answer? [paraphrased] “I don’t have to know all those things – I surround myself with folks much smarter than I in their expertise – they know and they tell me, so I can focus on what I’m good at”

    Another American titan during what is so often consider the “Robber Baron’ age of America was George Westinghouse – man, did he torque off the real robber barons when he gave his workers 1/2 saturdays off, when most titans of industry required a 6 day work week of long hours (12-18) Why?

    Because in his youth/world – Sunday was for church/rest, and he spent so much of his life wishing, he could have just a few hours of a Saturday – all to himself – and so, once he was in charge and could make it happen for his workers? He did – 😀

    Both stories shared, to me? Are the result of thinking about things – and when able to? To put them into action –

      1. Not really – I just love stories of folks – whether famous or not, that just did for others what they never had done for them, or didn’t forget how their life was before they ‘made’ it – and me? WOW! I so appreciate that you don’t ban me from commenting on your site and that you hear the stories – and my heart – what is, I guess, a deep passion of mine that will never die until I do – sigh – you bless my life, over and over – just by being you! And well – I’m not one to wait for funeral to say so – I’d rather say it right when I have the chance to! Thank you, always, for taking time to read and it seems? You hear my heart’s talk in so many ways when I so often drop the ball in verbal/typing it out ways – 😀

        1. I so appreciate that you don’t ban me from commenting on your site and that you hear the stories…

          Tamrah Jo, why on earth would I ban you from commenting? I don’t even understand why you might expect something like that.

          you bless my life, over and over – just by being you!

          That’s so sweet! Wow… That’s such a humbling comment, T. J…. thank you.

          ❤
          David

          1. The offer to ban me was blunt honesty on my part – because on some topics? I just focus in on the challenges, the solutions, the heartache of those impacted, or feel helpless in face of various situations – but I don’t always say it as well as I could or really – should….

            Also – I learned long ago – not to wait for wakes, funerals or memorial services to let someone know, they made a difference in my life –

            It’s not false flattery, I don’t take it lightly, I just say so when it’s true – and you are free to take it how ever you wish – but your choice of word use of ‘humbling’ – ?

            On the other hand, part of my everyday compass ‘reset’/assessment?

            I’m merely a grain of sand on the beach – and yet, if I disappear the beach is never exactly the same, at the granular level –

            When one understands that? It is both awe-inspiring AND humbling – all at the same time!!! So, um, yeah – exactly! 😀

  12. I *think* I love these❣️ But I believe there is a truth thinking can’t always uncover, but the soul knows on a deeper level. You might *think* something is good, but deep down you feel it’s wrong. So Shakespeare’s quote gives too much power to the mind and not enough to the heart/gut.

      1. No problem! It’s an interesting topic, the mind vs. the heart, and which one steers the other. Some feelings are deceptive, just as some thoughts. It takes wisdom.

Leave a Reply

Please log in using one of these methods to post your comment:

Gravatar
WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Twitter picture

You are commenting using your Twitter account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Cancel

Connecting to %s