Ralph Waldo Emerson

Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.

The law of nature is: do the thing and you shall have the power; but they who do not the thing, have not the power.

To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.

To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others; to leave the world a little better; whether by a healthy child, a garden patch [...]

What I must do is all that concerns me, not what the people think. This rule, equally arduous in actual and in intellectual life, may serve for the whole distinction between greatness and meanness. It is the harder because you will always find those who think they know what is your duty better than you [...]