The Quotation IndexThe trusted reference for quotations and the sources behind them
Tag Tag Integrity
The reward of a thing well done, is to have done it.
Ralph Waldo Emerson New England Reformers · 1844

Quotes

“A man does what he must—in spite of personal consequences, in spite of obstacles and dangers and pressures—and that is the basis of all human morality.”

John F. Kennedy · Profiles in Courage, 1956 · Primary source

“People think that a liar gains a victory over his victim. What I’ve learned is that a lie is an act of self-abdication, because one surrenders one’s reality to the person to whom one lies, making that person one’s master, condemning oneself from then on to faking the sort of reality that person’s view requires to be faked.”

Ayn Rand · Atlas Shrugged, 1957 · Primary source

“A good example is the best sermon.”

Benjamin Franklin · Poor Richard’s Almanack, 1732-1758 · Primary source

“Bad gains are truly losses.”

Benjamin Franklin · Poor Richard’s Almanack, 1732-1758 · Primary source

“Do not do that which you would not have known.”

Benjamin Franklin · Poor Richard’s Almanack, 1732-1758 · Primary source

“Sell not virtue to purchase wealth, nor liberty to purchase power.”

Benjamin Franklin · Poor Richard’s Almanack, 1732-1758 · Primary source

“There is neither honor nor gain got in dealing with a villian.”

Benjamin Franklin · Poor Richard’s Almanack, 1732-1758 · Primary source

“Tricks and treachery are the practice of fools, that have not wit enough to be honest.”

Benjamin Franklin · Poor Richard’s Almanack, 1732-1758 · Primary source

“Well done is better than well said.”

Benjamin Franklin · Poor Richard’s Almanack, 1732-1758 · Primary source

“Character is higher than intellect.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson · The American Scholar, 1837 · Primary source

“Nothing can bring you peace but yourself. Nothing can bring you peace but the triumph of principles.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson · Self-Reliance, 1841 · Primary source

“Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson · Self-Reliance, 1841 · Primary source

“My life is for itself and not for a spectacle.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson · Self-Reliance, 1841 · Primary source

“For every friend whom he loses for truth, he gains a better.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson · Circles, 1841 · Primary source

“A little integrity is better than any career.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson · Behavior, 1860 · Primary source

“To speak well of a base man is much the same as speaking ill of a good man.”

Leonardo da Vinci · The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci, 1888 · Primary source

“I have never felt that anything really mattered but the satisfaction of knowing that you stood for the things in which you believed, and had done the very best you could.”

Eleanor Roosevelt · My Day, 1935-1962 · Primary source

“Always be ready to speak your mind, and a base man will avoid you.”

William Blake · The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, 1790 · Primary source

Related Tags

Honesty 11 Deception 8 Self-betrayal 1 Autonomy 1 Example 5 Conduct 11 Moral instruction 1 Influence 9 Dishonest gain 1 Profit 2 Reputation 16 Consequences 12 Secrecy 4 Conscience 12 Accountability 15 Virtue 6 Liberty 8 Wealth 13 Power 10 Dishonesty 2 Trust 20 Dealings 1 Treachery 1 Judgement 29 Action 21 Results 2 Follow-through 3 Character 20 Intellect 4 Self-reliance 48 Inner peace 2 Principles 3 Moral conviction 2 Self-trust 7 Independent judgement 7 Nonconformity 14 Authenticity 8 Public approval 1 Simplicity 24 Friendship 16 Truth 16 Personal growth 5 Changing relationships 1 Intrinsic reward 1 Duty 11 Good work 1 Career 1 Professional conduct 1 Moral courage 5 Personal sacrifice 2 Moral judgement 3 Praise 2 Conviction 5 Effort 16 Personal responsibility 4 Candour 2 Courage 23 Plain speaking 1 Independence 29