A self-made man is one who believes in luck and sends his son to Oxford.
—Christina Stead, 1938Quotes
There are two times in a man’s life when he should not speculate: when he can’t afford it, and when he can.
—Mark Twain, 1897To hold a throne is luck; to bestow it, virtue.
—Seneca the Younger, c. 45Luck takes the step that no one sees.
—Publilius Syrus, c. 50 BCIt is so difficult not to become vain about one’s own good luck.
—Simone de Beauvoir, 1963It is weak and silly to say you cannot bear what it is your fate to be required to bear.
—Charlotte Brontë, 1847Those who trust to chance must abide by the results of chance.
—Calvin Coolidge, 1932We do not suffer by accident.
—Jane Austen, 1813Good fortune turns aside destruction by a great god.
—Instructions of Ankhsheshonqy, c. 100 BCMisfortune, n. The kind of fortune that never misses.
—Ambrose Bierce, 1906Good fortune is light as a feather, but nobody knows how to hold it up. Misfortune is heavy as the earth, but nobody knows how to stay out of its way.
—Zhuangzi, c. 300 BCFortune brings in some boats that are not steered.
—William Shakespeare, c. 1610One should always play fairly when one has the winning cards.
—Oscar Wilde, 1895