"Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you too, can become great."

Mark Twain

"It is not the critic who counts, nor the man who points out how the strong may stumble, or when the doer of deeds could have done the better."

"The credit belongs to the leader who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who makes mistakes, and comes short again and again, who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who at best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at worse if failure occurs, while daring greatly shall never be among those timid souls who know neither victory or defeat."

Theodore Roosevelt

I wouldn't call Musashi ordinary. But he is. That's what is extraordinary about him. He's not content with relying on whatever natural gifts he may have. Knowing he is ordinary, he's always trying to improve himself. No one appreciates the agonizing effort he's had to make. Now that his years of training have yielded such spectacular results, everybody's talking about his "God given talent". That's how men who don't try very hard comfort themselves.

From the biography MUSASHI about master swordsman Miyamoto Musashi (1584-1645)

"The only people who aren't going to be criticized are those who do absolutely nothing. And the critics, the people who just observe, are never on the inside, never really had to make a decision that affects peoples lives. It's easy for people on the outside to stand back and constantly second guess. I welcome all the suggestions in the world from people who have been involved in doing something ... but somebody who has never done anything except observe and criticize, I don't weigh that at all. The higher up you go and the more things you try to accomplish, the more people will try to find fault. You work all your life to do something and people try to tear you down. You can't control it or do anything about it. When you look at the options of dealing with criticism, there's really only one option- to pray to God that you have the courage and the strength that you won't become bitter and move on with your life."

Lou Holtz