The will is commendable though the ability may be wanting.
—Ovid (Publius Ovidius Naso) (c.43 BCE–c.18 CE) Roman Poet
When a man’s willing and eager the god’s join in.
—Aeschylus (525–456 BCE) Greek Playwright
The will of man is his happiness.
—Friedrich Schiller (1759–1805) German Poet, Dramatist
To deny the freedom of the will is to make morality impossible.
—James Anthony Froude (1818–94) British Historian, Novelist, Biographer, Editor
Our bodies are our gardens—our wills are our gardeners.
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
All things must; man is the only creature that wills.
—Friedrich Schiller (1759–1805) German Poet, Dramatist
God is not willing to do everything, and thus take away our free will and that share of glory which belongs to us.
—Niccolo Machiavelli (1469–1527) Florentine Political Philosopher
What you have to do and the way you have to do it is incredibly simple. Whether you are willing to do it, that’s another matter.
—Peter Drucker (1909–2005) Austrian-born Management Consultant
Will minus intellect constitutes vulgarity.
—Arthur Schopenhauer (1788–1860) German Philosopher
A man can do all things if he but wills them.
—Leon Battista Alberti (1404–72) Italian Architect, Humanist, Painter, Art Critic
He has not learned the first lesson of life who does not every day surmount a fear.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
If we cannot do what we will, we must will what we can.
—Yiddish Proverb
Happiness is secured through virtue; it is a good attained by man’s own will.
—Thomas Aquinas (1225–74) Italian Catholic Priest, Philosopher, Theologian
You have a very powerful mind that can make anything happen as long as you keep yourself centered.
—Wayne Dyer (1940–2015) American Self-Help Author
Who wills the end, wills the means.
—Common Proverb
Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.
—Mohandas K. Gandhi (1869–1948) Indian Hindu Political leader
Will it, and set to work briskly.
—Friedrich Schiller (1759–1805) German Poet, Dramatist
The time is always right to do what’s right.
—Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929–68) American Civil Rights Leader, Clergyman
Those that are firm in their will mold the world to themselves.
—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) German Poet
When one is willing and eager, the Gods join in.
—Aeschylus (525–456 BCE) Greek Playwright
It is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.
—Douglas MacArthur (1880–1964) American Military Leader
Will localizes us; thought universalizes us.
—Henri Frederic Amiel (1821–81) Swiss Moral Philosopher, Poet, Critic
A person who is wise does nothing against their will, nothing with sighing or under coercion.
—Cicero (106BCE–43BCE) Roman Philosopher, Orator, Politician, Lawyer
Where there’s a will, there’s a way.
—English Proverb
Your own mind is a sacred enclosure into which nothing harmful can enter except by your permission.
—Arnold Bennett (1867–1931) British Novelist, Playwright, Critic
When the will is ready the feet are light.
—Common Proverb
The spirit, the will to win, and the will to excel are the things that endure. These qualities are so much more important than the events that occur.
—Vince Lombardi (1913–70) American Football Coach
Above all, we must realize that no arsenal, or no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women. It is a weapon our adversaries in today’s world do not have.
—Ronald Reagan (1911–2004) American Head of State
Nothing can withstand the power of the human will if it is willing to stake its very existence to the extent of its purpose.
—Benjamin Franklin (1706–90) American Political Leader, Inventor, Diplomat
The will is deaf and hears no heedful friends.
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
Will and intellect are one and the same.
—Baruch Spinoza (1632–77) Dutch Philosopher, Theologian
Where the willingness is great, the difficulties cannot be great.
—Niccolo Machiavelli (1469–1527) Florentine Political Philosopher
Man has will, but woman has her way.
—Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. (1809–94) American Physician, Essayist
In oratory the will must predominate.
—David Hare (b.1947) English Dramatist, Director, Film-Maker
The one who wills is the one who can.
—Common Proverb
My desire is for wisdom, not for the exercise of the will. The will is the strong blind man who carries on his shoulders the lame man who can see.
—Arthur Schopenhauer (1788–1860) German Philosopher
Take a chance! All life is a chance. The man who goes the furthest is generally the one who is willing to do and dare. The “sure thing” boat never gets far from shore.
—Dale Carnegie (1888–1955) American Self-Help Author
A man convinced against his will is of the same opinion still.
—German Proverb
Life is like a game of cards. The hand that is dealt you represents determinism; the way you play it is free will.
—Jawaharlal Nehru (1889–1964) Indian Head of State
To live by one man’s will becomes the cause of all misery.
—Richard Hooker (1554–1600) English Anglican Theologian, Political Theorist
The education of the will is the object of our existence.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
The world is full of willing people, some willing to work, the rest willing to let them.
—Robert Frost (1874–1963) American Poet
Will springs from the two elements of moral sense and self-interest.
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–65) American Head of State
Self-will is so ardent and active, that it will break a world to pieces, to make a stool to sit on.
—Richard Cecil
Great souls have wills; feeble ones have only wishes.
—Chinese Proverb
People do not lack strength; they lack will.
—Victor Hugo (1802–85) French Novelist
Will cannot be quenched against its will.
—Dante Alighieri (1265–1321) Italian Poet, Philosopher
Wars may be fought with weapons, but they are won by men. It is the spirit of men who follow and of the man who leads that gains the victory.
—George S. Patton (1885–1945) American Military Leader
Nothing is easy to the unwilling.
—Thomas Fuller (1608–61) English Cleric, Historian
No action will be considered blameless, unless the will was so, for by the will the act was dictated.
—Seneca the Younger (Lucius Annaeus Seneca) (c.4 BCE–65 CE) Roman Stoic Philosopher, Statesman, Tragedian