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Generally then if you would make anything a habit, do it.
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“Generally then if you would make anything a habit, do it.”

Epictetus

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Source
Discourses of Epictetus
Date
c. 125 CE
English wording
George Long — Translator · from Ancient Greek
Meaning

Meaning of “Generally then if you would make anything a…”

Repeated behavior trains the corresponding habit, so change depends on practicing the desired action rather than merely endorsing it in theory.

Source context

Where does it come from?

Discourses of Epictetus, Book II, Chapter XVIII, “How we should struggle against appearances,” George Long translation; 1877 George Bell & Sons witness on Wikisource, cross-checked against Project Gutenberg #10661. This collection lightly normalizes Long’s “any thing” to “anything”; this longer record contains the shorter retained habit excerpt represented by a separate legacy quote URL.

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CalmConsistencyDiscipline Quotes About Habits, Practice & ConsistencyGrowthHabitsInspirational Quotes About Hope, Courage & PossibilityMotivation For LifeMotivational Quotes for Action, Effort & PersistencePatiencePeacePersonal GrowthProductivityResponsibilitySelf ImprovementSelf-Control Quotes About Restraint & JudgmentShortStoicStrengthSuccessAction
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Source identified
If you would make anything a habit, do it.
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“If you would make anything a habit, do it.”

Epictetus · Discourses of Epictetus · c. 125
Meaning & context

Habit formation is reduced to repeated action: the behavior itself is what trains the pattern.

Source details

Discourses of Epictetus, Book II, Chapter XVIII, “How we should struggle against appearances,” George Long translation; 1877 George Bell & Sons witness on Wikisource, cross-checked against Project Gutenberg #10661. This short catalog record is an excerpt of Long’s longer clause “Generally then if you would make any thing a habit, do it”; this collection lightly normalizes “any thing” to “anything.”

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Source identified
Get into the habit of being orderly and neat.
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“Get into the habit of being orderly and neat.”

Booker T. Washington · Character Building · 1902
Meaning & context

Order is treated as trainable behavior that reduces avoidable friction and supports reliability in work, study, and shared environments.

Source details

Character Building, “Some Great Little Things,” Project Gutenberg #60484. Washington tells students to make order and neatness habitual in crowded rooms, immediately before his advice to work and close doors quietly.

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Never leave that till tomorrow, which you can do to-day.
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“Never leave that till tomorrow, which you can do to-day.”

Benjamin Franklin · The Way to Wealth · 1758
Voice: Authorial persona / framed maxim · Poor Richard maxim, repeated through Father Abraham
Meaning & context

The maxim turns prompt action into a habit: work that can reasonably be completed now should not be needlessly transferred to an uncertain tomorrow.

Source details

The Way to Wealth; a Poor Richard maxim on delay and useful employment of time.

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