High Standards Quotes

I want to write songs with meaning. I have high standards for my work. ~ Brett Dennen

Miss Marple believes in justice and has very high standards. There is nothing you could say or do that would shock her. ~ Joan Hickson

As a leader, you have to not only do the right thing, but be perceived to be doing the right thing. A consequence of seeking a leadership position is being put under intense public scrutiny, being held to high standards, and enhancing a reputation that is constantly under threat. ~ Jeffrey Sonnenfeld

And with puppets, especially in our company, we sort of demand a very high standard of puppetry, so it's a real technical skill. ~ Brian Henson

Learn to live with high standards for yourself. Don't live for anything less than you deserve. This is your life and you should be living it as such. Live your best life don't settle. ~ Avina Celeste

I set very high standards for myself and worked every game with the same energy and enthusiasm as if it were the seventh game of a World Series. ~ Jim Evans

You've got to set high standards for yourself. ~ Marcus Giles

I do have high standards. I look at everything I have done and think, 'Why wasn't that better?' Part of my motivation is from crippling self-doubt - I have got to prove myself wrong. ~ Michael Palin

Sensual living is bringing passion in whatever you do. It's being committed to excellence. ~ Lebo Grand

Eating as a simple means of ending hunger is one of the great liberties of being alone, like going to the movies by yourself in the afternoon or, back in those golden days of youth, having a cigarette in the bathtub. It is a pleasure to not have to take anyone else's tastes into account or explain why I like to drink my grapefruit juice out of the carton. Eating, after all, is a matter of taste, and taste cannot always be good taste. The very thought of maintaining high standards meal after meal is exhausting. It discounts all the peanut butter that is available in the world. ~ Ann Patchett

When people think the issue can be solved, it becomes a moral imperative to be part of the solution. We can do a lot more within our school districts to recruit aggressively, select people according to high standards, invest in their training and development, and foster and reward their leadership. Once we invest more in attracting, developing and retaining teachers, potential recruits will begin to see it as a profession worth considering. ~ Wendy Kopp

Luxury brands are about elite access. In consumer goods, that's elite cost. In education, it's elite criteria for admission. Minerva is maintaining those high standards, but not artificially limiting the number of people who can meet it ... This really may be redefining education. ~ Kevin Harvey

Israel is a tremendous success story. When I arrived, there were 600,000 Jews living here. Today there are close to 6 million. We have one of the world's top high-tech industries and a high standard of living. There is only one thing we haven't achieved: Making the country safer for Jews. ~ Yair Lapid

We're constantly reminded that this precious life is what you make of it. But what if you're not sure of what you want to make it into?
On the one hand there are those resolute in their life's agenda and objectives, often set by the scriptural society they choose to adhere to, or one passed down from parents and family. They know what they want because they allow themselves to be told what is important, to be guided by those who have gone before. A proven formula maybe, or an unrealistic dream. Is true success in ones life fairly measured against someone else's achievements, should we use those achievements of others as our own check list? Surely we will find happiness just as they have, or not, at the end of it.
The opposite end of the spectrum sees the tragic dreamers, unable to answer the question of why they're even here, the absence of knowing what their true calling is drives them close to insanity, desperate to live a meaningful life but haunted by the inability to see what constitutes as such. Often turning to artistic release to try and express themselves, their own high standards against which they measure themselves tragically, often fatally high.
I find myself somewhere in the middle. I know what society expects but I don't agree with all of it. Much I have to adhere to simply to exist. Fortunately an education grants me a career not a job, that in the current world gives me choices that others do not and I am thankful. But I'm concious that the wel ~ Raven Lockwood

You can have calmness of mind at all times by the practice of yoga. You can have restful sleep. You can have increased energy, vigour, vitality, longevity, and a high standard of health. You can turn out efficient work within a short space of time. You can have success in every walk of life. ~ Sivananda

