Self Quotes

I don't recall having any self-awareness about the intricacy of my stories.

- A. E. van Vogt

Real education enhances the dignity of a human being and increases his or her self-respect. If only the real sense of education could be realized by each individual and carried forward in every field of human activity, the world will be so much a better place to live in.

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

Do we not realize that self respect comes with self reliance?

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

Inspiration may be a form of super-consciousness, or perhaps of subconsciousness I wouldn't know. But I am sure it is the antithesis of self-consciousness.

- Aaron Copland

I would be too selfish if I said everyone should see my movies more than once. To say that would mean I'm just marketing my work!

- Abbas Kiarostami

There is a difference between being self-interested and being selfish. I will never be selfish.

- Abbie Hoffman

Self-respect is the fruit of discipline; the sense of dignity grows with the ability to say no to oneself.

- Abraham Joshua Heschel

What a man can be, he must be. This need we call self-actualization.

- Abraham Maslow

To fight against the infidels is Jihad; but to fight against your evil self is greater Jihad.

- Abu Bakr

I think we all carry the seeds of our own destruction. You really have to be aware that just because something is good, it doesn't mean it's not going to trigger a self-destructive impulse.

- Adam Ferrara

If we want people to vote, we need to make it a larger part of their self-image.

- Adam Grant

If you want to be a generous giver, you have to watch out for selfish takers.

- Adam Grant

Takers are self-serving in their interactions. It's all about what can you do for me.

- Adam Grant

Some people are selfish in all of their relationships. Those people are called sociopaths.

- Adam Grant

I'm a self-taught guitarist, but I have a classical music background.

- Adam Jones

I had self-esteem issues into my early 20s.

- Adam Lambert

I have a high self-opinion - I don't need to hide that. I don't need to be self-deprecating.

- Adam Levine

Nowadays, the truth is, I think a lot of the newer generation of action stars usually are pretty self-deprecating and cool. I mean, Dwayne Johnson is a great example.

- Adam McKay

Limit your inputs to only those that support a certain kind of self-destructive behavior, and you can be cheered with enthusiasm as you drive yourself off a cliff.

- Adam-Troy Castro

By creating so many illusory images of physical perfection, whether on store aisles or storefront ads, magazine covers or TV shows, we speak more to the profit margins of companies than the self-esteem of today's girls.

- Adora Svitak

Self-conceit may lead to self destruction.

- Aesop

I find still photographs make me quite self-conscious.

- Aidan Gillen

Belief in oneself is incredibly infectious. It generates momentum, the collective force of which far outweighs any kernel of self-doubt that may creep in.

- Aimee Mullins

Marriage is a mystery, and part of it is just being kind to each other, not being selfish.

- Aisha Tyler

I'm surrounded by geniuses, which is really not good for my own personal self-esteem!

- Aisha Tyler

Demagoguery sells. And therefore radio stations will put it on. But that doesn't mean that you can't do something else and also make it sell. You know, when I look at an Ann Coulter or I look at a Rush or I look at a Sean Hannity, I think to myself, 'What kind of self-image do you have?'

- Al Franken

Sometimes if I tell people, 'I'm afraid that I'm really a fraud,' or 'I have a lot of self-doubt,' they go, 'Oh, no, you're kidding.' I go, 'No, I'm really honest.'

- Al Franken

Good character consists of recognizing the selfishness that inheres in each of us and trying to balance it against the altruism to which we should all aspire. It is a difficult balance to strike, but no definition of goodness can be complete without it.

- Alan Dershowitz

Yes, I'm a reasonably good self-taught historian of the 1930s and '40s. I've never wanted to write about another time or place. I wouldn't know what to say about contemporary society.

- Alan Furst

My great-grandfather was a self-taught man, and his library was extraordinary. I read the lot.

- Alan Garner

When you go back and look at American history, it's not terribly different from Canadian history. If you weren't self-reliant on the prairie, you wouldn't survive.

- Alan Greenspan

I learned to cook in self-defense. My wife doesn't know what a kitchen is. In the first month of our marriage, she broiled lamb chops 26 nights in a row. Then I took over. I used to mind her not caring about food, but no more - as long as I can eat what I want.

- Alan King

Strangers still leave me self-conscious.

- Alan Ladd

The successful entrepreneurs that I see have two characteristics: self-awareness and persistence. They're able to see problems in their companies through their self-awareness and be persistent enough to solve them.

- Alan Schaaf

We want to become the best place on the Internet for self-expression and entertainment. If we have to raise money to achieve that goal and maybe move faster, we'll do it.

- Alan Schaaf

On a selfish basis, I really enjoy sports and activity.

- Alan Thicke

I want to poke holes in the erroneous beliefs about what fame provides. It won't raise your self-esteem, it won't create profound connection, it's not going to heal your childhood traumas, it's only going to amplify them. You're going to be subject to a lot of criticism and praise, both of which are violent in their own ways.

- Alanis Morissette

Fame is hollow. It amplifies what is there. If there is any self-doubt, or hatred, or lack of ability to connect with people, fame will magnify it.

- Alanis Morissette

I didn't have high self-esteem when I was a teen-ager, as I think most teen-agers don't.

- Alanis Morissette

My public caricature - that of a self-confident alpha male - is only partly accurate.

- Alastair Campbell

Self-esteem is the greatest sickness known to man or woman because it's conditional.

- Albert Ellis

The sovereignty of one's self over one's self is called Liberty.

- Albert Pike

Acting can be very selfish and all-consuming.

- Alessandro Nivola

I've always been self-conscious about my personality.

- Alessia Cara

My mom is a self-taught home cook, so books that offer guidelines on how to organize menus are critical to 'cook from the book' people like her.

- Alex Guarnaschelli

I certainly don't feel like I have the perfect body type... It's through your own eyes. And for every female, you're going to see flaws in that; you're going to see flaws regardless. So for me, it's just important to have that confidence and self-esteem no matter what body type you have.

- Alex Morgan

You get to a point where you get tired of being stupid and selfish and not being honest with yourself.

- Alex Rodriguez

Self-reverence, self-knowledge, self-control; these three alone lead one to sovereign power.

- Alfred Lord Tennyson

I would be a billionaire if I was looking to be a selfish boss. That's not me.

- Alfred North Whitehead

We can only take it so far, because man can only take it so far, lower self can only take it so far, and you have to realize that the public is only at a certain place.

