Success grows less and less dependent on luck and chance. Self-distrust is the cause of most of our failures.

成功越來越不依賴于運氣和巧合。喪失自信是我們失敗的主要原因。

The great and indispensable help to success is character. Character is a crystallized habit, the result of training and conviction. Every character is influenced by heredity, environment and education. But these apart, if every man were not to be a great extent the architect of his own character, he would be a fatalist, and irresponsible creature of circumstances.

性格是取得成功不可或缺的重要助力。性格是一種固化成形的習慣，是不斷培養并堅信于此的結果。每個人的性格都會受到遺傳因素、環境和教育的影響。但除此之外，如果人在很大程度上不能成為自己性格的構筑者，那么他就會淪為宿命論者，從而成為環境的失敗造物。

Instead of saying that man is a creature of circumstance, it would be nearer the mark to say that man is the architect of circumstance. From the same materials one man builds palaces, another hovel. Bricks and mortar are mortar and bricks, until the architect can make them something else.

與其說人是環境的造物，不如說人是環境的建筑師更貼切些。同樣的材料，有人能用其建造出宮殿，而有人只能建成簡陋的小屋。在建筑師將其變成他物之前，磚泥依然是磚泥。

The true way to gain much is never to desire to gain too much.

想得到的多就永遠不要奢望太多。

Wise men don’t care for what they can’t have.

智者不會在意他們得不到的東西。