The knowledge of the world is only to be acquired in the world, and not in a closet. - Lord Chesterfield
There is hardly anybody good for everything, and there is scarcely anybody who is absolutely good for nothing. - Lord Chesterfield
Firmness of purpose is one of the most necessary sinews of character, and one of the best instruments of success. Without it genius wastes its efforts in a maze of inconsistencies. - Lord Chesterfield
Honest error is to be pitied, not ridiculed. - Lord Chesterfield
Know the true value of time; snatch, seize, and enjoy every moment of it. No idleness, no delay, no procrastination; never put off till tomorrow what you can do today. - Lord Chesterfield
Sex: the pleasure is momentary, the position ridiculous, and the expense damnable. - Lord Chesterfield
Whatever is worth doing at all is worth doing well. - Lord Chesterfield
Knowledge is a comfortable and necessary retreat and shelter for us in advanced age, and if we do not plant it while young, it will give us no shade when we grow old. - Lord Chesterfield
Wit is so shining a quality that everybody admires it; most people aim at it, all people fear it, and few love it unless in themselves. - Lord Chesterfield
Whatever you do, do it to the purpose; do it thoroughly, not superficially. Go to the bottom of things. Any thing half done, or half known, is in my mind, neither done nor known at all. Nay, worse, for it often misleads. - Lord Chesterfield
Never seem more learned than the people you are with. Wear your learning like a pocket watch and keep it hidden. Do not pull it out to count the hours, but give the time when you are asked. - Lord Chesterfield
Prepare yourself for the world, as the athletes used to do for their exercise; oil your mind and your manners, to give them the necessary suppleness and flexibility; strength alone will not do. - Lord Chesterfield
I find, by experience, that the mind and the body are more than married, for they are most intimately united; and when one suffers, the other sympathizes. - Lord Chesterfield
I recommend you to take care of the minutes, for the hours will take care of themselves. - Lord Chesterfield
The knowledge of the world is only to be acquired in the world, and not in the closet. - Lord Chesterfield
He makes people pleased with him by making them first pleased with themselves. - Lord Chesterfield
[Common sense] is the best sense I know of. - Lord Chesterfield
Be wiser than other people, if you can, but do not tell them so. - Lord Chesterfield
Choose your pleasures for yourself, and do not let them be imposed upon you. - Lord Chesterfield
Know the true value of time; snatch, seize, and enjoy every moment of it. No idleness; no laziness; no procrastination; never put off till tomorrow what you can do today. - Lord Chesterfield
Modesty is the only sure bait when you angle for praise. - Lord Chesterfield
Little, vicious minds abound with anger and revenge, and are incapable of feeling the pleasure of forgiving their enemies. - Lord Chesterfield
Learning is acquired by reading books, but the much more necessary learning, the knowledge of the world, is only to be acquired by reading men, and studying all the various facets of them. - Lord Chesterfield
Most people enjoy the inferiority of their friends. - Lord Chesterfield
I recommend that you take care of the minutes, for the hours will take care of themselves. - Lord Chesterfield
If you will please people, you must please them in your own way. - Lord Chesterfield