- Alice Cooper

I have never kept diaries. I just remember a lot and am more self-centered than most people.

- Alice Munro

I don't honestly have the time or energy to support anybody else's cause but my own, which is self-expression. So I guess, if I had a cause, it would be education.

- Alice Ripley

Demands for equality for women are threats to men's self-esteem and sense of sexual turf.

- Alice S. Rossi

A lot of self-importance goes on in the fashion industry. I'm not like that.

- Alice Temperley

For Astrid, no matter what challenges they go through, they are going to face each other. It's hard for a daughter to accept that her mother is that selfish and that terrible.

- Alison Lohman

I've been on 'Days' since I was 16, and being surrounded by such thin, gorgeous actresses made me so insecure and self-conscious.

- Alison Sweeney

It is the liberal philosophy, not the conservative one, that views humans as selfish automatons.

- Allen West

We live in the Facebook era. I think everyone, not just celebrities, have an unprecedented level of self-awareness, of presenting yourself to the world. The truth is, it starts with how you look, and that goes into how you dress.

- Allison Williams

Understanding money is part of being independent. You can't be self-sufficient if you're relying on someone else.

- Amanda de Cadenet

At age 14, you are just beginning to work out who you think you are, and being famous is a huge distortion of reality, and it's not healthy for a young person to be considered more special than their peers. So, I would say it hindered my self-esteem but in later years gave me a great perspective that I wouldn't have if I hadn't experienced that.

- Amanda de Cadenet

The power that you have as a young woman, unless you have great self-esteem, is largely based on how the rest of the world reacts to you. And so it's kind of a superficial confidence that you have, you know?

- Amanda de Cadenet

I've worked very hard on my self-esteem, and I know my value.

- Amanda de Cadenet

Every woman has, for her own self-esteem, to work or have a major interest.

- Amanda Eliasch

As a dancer, I know couples that have stayed married but separated to dance on different continents. Dance in general, but ballet in particular, is such a finite career. You can't do it later in life, and it's something that I think a dancer has to have some selfishness to fulfill.

- Amanda Schull

I know that some of the spiritual beliefs that I have are that if I come from a place of love, and I try to get out of my ego and my desire to want more and be selfish in any shape or form, then whatever I'm doing is not good.

- Amber Valletta

To me, self-esteem is not self-love. It is self-acknowledgment, as in recognizing and accepting who you are.

- Amity Gaige

Self-esteem comes quietly, like the truth.

- Amity Gaige

The Chinese mom is not the helicopter mom. I would never do their homework for them. It's all about: Take responsibility, don't blame others. Be self-reliant. Never blame the teacher.

- Amy Chua

I think the biggest difference is that I've noticed Western parents seem much more concerned about their children's psyches, their self-esteem, whereas tough immigrant parents assume strength rather than fragility in their children and therefore behave completely differently.

- Amy Chua

I once won a second prize in a history concert. My parents came to the ceremony. Somebody else had won the prize for best all-around student. Afterwards my father said to me, 'Never, ever disgrace me like that again.' When I tell my Western friends, they are aghast. But I adore my father. It didn't knock my self-esteem at all.

- Amy Chua

I do not think there was anything abusive in my house. Yet, I stand by a lot of my critiques of Western parenting. I think there's a lot of questions about how you instill true self-esteem.

- Amy Chua

Real self-esteem has to be earned. I also believe in virtuous circles, like, nothing is fun until you are good at it. It is great if you can instill in children the ability to not give up, to have a work ethic.

- Amy Chua

Both of my girls have very high self-esteem because they were both able to master certain things; I should think that's good for their confidence.

- Amy Chua

I have a combination of self-love and self-loathing, just like most people.

- Amy Landecker

One of my clearest impressions about India as a child was that my parents' stories would have been impossible had they stayed. Of course, such a vision was self-serving, for it made a virtue of our displacement.

- Anand Giridharadas

There is a healthy amount of self-doubt and criticism with most people that make music. You find your areas that are your best. Onstage, I am good. But talking to someone in the grocery store? Forget about it.

- Anderson East

I really think that if there's any one enemy to human creativity, especially creative writing, its self-consciousness. And if you have one eye on the mirror to see how you're doing, you're not doing it as well as you can. Don't think about publishing, don't think about editors, don't think about marketplace.

- Andre Dubus III

Self-pity comes so naturally to all of us. The most solid happiness can be shaken by the compassion of a fool.

- Andre Maurois

All honor's wounds are self-inflicted.

- Andrew Carnegie

There is a long list of psychology research demonstrating that appearances matter more than most us would care to admit. As shallow as it may be, better-looking people have been shown in various studies to have higher self-esteem and more charisma, are considered more trustworthy and are better negotiators.

- Andrew Ross Sorkin

Britain's withdrawal from the E.U., like Donald Trump's proposal to build a wall between the U.S. and Mexico, is based on a false belief in self-reliance.

- Andrew Solomon

But successful investors tend to be not too self-destructive. They tend to be patient, they tend not to follow the crowd, and they tend not to be too guilty about winning.

- Andrew Tobias

Tell young girls they can be anything, including entrepreneurs and self-made billionaires. Encourage your friends/daughters/female students/yourself to take a shot.

- Andrew Yang

Tennis is an individual sport, and I am quite a self-conscious person.

- Andy Murray

The selfish thing about an athlete is you always look at the side of things where you say I could've done that better.

- Andy Roddick

Rejection is a big part of show business. It can be tough on anyone who doesn't have fairly good self-esteem. Especially kids, as they try to discover who they are.

- Angela Cartwright

Boredom is a very self-conscious emotion by definition. Interest is not. So you can actually be completely absorbed in something and, at certain points in your development, not even realize that you're into it.

- Angela Duckworth

Parenthood is such a lesson in self-sacrifice.

- Angela Kinsey

Oh, God, I struggle with low self-esteem all the time! I think everyone does. I have so much wrong with me, it's unbelievable!

- Angelina Jolie

I want my girls to be strong and self-sufficient.

- Angie Harmon

Allowing myself to love God completely has obviously shed light on my self-love because he loves me more than I could ever love myself.

- Angie Stone

A huge part of my identity is being a woman, and that's really important for me, and that's a big part of my self-expression, so I think it's really interesting sort of exploring what it means if someone doesn't have that.

- Angourie Rice

When I was very young, I used to share much of what I wrote with my family, but as I got older and more self-conscious, it became a much more private process.

