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“The art of life is more like the wrestler’s art than the dancer’s.”
Life requires readiness for unexpected pressure, closer to maintaining balance in a contest than performing a fully choreographed sequence.
Source note: Meditations, Book VII, section 61, George Long translation; the full sentence emphasizes readiness for sudden and unexpected onsets.
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“That you must master the secret for yourselves lay implicit in our bargain, and you were never promised that a writer's training would be easy.”
Learning to write is presented as demanding practice rather than a shortcut: difficulty belongs to the training and does not by itself signal failure.
Source note: On the Art of Writing, Lecture XII, “On Style,” Project Gutenberg #17470; excerpted from Quiller-Couch’s reminder that students must master craft for themselves.
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“Slow and steady wins the race.”
The moral values sustained progress over bursts of speed that are not matched by attention or follow-through.
Source note: Traditional English moral associated with the fable; wording is later than the ancient Greek tradition.
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“Little strokes fell great oaks.”
Small repeated efforts can accomplish work that seems too large for a single burst of effort, making consistency itself a practical form of strength.
Source note: Poor Richard’s Almanack; a compact maxim about cumulative effort.
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“Let us not be weary in well doing.”
Courage can look like continuing useful work after enthusiasm fades, especially when results are delayed rather than immediately visible.
Source note: Galatians 6:9 in the King James Version; opening clause of the verse about perseverance.
Source identified
“Diligence is the mother of good luck.”
Persistent effort improves the odds of useful results because steady work creates more opportunities for progress than waiting for favorable circumstances.
Source note: Poor Richard’s Almanack; the maxim appears in Franklin’s collected Poor Richard material.