Skip to content

Order by Dec 10 for Christmas: 27 days left. Shop gifts

Spartan Surfers

1856-1915

Elbert Hubbard

American writer, publisher and founder of the Roycroft arts and crafts community. His essay A Message to Garcia and his Little Journeys series sold in the millions.

20 sourced lines

Every line we carry

Each one links to its source, what it means, and the shirt in any of our looks.

  1. To escape attack: do nothing, say nothing, be nothing.

    Hubbard was writing about the abuse heaped on William Seward after a lifetime of public service. Anyone who acts will be attacked; the only sure way to avoid it is to be no one. Treat criticism as the price of doing something worth doing.

    Little Journeys to the Homes of American Statesmen (1898), "William H. Seward", p. 369, Original English (G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1898)

  2. Only the great are generous. Only the strong forgive.

    Pettiness comes from feeling small and insecure. It takes real strength to give freely and to let an injury go. Generosity and forgiveness are signs of power, not weakness.

    Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, vol. 1 (1916), "Walt Whitman", Original English (Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, Memorial Edition, 1916)

  3. Never waste a minute thinking about your enemies.

    Every thought spent on people who wish you ill is a thought taken from your own work. They do not deserve the rent-free room. Put your attention where it builds something.

    Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, vol. 5 (1916), "Thomas B. Macaulay", Original English (Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, Memorial Edition, 1916)

  4. The only way to secure friends is to be one.

    Friendship cannot be demanded or bought, only offered. Show up, listen, help and remember, and friends follow. If you feel short of friends, start by being the friend you want.

    Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, vol. 5 (1916), "Thomas B. Macaulay", Original English (Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, Memorial Edition, 1916)

  5. We work not to acquire, but to become.

    The deepest return on work is not the paycheck but the person it makes you. Effort shapes skill, patience and character. Choose work that turns you into someone you want to be.

    Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, vol. 10 (1916), "Saint Benedict", Original English (Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, Memorial Edition, 1916)

  6. The only love we keep is the love we give away.

    Love hoarded goes stale; love given grows and comes back. What remains of a life is the care you spent on others. Give it freely, because that is the only way to keep it.

    Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, vol. 12 (1916), "John Tyndall", Original English (Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, Memorial Edition, 1916)

  7. We always believe in people who believe in themselves.

    Confidence is contagious. People take their cue from how you carry yourself and your work. Back yourself first; others tend to follow.

    Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, vol. 14 (1916), "Johannes Brahms", Original English (Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, Memorial Edition, 1916)

  8. The only men who do things are those who dare.

    Hubbard tells how young Peter Cooper climbed after what he thought was a bird's nest and found hornets. Mistakes come with daring, and so does everything worth doing. The cautious avoid stings and also avoid achievement.

    Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, vol. 11 (1916), "Peter Cooper", Original English (Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, Memorial Edition, 1916)

  9. Life is a dangerous business. Few get out of it alive.

    Since nobody gets out alive anyway, playing it safe protects less than you think. Hubbard's joke is a push to take the risk. Bet on your power to do, achieve and become.

    Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, vol. 11 (1916), "Peter Cooper", Original English (Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, Memorial Edition, 1916)

  10. The only people who have ideals are those in the fight.

    Ideals held from the sidelines are just opinions. They become real when you put yourself in the struggle and pay something for them. Get into the arena for the things you believe.

    Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, vol. 11 (1916), "Andrew Carnegie", Original English (Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, Memorial Edition, 1916)

  11. The reward for good work is not rest, but more work.

    Do a job well and you are trusted with a bigger one. That is not a punishment; it is how growth works. Welcome the harder task as the prize it is.

    Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, vol. 11 (1916), "Andrew Carnegie", Original English (Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, Memorial Edition, 1916)

  12. Dodge every hard experience and you cheat yourself of life.

    A life arranged to avoid all discomfort is a smaller life. The difficult conversation, the rough trip and the failure are part of the full measure. Stop ducking them; they are your share of being alive.

    Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, vol. 8 (1916), "Socrates", Original English (Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, Memorial Edition, 1916)

  13. Courage comes only to those who have done the thing before.

    Confidence is built by repetition, not summoned by thinking. The first time is frightening; the fifth is less so. Do the scary thing once, and you will have the courage for the next time.

    Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, vol. 7 (1916), "Savonarola", Original English (Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, Memorial Edition, 1916)

  14. Life is too short to gather the harvest. We can only sow.

    Much of what matters most will ripen after you are gone. Plant anyway. Work for a harvest someone else will gather.

    The Philosophy of Elbert Hubbard (1916), Original English (The Philosophy of Elbert Hubbard, 1916)

  15. Work with a whole heart. There is so little competition.

    Most people do their work half-heartedly. Simply caring and giving full effort puts you ahead of the field. Your wholehearted effort is a rarer advantage than you think.

    The Philosophy of Elbert Hubbard (1916), Original English (The Philosophy of Elbert Hubbard, 1916)

  16. Initiative is doing the right thing without being told.

    Hubbard ranks people by how many times they must be told. The best need no telling at all. See what needs doing and do it.

    Love, Life & Work (1906), "Initiative", Original English (Love, Life & Work, 1906)

  17. Act promptly, concentrate your energies: do the thing.

    In Hubbard's famous essay a messenger is handed a letter and simply delivers it, asking no idle questions. The world is short of people who just do the thing. Be one.

    A Message to Garcia (1899), Original English (A Message to Garcia, 1899)

  18. Complacency is the unpardonable sin.

    Hubbard adds that the person who says 'now I'm sure of it' has at that moment lost it. Comfort is where decline begins. Stay hungry and stay learning.

    Little Journeys to the Homes of Good Men and Great (1895), Original English (Little Journeys to the Homes of Good Men and Great, 1895)

  19. The world has it in for him because he has it in for the world.

    Hubbard is describing the man who never learned to work with others. Hostility tends to come back the way it went out. Change what you send and watch what returns.

    Love, Life & Work (1906), Original English (Love, Life & Work, 1906)

  20. He who cannot take orders is not fit to give them.

    Leadership is learned by serving well first. The person who executes faithfully is preparing to lead. Learn to follow, then lead.

    Love, Life & Work (1906), Original English (Love, Life & Work, 1906)