- Anita Desai

Catwoman isn't a 'joiner.' She's a solo operator. She isn't naturally heroic; she's fairly selfish.

- Ann Nocenti

I didn't want to go down any scarier path of low self-esteem than I was already on the track for. So during my second year of college I was like, 'I'm over it! I have to go see what this other thing called life is about!'

- Anna Chlumsky

To me, fashion is ceaselessly fascinating because it is an expression of self.

- Anna Wintour

I would not send a poor girl into the world, ignorant of the snares that beset her path; nor would I watch and guard her, till, deprived of self-respect and self-reliance, she lost the power or the will to watch and guard herself.

- Anne Bronte

When we're dealing with the people in our family - no matter how annoying or gross they may be, no matter how self-inflicted their suffering may appear, no matter how afflicted they are with ignorance, prejudice or nose hairs - we give from the deepest parts of ourselves.

- Anne Lamott

Self-pity is never useful. It tends to distort like a fun-house mirror.

- Anne Roiphe

The false pride of perennial celebration, of wearing flag lapel pins while betraying the values that the flag stands for, is like the self-esteem curriculum for toddlers, where everything is praised and no achievement ultimately has meaning.

- Anne-Marie Slaughter

I was a wife and mother, blameless in moral life, with a deep sense of duty and a proud self-respect; it was while I was this that doubt struck me, and while I was in the guarded circle of the home, with no dream of outside work or outside liberty, that I lost all faith in Christianity.

- Annie Besant

Socialism is the ideal state, but it can never be achieved while man is so selfish.

- Annie Besant

I think my daughters have a pretty healthy self-awareness but I can't speak on their behalf.

- Annie Lennox

Having children, they're not your property. They need to figure out their own views. I think my daughters have a pretty healthy self-awareness, but I can't speak on their behalf.

- Annie Lennox

Being a vegan is a first-world phenomenon, completely self-indulgent.

- Anthony Bourdain

Social media websites are no longer performing an envisaged function of creating a positive communication link among friends, family and professionals. It is a veritable battleground, where insults fly from the human quiver, damaging lives, destroying self-esteem and a person's sense of self-worth.

- Anthony Carmona

We have to replace our focus on personalities with a focus on ideas so that the opinionated and self-serving pronouncements and forms of cyber-bullying are replaced by thoughtful dialogue and open-minded conversation.

- Anthony Carmona

Attacking the indecency of life in much of the Southern Hemisphere is no longer a matter of grace, of charity, of patronizing kindness. It is a matter of intense self-interest.

- Anthony Lewis

Self-love seems so often unrequited.

- Anthony Powell

It is self-evident that at sixty-five a man has done all that he is fit to do.

- Anthony Trollope

I have no right, by anything I do or say, to demean a human being in his own eyes. What matters is not what I think of him; it is what he thinks of himself. To undermine a man's self-respect is a sin.

- Antoine de Saint-Exupery

I know what I'm good at, and if I'm asked to do something I'm not - like hip-hop dancing - I get self-conscious.

- Anton du Beke

I don't think a player like Messi is a selfish player.

- Antonio Conte

Consciousness, much like our feelings, is based on a representation of the body and how it changes when reacting to certain stimuli. Self-image would be unthinkable without this representation.

- Antonio Damasio

When self-delusion and self-flattery enter the mind-set of a product team and the metrics they judge themselves by, like the first plague rat coming onto a ship, the end is practically preordained.

- Antonio Garcia Martinez

As a writer, you live in permanent self-doubt; you're on permanent trial.

- Antonio Munoz Molina

Sticking to a diet required me to have a permanently low self-esteem. But happily, I developed other skills beyond a fluctuating weight, eventually building up a different source of self-worth.

- Arabella Weir

Regardless of what kind of film, the number one rule of comedy is to never take yourself too seriously and then the next rule is you can't have any self-consciousness, otherwise it kills the laugh, and that will never change.

- Ari Graynor

There's a certain truism that you can't be self-conscious in comedy.

- Ari Graynor

I was not a popular little girl. I played Robinson Crusoe in a small wooden fort that my parents built for me in the back yard. In the fort, I was neither ostracized nor ill at ease - I was self-reliant, brave, ingeniously surviving, if lost.

- Ariel Levy

It's been said to me that I'm self-destructive because I'll walk away from things that are good.

- Ariel Rechtshaid

Legitimate steps of self-defence which Israel takes in its war against Palestinian terror - actions which any sovereign state is obligated to undertake to ensure the security of its citizens - are presented by those who hate Israel as aggressive, Nazi-like steps.

- Ariel Sharon

I have not taken my good looks seriously from the beginning. When I would be teased by my friends about my looks, I would just make a self-deprecating remark and let it pass.

- Arjun Rampal

I don't possess a lot of self-confidence. I'm an actor so I simply act confident every time I hit the stage.

- Arsenio Hall

God's designs may be frequent justification for our actions, but it is we, the self-made men, who take the credit.

- Arthur Erickson

It has always appeared to me, that there is so much to be done in this world, that all self-inflicted suffering which cannot be turned to good account for others, is a loss - a loss, if you may so express it, to the spiritual world.

- Arthur Helps

I've gotten very good at detaching whenever I have to go away for three months, which I realize is hard on friends and kind of selfish.

- Ashley Greene

Fashion is ultimately a form of self-expression. That's why I love trying out new things.

- Ashley Madekwe

People need to work on what self-love is and redefining self-love... it comes from within: who you are and how you carry yourself in this world.

- Ashley Nell Tipton

Creativity is very selfish. Scandalously so, in fact.

- Athol Fugard

I think most people act in their self-interest.

- Aubrey McClendon

There was a much more self-destructive nature in 'Appetite.' It was a going-for-it-at-all-cost thing that worked then.

- Axl Rose

I confront the European elite's self-image as tolerant 'while under their noses women are living like slaves.

- Ayaan Hirsi Ali

I started to understand that for me, art was no longer about self-expression but about creative engagement with the world. I started to respond in an excited way to making work inside an industry and not feeling the constraints of audience expectation as some kind of thing that I should avoid.

- Ayad Akhtar

The customer is a remarkably selfish person: He takes the relationship to where the execution is in his favor.

- Azim Premji

I've got a transcendental way of thinking about things. I've got a galactic self.

- B.o.B

I am a self-taught water skier and wind surfer.

