Expect much from yourself and little from others and you will avoid incurring resentments

The superior man undergoes three changes. Looked at from a distance, he appears stern; when approached, he is mild; when he is heard to speak, his language is firm and decided.

The superior man is firm in the right way and not merely firm.

A superior man may be made to go to the well, but he cannot be made to go down into it. He may be imposed upon, but he cannot be fooled.

To acknowledge our faults when we are blamed, is modesty; to discover them to one's friends in ingenuousness, is confidence; but to preach them to all the world, if one does not take care, is pride.

Every journey starts with a single step.

The gem cannot be polished without friction nor man without trials.