Men are swayed more by fear than by reverence.

No crime is so great as daring to excel.

That's been one of my mantras - focus and simplicity. Simple can be harder than complex: You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it's worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains.

I consider myself as a free spokesman for the people.

The policy of being too cautious is the greatest risk of all.

At the outset, I want to say that the suggestion that the struggle in South Africa is under the influence of foreigners or communists is wholly incorrect. I have done whatever I did because of my experience in South Africa and my own proudly felt African background, and not because of what any outsider might have said.

There are times when a leader must move out ahead of the flock, go off in a new direction, confident that he is leading his people the right way.

The foolish man conceives the idea of 'self.' The wise man sees there is no ground on which to build the idea of 'self;' thus, he has a right conception of the world and well concludes that all compounds amassed by sorrow will be dissolved again, but the truth will remain.

Man's nature is not essentially evil. Brute nature has been known to yield to the influence of love. You must never despair of human nature.

The more you like yourself, the less you are like anyone else, which makes you unique.

Yes, we've still got more work to do. More work to do for every American still in need of a good job or a raise, paid leave or a decent retirement; for every child who needs a sturdier ladder out of poverty or a world-class education; for everyone who has not yet felt the progress of these past seven and a half years.

Our prime purpose in this life is to help others. And if you can't help them, at least don't hurt them.