- Baba Kalyani

Resentment is weak and lowers your self-esteem.

- Barbara Sher

I am simple, complex, generous, selfish, unattractive, beautiful, lazy, and driven.

- Barbra Streisand

Everyone in society should be a role model, not only for their own self-respect, but for respect from others.

- Barry Bonds

It is not the money but the self-respect and wanting to create good music.

- Barry Gibb

The greatest pride, or the greatest despondency, is the greatest ignorance of one's self.

- Baruch Spinoza

I feel empathy for people who are trapped in a prison of self-consciousness in an uncomfortable way. We can be free, but we're so held back. So perhaps that's why I feel a duty to make my work. I feel liberated when I'm doing it, and I want other people to feel liberated through it.

- Bat for Lashes

Is self-interest a bad thing? We want our leaders to be pure and good, but at the same time we want them to be effective, and to be effective you often have to be ruthless and not bound by ideology or the same morals that we pretend to hold ourselves to.

- Beau Willimon

I think Black people need to take self-esteem seriously.

- bell hooks

If we give our children sound self-love, they will be able to deal with whatever life puts before them.

- bell hooks

I'm really self-conscious if I go to trainers, so I just do stuff on my own. I go on the treadmill or do yoga and Pilates if I can.

- Bella Hadid

I know very well that to admit to loving Bright Eyes is to admit to having an overgrown brain region devoted to self-pity, sentimentality, regret, and a handful of other not very appealing emotional states.

- Ben Dolnick

Here's the thing about Jews in Hollywood. Not to stereotype, but the Jews I know here are the funniest, most self-deprecating people I know. And it's rare to find a Jew that is actually offended by comedy about them.

- Ben Feldman

I think if you spend much time dwelling on influence you can get self-conscious about every line you write. That's a great way to freeze up.

- Ben Fountain

I'm quite sensitive to people noticing me. There are times when I'm relaxed, then others when it does make me self-conscious.

- Benedict Cumberbatch

One of the biggest things we have to be able to do is to handle conflict and handle it correctly. We're able to look at our biases, look at our frustration, look at our sin in this area, our pride and our selfishness. It allows us to move forward.

- Benjamin Watson

I have learned to become not an M.D. but a 'C.D.' for the wounded people I meet. Yes, a 'Chosen Dad' who may not like their behavior but loves and reparents them and helps them to heal their lives and find self-worth and self-esteem and save their lives.

- Bernie Siegel

I was always self-conscious about the fact that I didn't have as much comedy experience as other people at 'SNL,' and I kept thinking they were going to realize they'd made a mistake by hiring me.

- Bill Hader

Self-government is an experiment. It could still fail.

- Bill Kristol

The more self-centered and egotistical a guy is, the better ballplayer he's going to be.

- Bill Lee

War, except in self-defense, is a failure of moral imagination.

- Bill Moyers

A lot of people just ask me about how I can do small budgets and big budgets, but many actors do both. I think the more self-destructive impulse I have is doing so many different characters.

- Bill Pullman

When you lose your hair, it has an impact on confidence and your overall self-esteem whether it affects your career or your love life.

- Bill Rancic

I'm super self-critical, which I think is good, because then I get exactly what I want. I'm critical of other people, too - I try not to be, though.

- Billie Eilish

You can't be a great comedian without having self-awareness about others or your own faults. You need a strong sense of self and view on the world. That's what great actors have, too.

- Billy Eichner

Self-centered indulgence, pride and a lack of shame over sin are now emblems of the American lifestyle.

- Billy Graham

The self is hateful.

- Blaise Pascal

I always find out after the fact that the books I've been writing were actually some sort of therapy, some sort of, you know, self-examination that I had to write the book in order to complete.

- Blake Crouch

I think that Mama June has the greatest self-esteem on the planet. I always say to people, 'If I had her self-worth, I would probably be ruling the world.'

- Blake McIver Ewing

Learning to not be selfish is what has changed in me the most since being married.

- Blake Shelton

Set me a task in which I can put something of my very self, and it is a task no longer; it is joy; it is art.

- Bliss Carman

Jobs are what give people a sense of fulfillment and self-reliance.

- Bob McDonnell

I never in a million years thought I would be the person to go to for self-esteem; that was not my intent. But I happen to love beauty, I love the way people look, and I love making women look beautiful.

- Bobbi Brown

You're either sexy or you're not. I'm very self-conscious about my physiognomy.

- Bobby Darin

One thing I'd tell an up-and-coming singer is to never rely on other people for anything. The more self-sufficient you can be, the better off you'll be.

- Bonnie McKee

I had a lot of self-confidence.

- Bowie Kuhn

I look back now, and most of the drama in my life was self-inflicted. I don't need to make up so much drama now.

- Boy George

My appetite for self-destruction and misery is greatly diminished. I'm not interested in being unhappy.

- Boy George

When I was younger, I was chubby. It gave me a terrible sense of self-image, and I guess I carry that around with me still.

- Brandon Flowers

The funny thing about the people I don't like - they're very self-centered.

- Brendon Urie

It's almost like a self-fulfilling prophecy: the great comedy that comes from great pain.

- Brian Dunkleman

I start with something that makes me angry or confused, and then I write about it. It's a form of self-help.

- Brian K. Vaughan

So, then you find yourself in a situation where you have to do things because they're on offer to you, because you don't have much self-respect left. You just can't say no, even to something that you've never done before. You just can't help yourself.

- Brian Molko

The person we believe ourselves to be will always act in a manner consistent with our self-image.

- Brian Tracy

My brother Carl taught me how to play bass. I'm a self-taught keyboard player, though - I figured out our harmonies at the piano.

- Brian Wilson

When I was little, I was very loud and loved performing in front of people. I was fearless. When I hit puberty, I became very shy and self-conscious. I still get nervous sometimes before shooting and definitely before big auditions.

- Brianna Brown

It can get really messy inside my head, and it's usually just because everybody can get really self-centered at some point. And so what usually keeps me from quitting is that my reasons for quitting are just lame. I wouldn't want anybody else to talk to myself the way that I talk to myself.

- Brie Larson

I think the stigma surrounding mental illness and also the stigma surrounding self-esteem issues or insecurities or just even feeling different is something that doesn't really get enough attention. Everybody struggles with feeling alone or that they are going through something they don't quite understand.

- Brittany Snow

Humour has always been a self-defence mechanism for me.

