What inspirational quotes would you frame and hang on your office wall? Here is my list
My generation loves framed, inspirational quotes and messages to hang on walls or place on shelves in our homes and offices.
Live. Love. Laugh.
Blessings. Hopes. Dreams.
Family forever.
Words in scripted fonts framed and hung above our coffee pot, desks, sinks, computers or in bookcases.
Which real-life quotes from my life are worthy of being framed and hung on my home or office wall?
These dozen came to mind:
“It’s not that hard to be kind to people.”
My late dad was a retail pharmacist. He talked to customers eight to 14 hours a day. One day I asked Dad if he ever got tired of listening to a person’s medical problems? That’s all he said.
“Write what you know, what you feel. Readers will know when you don’t.”
Professor Bill Ward of SIU-Edwardsville taught me to write better. Keep it simple, he said. Stay away from adverbs and adjectives and “all the flowers.”
“Save your ticket stub. You’ll need it if it rains later on.”
That was from a guy sitting next to me at a Cardinals ballgame in the 1970s. It rained later that game. I attended the rainout game a month later on the ticket stub. I never throw away a ticket stub or delete the ticket from my phone until the game is finished.
“Harpo, I’ve coached hundreds of kids. The ones I remember most are the good teammates, the guys who play hard, the guys the other kids want on that bench next to them.”
George Martz was my baseball coach at Althoff Catholic High School. He taught me sports were meant to be played hard and be fun. One day, I needed an attitude readjustment. He draped his arm around my shoulders, puffed on a pipe, and that’s what he told me.
Two rules to follow on potluck meals:
- Watch the mayonnaise.
- Don’t eat a dish from anyone with a framed photo of a cat on his or her desk.
Not sure who gave the advice originally. But I I’ve held on to it for those special occasions when everyone brings homemade food to the party.
“Direct deposit some of your paycheck in your 401K. You won’t miss it. You will thank me someday.”
That came from one of my first bosses after I left newspapers, from a man named Don Constantine. He offered me a job on one condition: I had to direct deposit at least 5% of my new salary into our company’s 401K.
“The worst thing that ever happened to him was that he won a bet.”
My Grandpa Bob lived near the old Cahokia Downs Race Track. We spent a lot of time at the track, looking at horses, talking to trainers. I just stood around and listened. I don’t remember the circumstances clearly but an unshaven man in tattered clothes asked Gramps for a few dollars to place a bet that night. Gramps said no and turned away. It seemed odd to me Gramps would not help a person in need. I understand now.
“If you’re not sure what to eat, order a cheeseburger. If they don’t have a cheeseburger on the menu, get out of there immediately.”
Hold the mayo.
“Most of all, I’m thankful we did not have camera phones or social media when I was a teenager.”
Me, you and everyone else who remembers pay phone booths, beer buckets, Polaroid cameras, Naugles and Pure Prairie League. We were lucky to be kids when we were kids.
“Pack your patience.”
It’s my favorite line when traveling with a group of people with the same itinerary but not the same agenda.
“Put a little tape on it. You’ll be fine.”
What every kid who played high school football in the 1970s heard initially when he got injured.
“I cannot run, sing, dance, jump, fix, find my car keys or my car in the Target parking lot. But I can name the 1972 Pittsburgh Pirates lineup, recite random lines from the Andy Griffith Show, and wiggle my ears. Can you?”
My epitaph