You don't set out to build a wall. You don't say, "I'm going to build the biggest, baddest, greatest wall that's ever been built." You don't start there. You say, "I'm going to lay this brick as perfectly as a brick can be laid. There will not be one brick on the fact of the Earth that's going to be laid better than this brick that I'm going to lay in this next 10 minutes." And you do that every single day. And soon you have a wall.
Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving.
The most successful animal in the animal kingdom is the lion living in the cage of a zoo. He gets his every meal, guaranteed and on time. He has no natural enemies. Even diseases and harsh climates are not a concern. Eat. Sleep. Die. If lions in the zoo could speak, they'd tell you "I don't want this to be it".
Well, I must endure the presence of two or three caterpillars if I wish to become acquainted with the butterflies. It seems that they are very beautiful.
We do not expect to cease learning while we live on earth; and when we pass through the veil, we expect still to continue to learn...[W]e are not capacitated to receive all knowledge at once. We must therefore receive a little here and a little there.
We are not here in this life just to waste time, grow old and die. God wants us to grow and achieve our potential.
If nothing else, we are committed to failing in a new way.
People are mistaken when they think that technology just automatically improves. It does not automatically improve. It only improves if a lot of people work very hard to make it better, and actually it will, I think, by itself degrade, actually. You look at great civilizations like Ancient Egypt, and they were able to make the pyramids, and they forgot how to do that.
Rather than waiting for the ideal conditions to appear or using less than ideal conditions as an excuse, I would suggest you ask yourself, "How can I move along the spectrum, even a step or two, toward improved conditions?"
He who is content with what has been done is an obstacle in the path of progress.
For, although a country may stand still, history never stands still. Thus, if we do not soon begin to move forward again, we will inevitably be left behind. And I know that Americans today are tired of standing still — and that we do not intend to be left behind.
When I do the best I can---when I am accomplishing the greatest good, then the most evils are got up against me.
Sister Jones: “I’m curious to know if you might have a question that you would like to ask President Nelson. You’re sitting here with the prophet. Is there anything that you’ve always wanted to ask a prophet? Yes, Pearl.” Pearl: “Is it hard to be a prophet? Are you, like, really busy?” President Nelson: “Of course it’s hard. Everything to do with becoming more like the Savior is difficult. For example, when God wanted to give the Ten Commandments to Moses, where did He tell Moses to go? Up on top of a mountain, on the top of Mount Sinai. So Moses had to walk all the way up to the top of that mountain to get the Ten Commandments. Now, Heavenly Father could have said, ‘Moses, you start there, and I’ll start here, and I’ll meet you halfway.’ No, the Lord loves effort, because effort brings rewards that can’t come without it. For example, did you ever take piano lessons?” Children: “Yes.” Pearl: “I take violin.” President Nelson: “And do you practice?” Children: “Yes.” President Nelson: “What happens if you don’t practice?” Pearl: “You forget.” President Nelson: “Yes, you don’t progress, do you? So the answer is yes, Pearl. It takes effort, a lot of hard work, a lot of study, and there’s never an end. That’s good! That’s good, because we’re always progressing. Even in the next life we’re making progress.” President Nelson’s response to these precious children extends to each one of us. The Lord loves effort, and effort brings rewards. We keep practicing. We are always progressing as long as we are striving to follow the Lord.5 He doesn’t expect perfection today. We keep climbing our personal Mount Sinai. As in times past, our journey does indeed take effort, hard work, and study, but our commitment to progress brings eternal rewards.6
We may enjoy a few do-nothing days, but there are no do-nothing seasons.
Though His plans are known to Him, there is no premature exposure of the Lord's plans. This could bring unnecessary persecution upon an unready Lord's people. Further, a premature showing of His power and strength in support of His Saints could cut short the trial of our faith.
There is a difference between doing what needs to be done and doing everything, and the person who knows how to see what needs to be done most is often the most productive in the end. This doesn’t mean living in panic, chaos or stress. It doesn’t even mean constantly living in an urgent mindset. It means acknowledging what or who needs your attention next. That’s all.
Maybe the question isn’t how much should be on our plate but how many plates we should actually have. Depending on how well we have mastered the art of spinning plates will likely determine how many plates we can have. Practicing at prioritizing and taking deliberate action creates increased capacity.
And no matter how serious an environmental problem the automobile poses in today's big city, the horse was dirtier, smelled worse, killed and maimed more people, and congested the streets just as much.
Life is growth. You grow or you die.
Work with great speed. Have your energies alert, up and active. Finish as quickly as you can. There is no virtue in delaying.
The human family has not yet come out of the woods. We were more barbarian, we are still barbarians. Sometimes in the past we shot ahead, in certain ways, ahead of where we are now. We gave flashes of what is possible in man. We have yet as a body to come up to the art of living.
The temple isn't supposed to be easy to understand. It is a step-by-step ascent toward God--and there's nothing simplistic about that.
If we brush other people aside in order to see a task done more quickly and effectively, the task may get done all right, but without the growth and development in followers that is so important.
A person should set his goals as early as he can and devote all his energy and talent to getting there. With enough effort, he may achieve it. Or he may find something that is even more rewarding. But in the end, no matter what the outcome, he will know he has been alive.
How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.
“Be the kind of person who can be relied on to gets things done. To exceed the average you must do what the average individual will not. Build your faith, seek the impossible, have a passion for excellence, be much better than average and keep trying harder, smarter and be more efficient each day.”
Were there none who were discontented with what they have, the world would never reach anything better.
If I have seen farther than others it is because I have stood on the shoulders of giants.
The middle of every successful project looks like a disaster.
You don't set out to build a wall. You don't say, "I'm going to build the biggest, baddest, greatest wall that's ever been built." You don't start there. You say, "I'm going to lay this brick as perfectly as a brick can be laid. There will not be one brick on the fact of the Earth that's going to be laid better than this brick that I'm going to lay in this next 10 minutes." And you do that every single day. And soon you have a wall.
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