- Brooke Shields

James Thurber was an inspiration because his drawings were so primitive. I am self-taught - I didn't go to art school - so I thought when I started doing them, 'If James Thurber can be a cartoonist, I can,' because his stuff is very raw.

- Bruce Eric Kaplan

I can't get enough of self-help books of all kinds.

- Bruce Eric Kaplan

Punishment may make us obey the orders we are given, but at best it will only teach an obedience to authority, not a self-control which enhances our self-respect.

- Bruno Bettelheim

I think in your home, you should only use colors that you look good in. It's a little self-serving but think if it as you're on a stage. Not with any pressure, but you want to showcase yourself.

- Bryan Batt

Actors are inherently self-centered.

- Bryan Cranston

Self-made men often worship their creator.

- Bryant H. McGill

Ours was a loving, nurturing household, but, at the same time, my parents' goal was to make all their children self-sufficient.

- Bryce Dallas Howard

The only discipline that lasts is self-discipline.

- Bum Phillips

We have shown that solar-electrified villages can be technically and financially self-sufficient.

- Bunker Roy

When Marcus Garvey spoke about self-reliance, he wasn't only talking about people of colour. It's like self-reliance in general, for anyone. Just keep moving and moving within the right direction, and everything will be all right.

- Burning Spear

Fans give me yellow things, and I think now what's really fun is, when anyone sees yellow now, they'll think of me. Now it's kind of like this self-fulfilling prophecy: Yellow things come to me.

- Cam

I'm definitely a vintage collector. I have a wardrobe of core basics that I like to spice up with different colors, new accessories, and I love to try on new things to invite something different. I find, with every new stage of my life, my self-image shifts with new duties and responsibilities, and so does my fashion style.

- Camila Alves

Uncritical American boosterism - automatic endorsement of every government action - is myopic and self-defeating.

- Camille Paglia

Men tend to be selfish.

- Caprice Bourret

I always love to push myself, because I am not so self-confident.

- Carine Roitfeld

Isolation is a self-defeating dream.

- Carlos Salinas de Gortari

I know I'm not a selfish player. People around me know I'm not a selfish player. I do everything I can to make people around me understand I'm not a selfish player.

- Carmelo Anthony

Cottage cheese is one of our culture's most visible symbols of self-denial; marketed honestly, it would appear in dairy cases with warning labels: this substance is self-punitive; ingest with caution.

- Caroline Knapp

Loving our hair and accepting others' is a simple but powerful way to encourage self-love and bring people together while celebrating our uniqueness.

- Carolyn Aronson

Hair is a beautiful form of self-expression.

- Carolyn Aronson

Prior to being bullied, I was a very footloose sixth-grader. You know, I was quirky, I was creative - I really felt good in my own body. And when I was bullied in seventh grade, my self-esteem tanked.

- Carolyn Mackler

When I had my daughter, my priorities shifted. Being in the world of fashion you have to be very self-absorbed and surrounded by people that are self-absorbed.

- Carolyn Murphy

Being in the world of fashion you have to be very self-absorbed, and you are surrounded by people who are very self-absorbed.

- Carolyn Murphy

I wasn't a ballet baby. My first dance class was in an outdoor pavilion when I was three. It was called 'creative movement.' The teacher gave us chiffon scarves in beautiful colors. She turned on some music and said, 'Now go dance.' So for me, dance has always been about self-expression.

- Carrie Ann Inaba

The Northwest, to make a generalization, is a fairly sensitive populace. Slightly self-conscious and very self-reflexive.

- Carrie Brownstein

Mistakes are a drag, because you get in the area of regret and self-pity.

- Carrie Fisher

Everyone has different issues, and I think for a great deal of women, those issues are self-esteem. And for me, I really wanted to understand it and get through it because I didn't want to be an actress afraid of getting older. I refuse to live that way.

- Carrie-Anne Moss

Modelling asks you to be conscious of your outer self, but with acting, you have to let that go.

- Carrie-Anne Moss

Empowering girls is extremely important to me because, growing up, I needed those empowering women to show me the way. When my parents divorced when I was 11, my mom was a force to be reckoned with. She showed me how to be self-sufficient and independent.

- Cassadee Pope

I understand how important hair is to a woman's self-esteem and confidence.

- Cat Deeley

After my second-to-last record, 'The Greatest', I had gone on tour for a while, and I didn't play an instrument for about five years. And I got kind of - it's not self-esteem or whatever, or anger toward myself - but disappointed in myself that I hadn't been challenging myself to learn musically.

- Cat Power

You know, you do have a self-awareness as an actor.

- Cate Blanchett

Inhibition is something I notice in hamstrung actors all the time. They can be wonderful up to a point and then become very self-conscious.

- Cate Blanchett

Writers seldom choose as friends those self-contained characters who are never in trouble, never unhappy or ill, never make mistakes and always count their change when it is handed to them.

- Catherine Drinker Bowen

The soul, who is lifted by a very great and yearning desire for the honor of God and the salvation of souls, begins by exercising herself, for a certain space of time, in the ordinary virtues, remaining in the cell of self-knowledge, in order to know better the goodness of God towards her.

- Catherine of Siena

The poison of selfishness destroys the world.

- Catherine of Siena

Writing is like shouting into the world. So when someone shouts back, it's a really big deal. To have people who read hundreds and hundreds of books a year say, 'Hey, we thought this was really great,' that's a huge self-esteem boost.

- Celeste Ng

The lawgiver ought to be gentle, lenient and humane. The lawgiver ought to be a skilled architect who raises his building on the foundation of self-love, and the interest of all ought to be the product of the interests of each.

- Cesare Beccaria

If you wish to travel far and fast, travel light. Take off all your envies, jealousies, unforgiveness, selfishness and fears.

- Cesare Pavese

As artists, it's tempting to forget the audience's needs. Too often, we're self-centered and self-indulgent in what we share with the world. We're prideful, only showing what we deem as perfect or what we think our peers will respect.

- Charity Sunshine Tillemann-Dick

Cherish believes that God made her with a special purpose. Like any teenage girl, she has her insecurities, but for the most part she has a real healthy self-esteem.

- Charlene Tilton

It's morally wrong, and economically self-defeating, that so much wealth flows upwards towards the richest of Americans, while millions work full time but still can't provide for their families.

- Charles B. Rangel

Nature... is nothing but the inner voice of self-interest.

