Anna Freud, daughter of Sigmund, followed in her father’s footsteps only her focus was children. Her insights, however, apply to people of all ages.

She reminds us to look first to ourselves, instead of others, when the going gets tough, “I was always looking outside myself for strength and confidence but it comes from within. It is there all the time.”

She warns that while dreaming is enticing, it lacks substance and will not sustain us, “In our dreams we can have our eggs cooked exactly how we want them, but we can’t eat them.”

She teaches no matter how well we plan, we shouldn’t ignore the things outside it, “Sometimes the most beautiful thing is precisely the one that comes unexpectedly and unearned.”

She chides us for our outlandish expectations, “If some longing goes unmet, don’t be astonished. We call that Life.”

And, finally, she provides hope, “Creative minds have always been known to survive any kind of bad training.”

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It is always useful to have a pithy way to get a point across, but how many of us can think that fast? So in the interest of making my readers sound both brilliant and cool here are four “pithyisms” to use at your discretion—with attribution, one would hope.

Oscar Wilde said, “Experience is simply the name we give our mistakes.” Try that on your boss the next time you turn left when he says go right.

Have you wondered why VCs and pundits of all stripes keep telling entrepreneurs and managers that attitude is more important than skills? Ralph Marston has the answer, “Excellence is not a skill. It is an attitude.”

It is said that once the genie is out of the bottle he can not be put back; this is especially true of personal growth, or, as Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. said, “A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions.”

Personal growth is a wonderful thing, but it does require taking risks. However, risks can be mitigated, even when following Mark Twain’s recommendation, “A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way.”

And remember, it’s always a good idea to

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These days people are told to ‘build a personal brand’ and that everything they say and do needs to be in sync with their brand. By distilling and incorporating the essence of the following quotes you’ll develop a unique brand that will differentiate you from the pack.

Let’s start with something Cecil Beaton said that offers some great basic guidance, “Be daring, be different, be impractical, be anything that will assert integrity of purpose and imaginative vision against the play-it-safers, the creatures of the commonplace, the slaves of the ordinary.”

Intelligence is something that many people believe sets them apart, but, as Rene Descartes points out, “It is not enough to have a good mind; the main thing is to use it well.”

Sandra Carey reminds us that using it well doesn’t mean only book-learning, “Never mistake knowledge for wisdom. One helps you make a living; the other helps you make a life.”

Lao Tzu took that advice several steps further several centuries before it Carey said it, “Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom. Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power.”

Long before Tony Hsieh married happiness to corporate culture at Zappos, Herman Cain offered up this bit of wisdom, “Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.”

In case you wonder if you really are happy you can use this great yardstick from Andy Rooney, “If you smile when no one else is around, you really mean it.”

And Ralph Waldo Emerson was kind enough to provide a yardstick with which to measure your success through the entire span of your life, “To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children…to leave the world a better place…to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.”

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When writing on a repeat subject, such as New Year’s resolutions, I check my archives in an effort not to repeat myself. I’ve offered advice on why it works better to set goals and another year provided a method guaranteed to keep you from ever breaking a resolution again. Turns out I posted quotes last year and I’m repeating a couple, because they are too good to ignore.

First the repeats.

Whoever came up with this one is a genius. “A New Year’s resolution is something that goes in one year and out the other.”

With his usual wisdom, Mark Twain reminds us that resolutions are necessary to keep the Department of Transportation running smoothly (and in this economy that’s very important). “New Year’s Day – Now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual.”–

I’ve never understood why people would even consider starting their resolutions January first. That’s definitely setting yourself up to fail and Helen Fielding agrees with me, “I do think New Year’s resolutions can’t technically be expected to begin on New Year’s Day, don’t you? Since, because it’s an extension of New Year’s Eve, smokers are already on a smoking roll and cannot be expected to stop abruptly on the stroke of midnight with so much nicotine in the system. Also dieting on New Year’s Day isn’t a good idea as you can’t eat rationally but really need to be free to consume whatever is necessary, moment by moment, in order to ease your hangover. I think it would be much more sensible if resolutions began generally on January the second” Note, the second only works if it’s not a holiday as it was this year.

