Forget past mistakes. Forget failures. Forget everything except what you’re going to do now and do it. Today is your lucky day.
—William C. Durant (1861–1947) American Industrialist
The best fortune that can fall to a man is that which corrects his defects and makes up for his failings.
—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) German Poet
I have learned throughout my life as a composer chiefly through my mistakes and pursuits of false assumptions, not by my exposure to founts of wisdom and knowledge.
—Igor Stravinsky (1882–1971) Russian-born American Composer, Musician
He only is exempt from failures who makes no effort.
—Richard Whately (1787–1863) English Philosopher, Theologian
One cannot too soon forget his errors and misdemeanors; for to dwell upon them is to add to the offense.
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–62) American Philosopher
Forgiveness is a virtue of the learned. To err is human, to forgive divine.
—Subhashita Manjari Sanskrit Anthology of Proverbs
He who has never failed somewhere, that man cannot be great.
—Herman Melville (1819–91) American Novelist, Short Story Writer, Essayist, Poet
A failure establishes only this, that our determination to succeed was not strong enough.
—Christian Nestell Bovee (1820–1904) American Writer, Aphorist
There are some faults so nearly allied to excellence that we can scarce weed out the vice without eradicating the virtue.
—Oliver Goldsmith (1730–74) Irish Novelist, Playwright, Poet
No one is listening until you make a mistake.
—Anonymous
I recall that my workshop leaders were tactful in their ways of acquainting me with my shortcomings as a writer. So much so that I hardly realized they were doing it. I want always to keep that sort of thing in mind when I’m teaching. The way you get better in everything in this life is to make mistakes. Otherwise you’re probably doing it right by accident. But you have to do everything wrong before you can really start with some authority to do it right.
—Tobias Wolff (b.1945) American Novelist, Editor, Journalist, Educator
A mistake is simply another way of doing things.
—Katharine Graham (1917–2001) American Publisher
He who is shipwrecked the second time cannot lay the blame on Neptune.
—English Proverb
A man is fortunate if he encounters living examples of vice, as well as of virtue, to inspire him.
—Brendan Behan (1923–64) Irish Poet, Novelist, Playwright
They say President Wilson has blundered. Perhaps he has, but I notice he usually blunders forward.
—Thomas Edison (1847–1931) American Inventor, Scientist, Entrepreneur
The best brewer sometimes makes bad beer.
—German Proverb
No one is worse, for knowing the worst of themselves.
—Common Proverb
When looking for faults use a mirror, not a telescope
—Unknown
A chief is a man who assumes responsibility. He says, “I was beaten”. He does not say, “My men were beaten”. Thus speaks a real man.
—Antoine de Saint-Exupery (1900–44) French Novelist, Aviator
Experience is the name every one gives to their mistakes.
—Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) Irish Poet, Playwright
It is only an error of judgment to make a mistake, but it argues an infirmity of character to adhere to it when discovered. The Chinese say, “The glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time you fall.”
—Christian Nestell Bovee (1820–1904) American Writer, Aphorist
Make the mistakes of yesterday your lessons for today.
—Unknown
Nobody makes a greater mistake than he who does nothing because he could only do a little.
—Edmund Burke (1729–97) British Philosopher, Statesman
Wink at small faults, for you have great ones yourself.
—Scottish Proverb
To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong.
—Joseph Chilton Pearce (1926–2016) American Author
A benevolent man should allow a few faults in himself, to keep his friends in countenance.
—Benjamin Franklin (1706–90) American Political Leader, Inventor, Diplomat
To err is human also in so far as animals seldom or never err, or at least only the cleverest of them do so.
—Georg Christoph Lichtenberg (1742–99) German Philosopher, Physicist
To lose is to learn.
—Unknown
We learn courageous action by going forward whenever fear urges us back. A little boy was asked how he learned to skate. “By getting up every time I fell down,” he answered.
—David Seabury (1885–1960) American Psychologist
He has not a single redeeming defect.
—Benjamin Franklin (1706–90) American Political Leader, Inventor, Diplomat
Accept that all of us can be hurt, that all of us can — and surely will at times — fail. Other vulnerabilities, like being embarrassed or risking love, can be terrifying, too. I think we should follow a simple rule: if we can take the worst, take the risk.
—Joyce Brothers (1927–2013) American Psychologist, Advice Columnist
To avoid situations in which you might make mistakes may be the biggest mistake of all.
—Peter McWilliams (1949–2000) American Author, Activist
They say men are molded out of faults, and for the most, become much more the better; for being a little bad.
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
If you shut your door to all errors, truth will be shut out.
—Rabindranath Tagore (1861–1941) Bengali Poet, Polymath
The politician who never made a mistake never made a decision.
—John Major (b.1943) British Head of State
Take chances, make mistakes. That’s how you grow. Pain nourishes your courage. You have to fail in order to practice being brave.
—Mary Tyler Moore (b.1936) American Actor, TV Personality
A mistake at least proves that somebody stopped talking long enough to DO something.
—Unknown
The faults of a superior man are like the sun and moon. They have their faults, and everyone sees them; they change and everyone looks up to them.
—Confucius (551–479 BCE) Chinese Philosopher
It is well there is no one without fault; for he would not have a friend in the world. He would seem to belong to a different species.
—William Hazlitt (1778–1830) English Essayist
A man finds he has been wrong at every stage of his career, only to deduce the astonishing conclusion that he is at last entirely right.
—Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–94) Scottish Novelist
If you make a mistake and do not correct it, this is called a mistake.
—Confucius (551–479 BCE) Chinese Philosopher
I made a wrong mistake
—Yogi Berra (1925–2015) American Sportsperson
The probability that we may fall in the struggle ought not to deter us from the support of a cause we believe to be just; it shall not deter me.
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–65) American Head of State
We’re all human and we all goof. Do things that may be wrong, but do something!
—Newt Gingrich (b.1943) American Politician
There is nothing wrong with making mistakes. Just don’t respond with encores.
—Unknown
Let a wrong-doing repeat itself at least three times: the first may be an accident, the second a mistake, but the third is likely to be intentional.
—African Proverb
Error is a supposition that pleasure and pain, that intelligence, substance, life, are existent in matter. Error is neither Mind nor one of Mind’s faculties. Error is the contradiction of Truth. Error is a belief without understanding. Error is unreal because untrue. It is that which stemma to be and is not. If error were true, its truth would be error, and we should have a self-evident absurdity—namely, erroneous truth. Thus we should continue to lose the standard of Truth.
—Mary Baker Eddy (1821–1910) American Christian Science Religious Leader, Humanitarian, Writer
It ain’t no disgrace for a man to fall, but to lie there and grunt is.
—Josh Billings (Henry Wheeler Shaw) (1818–85) American Humorist, Author, Lecturer
Man errs as long as he struggles.
—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) German Poet
After all these years, I am still involved in the process of self-discovery. It’s better to explore life and make mistakes than to play it safe. Mistakes are part of the dues one pays for a full life.
—Sophia Loren (b.1934) Italian Actor