- Charles Baudelaire

Posthumous charities are the very essence of selfishness when bequeathed by those who, even alive, would part with nothing.

- Charles Caleb Colton

You have to be selfish to be an actor.

- Charles Dance

A day wasted on others is not wasted on one's self.

- Charles Dickens

There is more to be pondered in the grain and texture of life than traditional fiction allows. The work of essayists is vital precisely because it permits and encourages self-knowledge in a way that is less indirect than fiction, more open and speculative.

- Charles J. Shields

Integrity is the first step to true greatness. Men love to praise, but are slow to practice it. To maintain it in high places costs self-denial; in all places it is liable to opposition, but its end is glorious, and the universe will yet do it homage.

- Charles Simmons

Humility is to make a right estimate of one's self.

- Charles Spurgeon

I'm very selfish in that I make music for myself, not for other people; I kind of only think about other people afterwards when it's out.

- Charli XCX

I am incredibly self-deprecating. It stems from self-doubt.

- Charlie Cox

I do have, at different times, a certain kind of self-consciousness in the world, an insecurity.

- Charlie Kaufman

The creative project of self-government - hard and frustrating but necessary - is to produce that political commonwealth that changes over time, that can change sometimes by the minute, if circumstances intervene.

- Charlie Pierce

Tiger had the advantage of high school, college, and a father who knew golf. I was self-taught. Blacks really won't play golf in great numbers until some of these basketball and football stars buy some golf courses where blacks can play.

- Charlie Sifford

People read stuff over your shoulder when you're in public, and when you write the kind of stuff I do, and people read it over your shoulder, it makes you a little self-conscious.

- Chelsea Cain

I've written books for awhile, but always on a pretty small scale and always pretty self-indulgent. I chose projects that I thought would be really fun to work on and found friends to work on them with me, and it was all about the process.

- Chelsea Cain

My standup is observational, but it's self-observational, and it's self-deprecating, definitely.

- Chelsea Handler

In ancient China, self-government was highly developed both in community life and in personal life. The custom of mutual protection and assistance was widespread. The organization and regulations of local self-government were clearly defined and strictly applied. Individual self-control was even more strongly emphasized.

- Chiang Kai-shek

If we are to give the people of China complete self-government we must first solve the problem of livelihood for all, and give real freedom to the races within China. If the foundations of democracy are secure, then true equality can be achieved.

- Chiang Kai-shek

I think there's something quite interesting about the almost tragic quality of a lot of overwrought prose, because it has a much more self-conscious awareness of its own failure to touch the real.

- China Mieville

I loved reading when I was young. I was just completely taken by stories. And I remember taking that into English literature at school and taking that into Shakespeare and finding that opened up a whole world of self-expression to me that I didn't have access to previously.

- Chiwetel Ejiofor

We found evolution will punish you if you're selfish and mean. For a short time and against a specific set of opponents, some selfish organisms may come out ahead. But selfishness isn't evolutionarily sustainable.

- Chris Adami

In America, life is introverted, self-absorbed - and so is their music.

- Chris Barber

Being famous before you've formed your personality, before you have that self-esteem, is dangerous.

- Chris Evert

Russians aren't perfect. Their politics are messed up, and they keep going through self-defeating economic cycles. But I have a lot of respect for Russia, and a lot of love for Russians.

- Chris Hadfield

I find actors a little bit too self-conscious.

- Chris Lilley

A guy who's actually self destructive is quite fun to play.

- Chris O'Dowd

To be a teacher you have to have a very giving, selfless personality. I don't think I'm that selfless and giving.

- Chris Parnell

As an actor, it easy to be so self-critical, saying to yourself, 'Am I good enough? Am I good looking enough? Am I smart enough?'

- Chris Pine

If I get back into theater, I think I'd want to do a play. I enjoy singing, but it beats me up a bit. I get super paranoid and self-conscious about my voice.

- Chris Wood

I never feel like I'm looking to get away from my own self. Not as much as I'm trying to get inside the mind of somebody else.

- Chris Wood

I once met a man who was a billionaire, and I said to him: 'Are you a self-made man?' - and he turned around and said: 'No man is self-made;' and certainly, if you want to make films or get into television or even theatre, the amount of help that you need, the amount of people who need to give you a helping hand is extraordinary.

- Christian McKay

Our first and last love is self-love.

- Christian Nestell Bovee

Anytime someone talks about your figure constantly, you get nervous; you get really self-conscious.

- Christina Hendricks

I like a man with a nice, self-deprecating sense of humour.

- Christina Hendricks

Folk musicians have a lot of the same self-importance, but they're way more cruel and jealous than rock musicians - I know this for a fact because I used to be a folk musician.

- Christopher Guest

I think I write in a fairly self-confident manner.

- Christopher Hitchens

I don't have any terrific self-esteem issues but I do sometimes realise I've been too lucky and that I'm over-praised. It makes me nervous. I have this sense of being overrated.

- Christopher Hitchens

If I spent my time worrying about what other people would think of my work, I would be too self-conscious to write.

- Christopher Paolini

My weight fluctuates, and I haven't always been skinny. I became curvier in my twenties, but I never felt self-conscious about it; going through different periods is all part of being a woman.

- Christy Turlington

The way I try to live is 'Be here now.' Be your best self now.

- Christy Turlington

I like to work. The self-esteem and satisfaction that I get from working makes me a better person, which makes me a better mom. I feel lucky because I have the luxury of working only one or two days a week.

- Cindy Crawford

I like to work. The self-esteem and satisfaction that I get from working makes me a better person, which makes me a better mom.

- Cindy Crawford

College was just so essential for my sense of self and my development.

- Claire Danes

The only thing I find interesting is self-interest.

- Claire Denis

The young Dickens was so alive, so self-confident, so funny.

- Claire Tomalin

We can all be self-destructive. I make terrible choices all the time. It's uncomfortable to admit that you did a thing that was selfish and that you knew would hurt someone else.

- Clare-Hope Ashitey

Sometimes you just do things and let your natural self become a part of what you're doing.

- Clarence Clemons

I hear people say it affected your self-esteem to be segregated. It never affected mine.

- Clarence Thomas

I'm a lot more self-confident than I used to be. To some extent I owe that to my children and my husband.

- Claudia Schiffer

I've never hidden the fact that I used to be shy, even when I was 30. However, I might have been self-conscious on the inside, but I was never inhibited about my body.