Food, or more likely food abstinence, plays a role in probably 90% of resolutions, but is it really necessary? Perhaps Jay Leno has a point—or at least a great rationalization—“Now there are more overweight people in America than average-weight people. So overweight people are now average. Which means you’ve met your New Year’s resolution.”

But if you really want to lose weight here’s some popular wisdom with which you can’t go wrong, “People are so worried about what they eat between Christmas and the New Year, but they really should be worried about what they eat between the New Year and Christmas”

I’d like to offer you my New Year’s wishes in the words of Joey Adams, “May all your troubles last as long as your New Year’s resolutions.”

Finally, do read the links in the first paragraph; they’ll help make 2012 a banner year for you!

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As I promised last week, today is a “tour of Mencken’s irreverent view of politics and democracy that will provide great zingers for holiday get-togethers and leave you chuckling.”

Let’s start with democracy, since everyone seems to agree that it’s a good thing. Of course, definitions vary and Mencken offers some great choices in case you haven’t settled on one.

I’ll start with a basic definition and get more sarcastic from there, Democracy is the art and science of running the circus from the monkey cage.

Mencken didn’t think much of “the people” and my guess is no county was excepted from this scathing comment, Democracy is a pathetic belief in the collective wisdom of individual ignorance.

Hand-in-glove with that thought is this one, Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want, and deserve to get it good and hard.

He also said, Democracy is also a form of worship. It is the worship of Jackals by Jackasses. Not only worship, but elect; we jackasses keep electing jackals—party be damned.

Of course, you can’t expect a lot more when Democracy is only a dream: it should be put in the same category as Arcadia, Santa Claus, and Heaven.

Finally, Mencken sums up his attitude towards democracy thusly, I confess I enjoy democracy immensely. It is incomparably idiotic, and hence incomparably amusing.

Now on to the politics and politicians.

Again, we’ll start with a definition, A politician is an animal which can sit on a fence and yet keep both ears to the ground.

He also said, A good politician is quite as unthinkable as an honest burglar. It’s hard to disagree with that comment, too.

I’m sure you’ve noticed that politicians of all stripes say anything to get elected; it’s nothing new, Mencken noticed it, too, If a politician found he had cannibals among his constituents, he would promise them missionaries for dinner.

2012 is a presidential election year and the show has already begun, A national political campaign is better than the best circus ever heard of, with a mass baptism and a couple of hangings thrown in.

Let’s end with one final definition along with the reason for it. Every election is a sort of advance auction sale of stolen goods.

And the reason? Each party steals so many articles of faith from the other, and the candidates spend so much time making each other’s speeches, that by the time election day is past there is nothing much to do save turn the sitting rascals out and let a new gang in.

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I love words; I love putting them together to express my thoughts and I love how others do the same; especially when they do it with the skill and flair of H. L. Mencken. I like Mencken because he is the best type of cynic and also has a wonderful flair for irreverence.

Let’s start with his definition of a cynic, “A cynic is a man who, when he smells flowers, looks around for a coffin.” That’s Mencken, pithy and to the point.

He also offers a wonderful explanation of criticism, one that bosses and parents would do well to consider, “Criticism is prejudice made plausible.”

Mencken said “A society made up of individuals who were all capable of original thought would probably be unendurable.” It makes you wonder what he would think of Twitter and its ilk.

His commentary on business success is certainly proven daily, “Nobody ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American public.”

The next time you hear someone say they’ll “fix it, no problem” you would do well to remember this immutable Menckenism, “There is always an easy solution to every problem – neat, plausible, and wrong.”

Finally, in a salute to himself, Mencken declares, “All men are frauds. The only difference between them is that some admit it. I myself deny it.”

Join me next week for a tour of Mencken’s irreverent view of politics and democracy that will  provide great zingers for holiday get-togethers and leave you chuckling.

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It’s not that I actively dislike the holidays; it’s more a passive thing. More ‘here we go again’ than ‘bah humbug’. But I do early love the word ‘humbug’.

For those of you who don’t know, ‘humbug’ means

1. something intended to delude or deceive.
2. the quality of falseness or deception.
3. a person who is not what he or she claims or pretends to be; impostor.
4. something devoid of sense or meaning; nonsense: a humbug of technical jargon.

