"Regret for wasted time is more wasted time. Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely. If we take care of the moments, the years will take care of themselves. What may be done at any time will be done at no time. Half our life is spent trying to find something to do with the time we have rushed through life trying to save. I don't think of the past. The only thing that matters is the everlasting present. The farther behind I leave the past, the closer I am to forging my own character. We can draw lessons from the past, but we cannot live in it."

"Create a definite plan for carrying out your desire and begin at once, whether you ready or not, to put this plan into action. The best way to predict the future is to invent it. The empires of the future are the empires of the mind. He who every morning plans the transaction of the day and follows out that plan, carries a thread that will guide him through the maze of the most busy life. But where no plan is laid, where the disposal of time is surrendered merely to the chance of incidence, chaos will soon reign. Plans are only good intentions unless they immediately degenerate into hard work. Bite off more than you can chew, then chew it. Plan more than you can do, then do it."

"A goal without a plan is just a wish. The person who makes a success of living is the one who see his goal steadily and aims for it unswervingly. That is dedication. The big secret in life is that there is no big secret. Whatever your goal is, you can get there if you're willing to work. A successful individual typically sets his next goal somewhat but not too much above his last achievement. In this way he steadily raises his level of aspiration. Energy is the essence of life. Every day you decide how you're going to use it by knowing what you want and what it takes to reach that goal, and by maintaining focus. Do not turn back when you are just at the goal."

"The thing always happens that you really believe in; and the belief in a thing makes it happen. Remember that what you believe will depend very much on what you are. They can conquer who believe they can. To accomplish great things, we must dream as well as act. You see things; and you say, 'Why?' But I dream things that never were; and I say, "Why not?" I've come to believe that each of us has a personal calling that's as unique as a fingerprint - and that the best way to succeed is to discover what you love and then find a way to offer it to others in the form of service, working hard, and also allowing the energy of the universe to lead you. The key to realizing a dream is to focus not on success but significance - and then even the small steps and little victories along your path will take on greater meaning. There is nothing like dream to create the future. Utopia to-day, but flesh and blood tomorrow."

"Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any one thing. There is only one success - to be able to spend your life in your own way. Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it. Like anyone else, there are days I feel beautiful and days I don't, and when I don't, I do something about it. They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself. We did not change as we grew older; we just became more clearly ourselves. Don't reserve your best behavior for special occasions. You can't have two sets of manners, two social codes - one for those you admire and want to impress, another for those whom you consider unimportant. You must be the same to all people. Politeness and consideration for others is like investing pennies and getting dollars back. One of the greatest victories you can gain over someone is to beat him at politeness. The more things a person is ashamed of, the more respectable he is. Associate with well-mannered persons and your manners will improve. Run around with decent folks and your own decent instincts will be strengthened. The person who has confidence in himself gains the confidence of others."

"A single day is enough to make us a little larger. This time, like all times, is a very good one, if we but know what to do with it. Time is the coin of your life. It is the only coin you have, and only you can determine how it will be spent. Be careful in case you let other people spend it for you. Time is the most valuable thing a person can spend."

By Lama El-Sharief ([link])