To this military attitude of the soul we give the name of Heroism… It is a self-trust which slights the restraints of prudence, in the plenitude of its energy and power to repair the harms it may suffer. The hero is a mind of such balance that no disturbances can shake his will…
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
Be careful. Journalism is more addictive than crack cocaine. Your life can get out of balance.
—Dan Rather (b.1931) American Newscaster, Author
There’s no secret to balance. You just have to feel the waves.
—Frank Herbert (1920–86) American Science Fiction Writer
All the art of living lies in a fine mingling of letting go and holding on.
—Havelock Ellis (1859–1939) British Sexologist, Physician, Social Reformer
Just as light brightens darkness, discovering inner fulfillment can eliminate any disorder or discomfort. This is truly the key to creating balance and harmony in everything you do.
—Deepak Chopra (b.1946) Indian-born American Physician, Public Speaker, Writer
A novel is balanced between a few true impressions and a multitude of false ones that make up most of what we call life.
—Saul Bellow (1915–2005) Canadian-American Novelist
People with great gifts are easy to find, but symmetrical and balanced ones never.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
The word “happiness” would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness.
—Carl Gustav Jung (1875–1961) Swiss Psychologist, Psychiatrist, Philosopher
Almost every wise saying has an opposite one, no less wise, to balance it.
—George Santayana (1863–1952) Spanish-American Poet, Philosopher
Next to love, balance is the most important thing.
—John Wooden (1910–2010) American Sportsperson
Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance, order, rhythm and harmony.
—Thomas Merton (1915–68) American Trappist Monk
Only in silence the word,
only in dark the light,
only in dying life:
bright the hawk’s flight
on the empty sky.
—Ursula K. Le Guin (b.1929) American Science Fiction and Fantasy Writer
You might as well fall flat on your face as lean over too far backward.
—James Thurber
A thing moderately good is not so good as it ought to be. Moderation in temper is always a virtue; but moderation in principle is always a vice.
—Thomas Paine (1737–1809) American Nationalist, Author, Pamphleteer, Radical, Inventor
Words and pictures are yin and yang. Married, they produce a progeny more interesting than either parent.
—Theodor Seuss Geisel (‘Dr. Seuss’) (1904–91) American Children’s Books Writer, Writer, Cartoonist, Animator
Life is like riding a bicycle. You don’t fall off unless you stop pedaling.
—Claude Pepper (1900–89) American Politician
Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance and order and rhythm and harmony.
—Thomas Merton (1915–68) American Trappist Monk
The best and safest thing is to keep a balance in your life, acknowledge the great powers around us and in us. If you can do that, and live that way, you are really a wise man.
—Euripides (480–406 BCE) Ancient Greek Dramatist
For everything you have missed, you have gained something else; and for everything you gain, you lose something else.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
The soul would have no rainbow had the eyes no tears.
—John Vance Cheney (1848–1922) American Poet, Essayist, Librarian
Be aware of wonder. Live a balanced life—learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some.
—Robert Fulghum (b.1937) American Unitarian Universalist Author, Essayist, Clergyman
Remember that poise and power are inseparably associated. The calm and balanced mind is the strong and great mind; the hurried and agitated mind is the weak one.
—Wallace Wattles (1860–1911) American New Thought Author
We may pass violets looking for roses. We may pass contentment looking for victory.
—Bert Williams (1876–1922) American Entertainer, Actor
What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.
—Henry Stanley Haskins
Man maintains his balance, poise, and sense of security only as he is moving forward.
—Maxwell Maltz (1899–1975) American Surgeon, Motivational Writer
The key to keeping your balance is knowing when you’ve lost it.
—Unknown
I always try to balance the light with the heavy—a few tears of human spirit in with the sequins and the fringes.
—Bette Midler (b.1945) American Actress, Singer
If you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain.
—Dolly Parton (b.1946) American Musician, Actress
A note of music gains significance from the silence on either side.
—Anne Morrow Lindbergh (1906–2001) American Aviator, Author
Poor people choose now. Rich people choose balance.
—T. Harv Eker (b.1954) American Motivational Speaker, Lecturer, Author