- Claudia Schiffer

Most of the time, as an artist, I can be self-indulgent, fulfilling my own impulses, embracing imagery that contains poetry on my own terms, without immediate regard to an audience or the particular placement of my finished work.

- Clifford Ross

Respect your efforts, respect yourself. Self-respect leads to self-discipline. When you have both firmly under your belt, that's real power.

- Clint Eastwood

I do believe in self-help.

- Clint Eastwood

If someone like my father chooses to criticise Israeli policies, it's not because he is a self-hating Jew, but because he is not prepared to live in a state of self-denial.

- Clive Sinclair

I remember taking a self-defence class when I was 16, and of course I don't remember any of it.

- Cobie Smulders

I think Jughead's a selfish character. I think he really is.

- Cole Sprouse

Children need to get a high-quality education, avoid violence and the criminal-justice system, and gain jobs. But they deserve more. We want them to learn not only reading and math but fairness, caring, self-respect, family commitment, and civic duty.

- Colin Powell

The thing that drives me crazy is when comics say 'I have low self-esteem.' No you don't. You're standing on stage asking people to pay. You don't play an instrument. You want people to pay to hear what's in your mind. You don't have low self-esteem. You might have other problems.

- Colin Quinn

Given the genocidal belligerence of Iranian threats against Israel, it is hard to take issue with Israel's right to preemptive self-defense.

- Conrad Black

Self-realization is great.

- Corey Feldman

In rock stardom there's an absolute economic upside to self-destruction.

- Courtney Love

I think comedy comes more from a low sense of self-esteem, and I certainly have that.

- Craig Ferguson

You can't compare an apple to an orange. It will cause a lot of self-esteem issues.

- Craig Sheffer

Focus on making you the best you you can be as an actor and follow your own path. You can't compare an apple to an orange. It will cause a lot of self-esteem issues.

- Craig Sheffer

Traditional autobiography has generally had a poor press. The novelist Daphne du Maurier condemned all examples of this literary form as self-indulgent. Others have quipped that autobiography reveals nothing bad about its writer except his memory.

- Craig Venter

No one can teach writing, but classes may stimulate the urge to write. If you are born a writer, you will inevitably and helplessly write. A born writer has self-knowledge. Read, read, read. And if you are a fiction writer, don't confine yourself to reading fiction. Every writer is first a wide reader.

- Cynthia Ozick

I think writing is a part-time career, because otherwise you get a little stale, maybe even self-indulgent, when you have to fill the hours with sentences. I don't think, if I wrote 12 hours a day, my work would be much better.

- Cynthia Voigt

Better to write for yourself and have no public, than to write for the public and have no self.

- Cyril Connolly

When we meet real tragedy in life, we can react in two ways - either by losing hope and falling into self-destructive habits, or by using the challenge to find our inner strength. Thanks to the teachings of Buddha, I have been able to take this second way.

- Dalai Lama

It is the highest form of self-respect to admit our errors and mistakes and make amends for them. To make a mistake is only an error in judgment, but to adhere to it when it is discovered shows infirmity of character.

- Dale Turner

Kids are naturally gifted at art from a very young age. The problem is when they get older and become self-conscious. The process should always be fun, though.

- Damien Hirst

I am absolutely and inherently self-destructive in that I am always making sure I'm doing what I want to do.

- Dan Harmon

People think it's suspect and self-indulgent to make art, and I don't think that's true. Some people think you should be busy making something that you can sell in the marketplace, and if nobody wants to buy it, it must be crap. And that's not true.

- Dana Spiotta

I grew up very self-loathing. I was a phobic. I had anxiety. I had panic attacks.

- Dane Cook

Find your self-respect now. Don't dumb yourselves down. Think of yourself as capable and worthy of finding a guy who is going to respect you, too. It's so important, I mean, and the confidence you get from feeling smart and tackling something like mathematics, which is a challenge, right? Math is hard.

- Danica McKellar

I wasn't in school often enough to really belong to a 'clique,' but my friends all studied hard and got pretty good grades. They were good people with self-respect. I still like to be friends with people I admire something about; I really believe that we become like the people we're surrounded by, so I choose my friends carefully!

- Danica McKellar

I noticed there were so many people, especially women, who would come up to me having recognized me from TV and say, 'I heard you were a math person, why math? Oh my gosh, I could never do math!' I could just see their self-esteem crumbling; I thought that was silly, so I wanted to make math more friendly and accessible.

- Danica McKellar

When you know that you can overcome challenges, you do gain that self-respect, and then you won't end up in a situation that you regret later on.

- Danica McKellar

Poverty breeds lack of self-reliance.

- Daniel De Leon

If your emotional abilities aren't in hand, if you don't have self-awareness, if you are not able to manage your distressing emotions, if you can't have empathy and have effective relationships, then no matter how smart you are, you are not going to get very far.

- Daniel Goleman

I'm not a great believer in self-help.

- Daniel Kahneman

Our brains are very, very good at self-delusion. What happens is, it releases the stress hormone cortisol in the brain, which leads to foggy thinking, so you're not even able to judge well whether you're working well or not.

- Daniel Levitin

I try hard to always question myself and wonder, 'What could I have done better? What did I do wrong?' The culture at our company is to be self-critical, but you have to balance that as a leader with praise for your team.

- Daniel Lubetzky

What I learned is that acting is to a large extent about trying to stave off self-doubt long enough to be natural and real onstage.

- Daniel Radcliffe

That's what fame does to you. You acquire another self.

- Daniel Radcliffe

I think if I were to express my wish, it would be that we are more regionally self-reliant. And I don't mean people being survivalists, I mean regionally self-reliant. So that you have these individual cells. The idea of having different solutions in different areas, so that we have a very robust, durable civilization.

- Daniel Suarez

I have to take care of myself. It's about self-preservation.

- Danielle de Niese

It's supposed to be fun. You should come to work every day and not have insecurities and not be self-conscious; just be your wonderful, perfect self.

- Danielle Fishel

All autobiography is self-indulgent.

- Daphne du Maurier

I have a four-and-a-half-, nearly five-octave range. I probably should have had extra lessons as a child, as I am certain my family heard my potential, but I didn't. I was in the choir as a schoolgirl, but really, it is all self-taught.

- Daphne Guinness

As long as everything is happy at home, I can be totally selfish at work.

- Darcey Bussell

I'm really wary of self-help books.