You are, inarguably, one of the finest officers who has ever worn the uniform. You eat the impossible for breakfast. You seek out challenges most would never contemplate, holding yourself to ridiculously high standards, and you do it with a ready smile, keen wit, formidable intelligence, and a compassionate heart. You are a bloody beacon in the darkness, an inspiration to anyone dedicating their lives to Starfleet. To a man, those who have served with you in the past would walk naked through fire with you, but right now, I wouldn't follow you to the mess hall." (Hugh Cambridge to Kathryn Janeway). ~ Kirsten Beyer

There is tremendous stress these days on liking people, helping people, getting along with people, as qualifications for a manager. These alone are never enough. In every successful organization there is one boss who does not like people, who does not help them, and who does not get along with them. Cold, unpleasant, demanding, he often teaches and develops more men than anyone else. He commands more respect than the most likable man ever could. He demands exacting workmanship of himself as well as of his men. He sets high standards and expects that they will be lived up to. He considers only what is right and never who is right. And though often himself a man of brilliance, he never rates intellectual brilliance above integrity in others. The manager who lacks these qualities of character - no matter how likable, helpful, or amiable, no matter even how competent or brilliant - is a menace and should be adjudged "unfit to be a manager and a gentleman. ~ Peter F. Drucker

Catch Either/Or Thinking

Anxious perfectionists will typically think "I need to perform flawlessly at all times," with their underlying assumption being "or else it will result in disaster." This is a common type of thinking trap termed either/or thinking. In this case, the either/or is this: Either there is flawless performance or complete and utter failure, and nothing in between.
Not only can this style of thinking make you feel crushed when you don't meet your own ideal standards, but it also often leads to perfectionism paralysis. Take, for example, an artist who sees his future career prospects as becoming either the next Picasso or a penniless flop; this person doesn't see other possible outcomes in between. You can see how this would give the artist a creative block.
For other folks, their hidden assumption may be slightly different: "Either I need to perform flawlessly at all times, or other people will reject me." When I look back at my clinical psychology training, I realize I had this belief at that time. At a semiconscious level, I thought that the only way to prevent getting booted out of the program was to score at the top of the class for every test or assignment.
Ultra-high standards often arise because a person is trying to hide imagined catastrophic flaws. In this scenario, people often think that if their flaws get revealed they'll be shunned, and so the only way to conceal their defects is by always excelling. When people who hav ~ Alice Boyes

There are no big things, only a logical accumulation of little things done at a very high standard of performance. ~ John Wooden

She was the first person on either side of her family to go to college, and she held herself to insanely high standards. She worried a lot about whether she was good enough. It was surprising to see how relieved she seemed whenever I told her how amazing she was. I wanted her to feel strong and free. She was beautiful when she was free. ~ Rob Sheffield

Bill Clinton also benefited from a friendly press corps. With their baby boomer background, more liberal views, and Ivy League lawyer credentials, the Clintons fit the mold of many of the baby boomer reporters. In time, of course, the press would turn on Clinton. In the 1992 campaign, however, it seemed to me that some news outlets allowed their zeal for change to undermine their high standards of journalistic objectivity. (The pattern would later repeat with another exciting candidate promising change, Barack Obama.) ~ George W. Bush

If you had a national grid with one operator, you had twenty or even a hundred operators, if you don't have the ability to compel people to observe high standards of conduct, then you run a greater risk. ~ Spencer Abraham

The choice of personnel, perhaps the most important choice (because 'people are policy'), never proceeds according to plan, but there have been some successful transitions that upheld high standards. ~ Richard V. Allen

Set high standards and few limitations for yourself. ~ Anthony J. D'Angelo

Shorn of unattractive language about "robots" who will be producing taxes and not burglarizing homes, the general idea that schools in ghettoized communities must settle for a different set of goals than schools that serve the children of the middle class and upper middle class has been accepted widely. And much of the rhetoric of "rigor" and "high standards" that we hear so frequently, no matter how egalitarian in spirit it may sound to some, is fatally belied by practices that vulgarize the intellects of children and take from their education far too many of the opportunities for cultural and critical reflectiveness without which citizens become receptacles for other people's ideologies and ways of looking at the world but lack the independent spirits to create their own. ~ Jonathan Kozol

