If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as a Michaelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, 'Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.
Interpretation
One should take pride in their work, regardless of its nature or status.
This quote by Martin Luther King Jr. emphasizes the importance of excellence and dedication in every task, urging individuals to perform their duties with the same passion and commitment as renowned artists and creators. It suggests that no job is unworthy if done well and with pride, thereby contributing to a greater sense of purpose and achievement.
In practice
In a graduation speech to inspire students to take pride in any job they choose.
This business of burning human beings with napalm, of filling our nation's homes with orphans and widows, of injecting poisonous drugs of hate into veins of peoples normally humane, of sending men home from dark and bloody battlefields physically handicapped and psychologically deranged, cannot be reconciled with wisdom, justice and love.
Music is the best consolation for a despaired man
We must meet the forces of hate with the power of love.
We may have all come on different ships, but we're in the same boat now.
Israel... is one of the great outpost of democracy in the world
One of the greatest casualties of the war in Vietnam is the Great Society... shot down on the battlefield of Vietnam.
Above all, we want Millennials to realize that they can have an impact on the world and that, in the course of empowering others, they can also empower themselves.
Though we may have desires or bold goals, for whatever reason, most of us don't think we can achieve something beyond what we're qualified to achieve. Why, I ask, do we let reality interfere with our dreams?
I never set limits or created mental barriers. You may have read that I imagined my biceps as big as mountain peaks when I did my curling exercises. This visualization process was essential if I was to gain the kind of mass and size I needed to win the mr Olympia contest against monsters like Sergio Olivia and Lou ferrigno.
You have 15-20 years of work for that one throw, that one moment. And I was like, 'Okay, Lord, this is it - you told me I had the victory. So this is the time to show me'. And I'm going to give it all I have because this is my last throw in the Olympics.
Attitude is an important part of the foundation upon which we build a productive life. A good attitude produces good results, a fair attitude poor results, a poor attitude poor results. We each shape our own life, and the shape of it is determined largely by our attitude.
The great secret is a controlled imagination and a well-sustained attention, firmly and repeatedly focused on the object to be accomplished.
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