- Darin Strauss

When I was in high school, I looked for the black presence in a British historical tradition - before too much slavery and empire - that would not cost me my self-respect.

- Darryl Pinckney

I find drug use disrespectful, self-destructive, and weak. I want no part of it.

- Davey Havok

We've got to get back to old-fashioned politics that's in touch with the people we seek to represent and to avoid self-inflicted wounds.

- David Blunkett

Suppose we were able to share meanings freely without a compulsive urge to impose our view or conform to those of others and without distortion and self-deception. Would this not constitute a real revolution in culture.

- David Bohm

I bless God for this retirement: I never was more thankful for any thing than I have been of late for the necessity I am under of self-denial in many respects.

- David Brainerd

Why would we want to do an experimental album? That's just selfish.

- David Bryan

Taken as a whole, Europe's share of world output is projected to fall by almost a third in the next two decades. This is the competitiveness challenge - and much of our weakness in meeting it is self-inflicted. Complex rules restricting our labour markets are not some naturally occurring phenomenon.

- David Cameron

I read in one fan magazine that I was very self-centered. And I am.

- David Cassidy

I think for anyone who follows the 'artistic life,' a certain amount of selfishness and self-involvement is part of the package. You're probably already disregarding a certain material life you could have.

- David Chase

Negative thinking patterns can be immensely deceptive and persuasive, and change is rarely easy. But with patience and persistence, I believe that nearly all individuals suffering from depression can improve and experience a sense of joy and self-esteem once again.

- David D. Burns

A poor self-image is the magnifying glass that can transform a trivial mistake or an imperfection into an overwhelming symbol of personal defeat.

- David D. Burns

Depression can seem worse than terminal cancer, because most cancer patients feel loved and they have hope and self-esteem.

- David D. Burns

I'm trying to protect what I advertise. That's my stance on any kind of self-expression.

- David Duchovny

Trump is somebody who sees the media as basically his main constituency. So much of his self-worth and his image and his view of what the presidency should be about is the media and how he is reflected in the media.

- David Fahrenthold

Even cynical, selfish people will realize, one way or the other, that it's not in their self-interest to act in self-destructive ways.

- David Grinspoon

When you realize that life isn't fair, you don't act out, you don't get overly wasted, you don't get self-indulgent. You just move forward.

- David Hasselhoff

I would never complain about 'One Day' taking off, but it made me painfully self-conscious for a long time.

- David Nicholls

If you feel like the beginning of your history is rooted in slavery, that really, I think, messes with your sense of self, your self-esteem, and your self-worth.

- David Oyelowo

I'm just a totally selfish worker bee creating my little mini projects.

- David Shields

I've never disliked myself, and my weight has had nothing to do with my self-esteem.

- Dawn French

Self-awareness is the ability to take an honest look at your life without any attachment to it being right or wrong, good or bad.

- Debbie Ford

So many self-help ideas are like meringue - you take a big bite, and there's nothing there.

- Deborah Norville

If you have a good self-esteem, you can be generous, you can give back and you can be productive in the world.

- Deborra-Lee Furness

So many comics have such low self-esteem.

- Debra Wilson

Part of Obama's persona is self-reliance. He's calm; he's cool; he's self-possessed. In many ways, he has tried to define himself in opposition to Clinton's sometimes needy, often undisciplined, emotionalism.

- Dee Dee Myers

People need to know that they have all the tools within themselves. Self-awareness, which means awareness of their body, awareness of their mental space, awareness of their relationships - not only with each other, but with life and the ecosystem.

- Deepak Chopra

Self-awareness is not just relaxation and not just meditation. It must combine relaxation with activity and dynamism. Technology can aid that.

- Deepak Chopra

Self-awareness is value-free. It isn't scary. It doesn't imply that you will subject yourself to needless pain.

- Deepak Chopra

I dislike the word 'self-help.' Self-awareness, yes, but not self-help.

- Deepak Chopra

Self-expression should not be a challenge that demands extraordinary talent but should be a right accessible to all.

- Deeyah Khan

I refuse to be crude and selfish in any way.

- DeForest Kelley

Dumbing down takes many forms: art that is good for you, museums that flatter you, universities that increase your self-esteem. Culture, after all, is really about you.

- Denis Dutton

I'm still pretty self-centered, greedy and angry.

- Denis Leary

Relentless, repetitive self talk is what changes our self-image.

- Denis Waitley

To establish true self-esteem we must concentrate on our successes and forget about the failures and the negatives in our lives.

- Denis Waitley

To deny that human beings are filled with anti-social passions betrays a denial of reality and a lack of self-awareness. One has to be taught nonsense for a great many formative years to believe it.

- Dennis Prager

Universal education is not only a moral imperative but an economic necessity, to pave the way toward making many more nations self-sufficient and self-sustaining.

- Desmond Tutu

Tabloid photos capture people at their most self-conscious and disoriented; in real life, Paris Hilton is like an elegant paper crane.

- Diablo Cody

For me, writing essays, prose and fiction is a great way to be self-indulgent.

- Diablo Cody

Self-respect is a commodity worth cleaving to.

- Diane Lane

Living according to the basic gospel principles will bring power, strength, and spiritual self-reliance into the lives of all Latter-day Saints.

- Dieter F. Uchtdorf

The global 'currency wars' are likely here to stay due to the fine line between legitimate monetary balancing and sometimes self-serving trade manipulation. But these artificial mechanisms lack tangible or lasting value.

- Dinesh Paliwal

Experts say that if children can't read by the end of the fifth grade, they lose self-confidence and self-esteem, making them more likely to enter the juvenile justice system.

- Dirk Kempthorne

I love Priyanka Chopra mainly because she is a self-made woman.

- Disha Patani

Since I'm a highly self-critical person, I try to become better every day. I don't see the point of competing with anyone.

- Disha Patani

I am very selfish when it comes to work, and I only care about work.

- Disha Patani

I believe that the dissolution of a marriage comes about by the breaking down of self-esteem.

- Dixie Carter

I struggled with self-esteem issues as a young girl, and it was not until my gymnastics career was completed in 2000 that I realized my accomplishments would not have been possible without my type of body, and I finally started to appreciate and celebrate myself.

- Dominique Dawes

In the vanity of self-consciousness one feels at a long remove above the ordinary love and trustfulness of a simple and pure heart.

- Donald G. Mitchell