As a coach, your high standards of performance, attention to detail and - above all - how hard you work set the stage for how your players perform. ~ Don Shula

And when it comes to developing the high standards we need, it's time to stop working against our teachers and start working with them. Teachers don't go in to education to get rich. They don't go in to education because they don't believe in their children. They want their children to succeed, but we've got to give them the tools. Invest in early childhood education. Invest in our teachers and our children will succeed. ~ Barack Obama

God has set up a high standard of righteousness. He has made plain a distinction between human and divine wisdom. All who work on Christ's side must work to save, not to destroy. ~ Ellen G. White

Any policy is a success by sufficiently low standards and a failure by sufficiently high standards. ~ Thomas Sowell

People mistake their limitations for high standards. ~ Jean Toomer

There is some pressure when you are a woman doing what I do that you must support all other women unconditionally, no matter what they're projecting, or writing, or producing, or putting forth as their art. I think that's equally arbitrary and random and unfair, and kind of sexist. The secretly sexist way. I have really high standards for what I think is funny. I have that for everything, and I think it would be disingenuous of me to blanket-ly love everything a woman has produced simply to make a statement that we're all in this together. ~ Mindy Kaling

They didn't become great guys by choosing the easy road. So meeting a woman who has high standards only makes them more attracted to her. They love women who have strong personal boundaries and are confident enough to know what they want and demand it. High-quality men always respect women who do not tolerate manipulative games and have solid standards. Those standards need to be realistic, of course. Some women have impossible standards. Both ~ Brian Keephimattracted

Seducing Jordana was solid – she's got such high standards – but when I finally got the snogs in it was all worth it."

I transform Jordana's blather into high-level discourse: Lounging in a post-osculatory glow, I knew that all those months of hard chivalry had been worthwhile. ~ Joe Dunthorne

As you live high standards publicly and privately, and even under great pressure adhere to them, you raise the vision of others. ~ Richard G. Scott

Whereas religions may serve a benign purpose by letting many people feel comfortable with the level of morality they themselves can attain, no religion holds its member to the high standards of moral responsibility that the secular world of science and medicine does! ~ Daniel Dennett

Excellence is a process, not just an outcome. Sure, we have to hold out for high standards in the products or services we provide. The goods must be more than "good enough." But so must our approach - you know, our methodology, the way we do business and deal with people. How could the ends be considered excellent if we can't be proud of the means? ~ Price Pritchett

Sometimes the man who looks happiest in town, with the biggest smile, is the one carrying the biggest load of sin. There are smiles & smiles; learn to tell the dark variety from the light. The seal-barker, the laugh-shouter, half the time he's covering up. He's had his fun & he's guilty. And all men do love sin, Will, oh how they love it, never doubt, in all shapes, sizes, colors & smells. Times come when troughs, not tables, suit appetites. Hear a man too loudly praising others & look to wonder if he didn't just get up from the sty. On the other hand, that unhappy, pale, put-upon man walking by, who looks all guilt & sin, why, often that's your good man with a capital G, Will. For being good is a fearful occupation; men strain at it & sometimes break in two. I've known a few. You work twice as hard to be a farmer as to be his hog. I suppose it's thinking about trying to be good makes the crack run up the wall one night. A man with high standards, too, the least hair falls on him sometimes wilts his spine. He can't let himself alone, won't let himself off the hook if he falls just a breath from grace. ~ Ray Bradbury

You cannot apply your high standards to a country [Egypt] burdened with decades of autocratic rule. Our democracy is still in its infancy. ~ Mohamed ElBaradei

The trick to surviving with low funds is to not have such high standards. ~ Simon Rich

When the New Yorker turned down work, they turned it down in such an elaborately gentlemanly way making apologies for their own shortsightedness. Undoubtedly it was their fault but somehow for some reason this fell short of the remarkably high standard that you by your own work have set for yourself. They had a way of rejecting my work that made me feel sorry for them somehow. ~ Garrison Keillor

The show became its own little world, with its own internal rhythm and high standards. ~ Dick Van Dyke

Have faith that you are a daughter of Heavenly Father who loves you.

