A Collection of Learning Quotes

By James McLuckie

Happy New Year everyone! I hope that you all had a great festive season and are raring to go in 2011. At the tail end of last year, I put out a few requests for people to reveal their favourite learning quotes. To help provide an inspirational start to 2011, I thought I'd collate the responses and share them with everyone.

Apart from being a motivating and encouraging collection of words, it's interesting to note the difference in styles of the quotes offered. Some are very to the point, others more poetic. There are some true gems and words of wisdom amongst them, and I thank everyone (listed below) who took the time to either provide a quote or helped to spread the word.

"Learning is a treasure that will follow its owner forever." - Anicent Chinese proverb

"Always walk through life as if you have something new to learn and you will." - Vernon Howard

"It's time you moved out of your comfort zone. You're only restricting yourself by staying there." - Manager to employee

"Finding the answer is not learning. Learning happens when your question keeps evolving and changing." - Robert Henderson

"Everything that can be counted does not necessarily count; everything that counts cannot necessarily be counted." - Albert Einstein

"If the only tool you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail." - Abraham Maslow

"You can never really teach a person something, they have to learn it for themselves." - John Whitmore

"If your body don't move, your brain don't groove." - Anon

Piglet: "Rabbit, is that you?" Rabbit: "Let's pretend it isn't and see what happens." - A.A. Milne (in 'Winnie the Pooh')

"You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink." - Contributor's father

"I think that much of the advice given to young people about saving money is wrong. I never saved a cent until I was forty years old. I invested in myself - in study, in mastering my tools, in preparation. Many a man who is putting a few dollars a week into the bank would do much better to put it into himself." - Henry Ford

"The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled." - Plutarch

"A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way." - Mark Twain

"The biggest obstacle to learning is a talking teacher." - Anon

"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever." - Mahatma Gandhi

"Work is learning, learning is work." - Harold Jarche

"Training gives people solutions to problems already solved. Collaboration solves new problems none have solved before." - Marcia Conner

"I cannot teach anybody anything. I can only make them think." - Socrates

Alice: "Could you tell me please which way I ought to go?" Cat: "That all depends where you want to get to." Alice: "I don't really now." Cat: "Then it doesn't really matter which way you go." - Lewis Carroll (in 'Alice in Wonderland')

"Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do." - Leonardo da Vinci

"It's what you learn after you know it all that counts." - John Wooden

"Change myself and the world changes with me." - Anon

"I can't make people learn I can only create an environment where learning can happen." - Anon

If you have some words of learning wisdom that have inspired you, please do share them using the comments box below.

Many thanks to Fiona Gifford, David Shindler, Jo Fielding, Mel Ashworth, Jane Honeybourne, Mo Harford, Tony Moorcroft, Gilmore Global, Mark Britz, Judith Christian-Carter, Claire Borer, Kate Rigby, David Smith, Devon Scheef and Michael Palko for their contributions to this list.

If you'd like to share some thoughts on this blog please complete the comments box below.

James McLuckie