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Alexander Graham Bell

Perseverance must have some practical end, or it does not avail the man possessing it.

Perseverance must have some practical end, or it does not avail the man possessing it. A person without a practical end in view becomes a crank or an idiot. Such persons fill our asylums.

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Alexander Graham Bell

When one door closes another door opens; but we so often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door, that we do not see the ones which open for us.

When one door closes another door opens; but we so often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door, that we do not see the ones which open for us.

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Alexander Graham Bell

Mr. Watson, come here, I want you.

Mr. Watson, come here, I want you.

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Alexander Graham Bell

a man is what he makes of himself

A man, as a general rule, owes very little to what he is born with — a man is what he makes of himself.

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Alexander Graham Bell

Before anything else, preparation is the key to success.

Before anything else, preparation is the key to success.

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Alexander Graham Bell

Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work at hand.

Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work at hand. The sun’s rays do not burn until brought to a focus.

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Alexander Graham Bell

Leave the beaten track behind occasionally and dive into the woods.

Don’t keep forever on the public road. Leave the beaten track behind occasionally and dive into the woods. You will be certain to find something you have never seen before, and something worth thinking about to occupy your mind. All really big discoveries are the result of thought.

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Alexander Graham Bell

That intellectuality is more vigorous that has attained its strength gradually.

The most successful men in the end are those whose success is the result of steady accretion. That intellectuality is more vigorous that has attained its strength gradually. It is the man who carefully advances step by step, with his mind becoming wider and wider — and progressively better able to grasp any theme or situation — persevering in what he knows to be practical, and concentrating his thought upon it, who is bound to succeed in the greatest degree.

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Alexander Graham Bell

The nation that secures control of the air will ultimately control the world.

The nation that secures control of the air will ultimately control the world.

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Alexander Graham Bell

a second sight which enables him to see right through ordinary problems

I had made up my mind to find that for which I was searching even if it required the remainder of my life. After innumerable failures I finally uncovered the principle for which I was searching, and I was astounded at its simplicity. I was still more astounded to discover the principle I had revealed not only beneficial in the construction of a mechanical hearing aid but it served as well as means of sending the sound of the voice over a wire. Another discovery which came out of my investigation was the fact that when a man gives his order to produce a definite result and stands by that order it seems to have the effect of giving him what might be termed a second sight which enables him to see right through ordinary problems. What this power is I cannot say; all I know is that it exists and it becomes available only when a man is in that state of mind in which he knows exactly what he wants and is fully determined not to quit until he finds it.