Observing Quotes

• The observer, when he seems to himself to be observing a stone, is really, if physics is to be believed, observing the effects of the stone upon himself.

  Bertrand Russell

  Spiritual, Philosophy, Philosophical

  Bertrand Russell (2013). “An Inquiry into Meaning and Truth”, p.15, Routledge

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• To acquire knowledge, one must study; but to acquire wisdom, one must observe.

  Marilyn vos Savant

  Inspirational, Leadership, Wise

  "Courage: the heart and spirit of every woman : reclaiming the forgotten virtue". Book by Sandra Ford Walston, 2001.

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  You can listen to what people say, sure. But you will be far more effective if you listen to what people do.

  Seth Godin

  Success, Effectiveness, People

  FaceBook post by Seth Godin from Mar 21, 2014

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• You can observe a lot by just watching.

  Yogi Berra

  Funny, Photography, Yankees

  Quoted in Dick Schaap and Mort Gerberg's Joy in Mudville: The Big Book of Baseball Humor Reflections (p. 185)

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• Life is choice. All day, everyday. Who we talk to, where we sit, what we say, how we say it. And our lives become defined by our choices. It's as simple and as complex as that. And as powerful. so when I'm observing that's what I'm watching for. The choices people make

  Louise Penny

  Powerful, Simple, People

  Louise Penny (2008). “Still Life: A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel”, p.76, Macmillan

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• Take just ONE minute today and look around you and within you and try for just that minute to understand the utterly amazing miracle and incredible perfection and beauty you are experiencing and observing!

  John Assaraf

  Gratitude, Appreciation, Perfection

  FaceBook post by John Assaraf from Jan 07, 2012

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• You can see a lot just by observing.

  Yogi Berra

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• You can discover what your enemy fears most by observing the means he uses to frighten you.

  Eric Hoffer

  Clever, Fear, Halloween

  Eric Hoffer (1955). “The passionate state of mind, and other aphorisms”

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• You see, but you do not observe.

  Arthur Conan Doyle

  Curiosity, Statistics, Detectives

  "A Scandal in Bohemia" (1891)

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• Nothing exists until or unless it is observed. An artist is making something exist by observing it. And his hope for other people is that they will also make it exist by observing it. I call it 'creative observation.' Creative viewing.

  William S. Burroughs

  Creativity, Artist, People

  "New York library buys personal archives of Naked Lunch author" by Dan Glaister, www.theguardian.com. March 1, 2006.

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• If you train your mind to search for the positive things about other people, you will be surprised at how many good things you can observe in them and comment upon.

  Alan Loy McGinnis

  Positive, Positivity, People

  Alan Loy McGinnis (2003). “The Friendship Factor: How to Get Closer to the People You Care for”, p.98, Augsburg Books

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• The root of all superstition is that men observe when a thing hits, but not when it misses.

  Francis Bacon

  Men, Roots, Missing

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• The secret to freedom is to realize that you don’t have to believe your mind. You don’t have to believe your story. You don’t have to believe that voice in your head. You don’t have to believe your own thinking. You can simply observe it and say, “Thank you for sharing,” and then take the necessary action you’re scared to take anyway.

  T. Harv Eker

  Motivational, Thank You, Freedom

  FaceBook post by T. Harv Eker from May 30, 2014

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• I am turned into a sort of machine for observing facts and grinding out conclusions.

  Charles Darwin

  Inspirational, Science, Machines

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• Self-observation brings man to the realization of the necessity of self-change. And in observing himself a man notices that self-observation itself brings about certain changes in his inner processes. He begins to understand that self-observation is an instrument of self-change, a means of awakening.

  G. I. Gurdjieff

  Spiritual, Mean, Men

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• A zombie film is not fun without a bunch of stupid people running around and observing how they fail to handle the situation.

  George A. Romero

  Running, Fun, Stupid

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• I have always thought that by observing things with a great deal of attention you eventually wrest some of their secrets from them, making them utter what they would most like to keep to themselves.

  Julien Green

  Secret, Attention, Deals

  Julien Green (1991). “Paris”, Marion Boyars Publishers Limited

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• God wants us to be a good example to others who are observing us.

  Joni Eareckson Tada

  Example, Want, Want U

  Joni Eareckson Tada (2012). “Making Sense of Suffering”, p.13, Rose Publishing Inc

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• It is possible to interpret without observing, but not to observe without interpreting.

  Mason Cooley

  Literature, Interpreting

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• A person who is too nice an observer of the business of the crowd, like one who is too curious in observing the labor of bees, will often be stung for his curiosity.

  Alexander Pope

  Business, Nice, Often Is

  Alexander Pope, Alexander Chalmers (1807). “A Supplementary Volume to the Works of Alexander Pope, Esq: Containing Pieces of Poetry, Not Inserted in Warburton's and Warton's Editions : and a Collection of Letters, Now First Published”, p.122

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• Imagine that someone said or did something cruel to you, but that you did not react in any way whatsoever – you did not become upset, resentful or even ruffled. You simply observed that this person was saying or doing something cruel, as though you were calmly observing the scene in a movie. You simply would not be stressed by what would appear to others to be a highly stressful encounter. Stress and cruelty affect us as profoundly as they do only because we react to them resentfully.

  Roy Masters

  Stress, Upset, Encounters

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• This inescapable duty to observe oneself: if someone else is observing me, naturally I have to observe myself too; if none observe me, I have to observe myself all the closer.

  Franz Kafka

  Health, Duty, Ifs

  Franz Kafka “1914-1923. Tr. by Martin Greenberg, with the co-operation of Hannah Arendt”

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• There are really only three important things to remember in life: To care, to share, and to be fair. This is not a new idea at all, and yet, observing how most people live their lives, you might think it was.

  Frederick Lenz

  Inspirational, Buddhism, Thinking

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• I think seeing is about truly looking, observing, and taking things in with an open mind. It's easy to see things at face value but some of the most beautiful things are not apparent at first glance. The works that stick with me and that I find to be most beautiful are often not aesthetically inviting right off the bat. So I think having an open mind and allowing the lines to blur between art, music, fashion, food, what have you, all leads to cultivating a much more open and enjoyable aesthetic sensibility.

  Chloe Wise

  Beautiful, Fashion, Art

  Source: www.elle.com

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• Amusement to an observing mind is study.

  Benjamin Disraeli

  Mind, Amusement, Study

  Benjamin Disraeli (2016). “Delphi Complete Works of Benjamin Disraeli (Illustrated)”, p.967, Delphi Classics

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