It’s an old fashioned word, but the ideas it represents with that in mind, here are some examples of usage and all of

Let’s start with Edmond de Goncourt, who offered this profound insight that’s as true now as it was when he said it more than a century ago, “People don’t like the true and simple; they like fairy tales and humbug.”

Winston Churchill weighs in with a wonderfully irreverent (and accurate) comment on “democratic freedom” that really resonates as the 2012 Presidential race starts up, “I had no idea of the enormous and unquestionably helpful part that humbug plays in the social life of great peoples dwelling in a state of democratic freedom.”

Alfred Bernhard Nobel (as in Nobel Prize) said, “Second to agriculture, humbug is the biggest industry of our age,”—whereas these days humbug is second to none.

And now, I leave you with this provocative tidbit from Norton Juster, “’How can you see something that isn’t there?’ yawned the Humbug, who wasn’t fully awake yet.

‘Sometimes it’s much simpler than seeing things that are,’ he said. ‘For instance, if something is there, you can only see it with your eyes open, but if it isn’t there, you can just as easily see it with your eyes closed.’”

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‘Sustainable’ always finds an audience, especially when you can relate them to unusual topics.

This one is especially useful, because it applies to gardeners, those interested in healthcare and vampires—the liquid inside young coconuts is used as a substitute for blood plasma.

For those who have trouble waking up and mainline coffee in the morning you can suggest this healthy alternative, apples, not caffeine, are more  efficient at waking you up in the morning, but I don’t know why.

In case you end up making conversation with snobs who love showing off their wealth you can mention that they should be careful around the salad dressing, since pearls dissolve in vinegar.

Finally, to lift the mood of the over-fifty remind them that oak trees don’t produce acorns until they are fifty (50) years of age or older and that they are at least as proficient as a tree.

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Why in the world would I choose a poet who’s life barely reached into the Twentieth Century (1850-1919 to provide insight to both workers and mangers? Because real wisdom is ageless, what changes are the words and style used to communicate it.

You’re already familiar with Wilcox through paraphrasing of some of her work; for example, “Laugh and the world laughs with you; Weep, and you weep alone; For the sad old earth must borrow its mirth, But has trouble enough of its own”

Life is full of choices and the way we choose is dictated by our MAP, or as Wilcox said, “’Tis the set of the sail that decides the goal, and not the storm of life”

I’m a big proponent of deep thinking, something that can’t happen when you are wired and connected. Wilcox made this point beautifully in this short rhyme.

“When the great universe was wrought
To might and majesty from naught,
The all creative force was -
THOUGHT.”

Thinking goes hand in hand with learning and then sharing what is learned with others. The problem is that some people want to share first and these words seem written especially for them,

“Live to learn, and learn to live
If you want to give men knowledge
You must get, ere you give.”

Here’s some great advice for managers, “A pat on the back is only a few vertebrae removed from a kick in the pants, but is miles ahead in results.”

Finally, here are six words that can serve as a foundation for both entrepreneurs and companies working to create a culture of innovation, “Change is the watchword of progression”

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After wasting more than an hour looking for interesting Halloween quotes I decided there weren’t any that I didn’t use last year. James Joyce, on the other hand, said many interesting things and some of them are make useful guidelines for anyone working to get ahead.

“A man of genius makes no mistakes; his errors are volitional and are the portals of discovery.” Whether you consider yourself a genius or not, look for opportunities the next time you screw up instead of running for cover.

Joyce understood that everything we do in the present influences who we become, or, in his own words, “I am tomorrow, or some future day, what I establish today. I am today what I established yesterday or some previous day.” He phrased it more simply a different time, “I am who I am because of who I was.”

If you just saw these words today you would probably attribute them to some current entrepreneur or corporate honcho, but they were uttered by Joyce more than 70 years ago, “I want to work with the top people, because only they have the courage and the confidence and the risk-seeking profile that you need.”

Most of us think a bit of immortality would be pretty cool, but Joyce made sure he of his—and it worked. “I’ve put in so many enigmas and puzzles that it will keep the professors busy for centuries arguing over what I meant, and that’s the only way of insuring one’s immortality.”

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