Determine which of your divine gifts will allow you to be a champion for Christ.

Realize that you have been sent to Earth with a divine mission that is yours to achieve.

Let your knowledge come from the good parts of life that surround you.

Choose to set high standards and defend them.

Become a great woman by doing good. Always be on the Lord's errand.

Leave your mark. Be true in every situation--even when no one is watching.

Let your strength come from having high moral standards.

Look to Him.
Stand as His witness.
Become a keeper of what matters most. ~ Emily Belle Freeman

Keep your heels, head & standards high! ~ Coco Chanel

For man to go from less than 1% haves to 40%, living at high standard - despite decreasing resources - cannot be explained by anything other than by doing more than less. ~ R. Buckminster Fuller

What we do is look for high standards of excellence in the arts. ~ Jane Alexander

The kind of young woman who can be a terrific torchbearer has high standards all the time, not just in her prom dress, but every, ordinary day. ~ Margaret D. Nadauld

He has to pay people who have a sense of humor. Since he's lacking one," I added, when Ethan didn't laugh. "I understood the joke, Merit," he quietly said, sparkling emerald eyes on me as we began to sway. "I didn't find it funny." "Yes, well, your sense of humor leaves something to be desired." Ethan spun me out and away, then pulled me back again. Stuck-up or not, I had to give him props - the boy could move. "My sense of humor is perfectly well developed," he informed me when our bodies aligned again. "I merely have high standards." "And yet you deign to dance with me." "I'm dancing in a stately home with the owner's daughter, who happens to be a powerful vampire." Ethan looked down at me, brow cocked. "A man could do worse." "A man could do worse," I agreed. "But could a vampire?" "If I find one, I'll ask him." The response was corny enough that I laughed aloud, full and heartily, and had the odd, heart-clenching pleasure of watching him smile back, watching his green eyes shine with the delight of it. ~ Chloe Neill

I'm a big believer in starting with high standards and raising them. We make progress only when we push ourselves to the highest level. If we don't progress, we backslide into bad habits, laziness and poor attitude. ~ Dan Gable

And he never quit in the middle of something. If he started a job, he'd finish it. It was almost like a moral thing for him. He was what you'd call extremely ethical. He set pretty high standards for himself. ~ Jon Krakauer

She has impossibly high standards.'
'So do you.'
'Yeah, well, not impossibly high. Someone did come along who meets them.'
'Your problem is thinking no one else ever will. ~ Eric Lindstrom

Heroes are men who admit to being difficult to live with, who demand extremely high standards in every aspect of their lives, who are natural, effortless leaders, strong men, men with prestige and intelligence, whose faults are likely to be manifestations of strength and power. He is the master of his life; he is in control. Whether his sphere of influence is the boardroom or the mountains, the sea or the stage, the hero dominates it with his personality, his intelligence, and his quick, hard-honed grasp of every situation. A hero can seem arrogant and short-tempered, ruthless, tough, even cruel
he can be quite unlovable at first. ~ Robyn Donald

Enjoy life, study hard, play hard, be kind to other people, set high standards, and don't be afraid to say "No." ~ Nia Long

I let Wally go yesterday," Mr. Forney said. "I just want you to know that." "You fired him?" "Of course. Fraternizing with hotel guests is cause for dismissal." "But - " "We have high standards for the hotel, Miss Spooner. That includes employees." "Yeah," I said. "I've seen your high standards up close, Mr. Forney. I think you like rolling in your stinky high standards. Especially when you can kick a couple of guests out of the hotel because they have the wrong last name." He ~ Judy Blundell

One must know a bad performance to know a good one. You can't be middle-of-the-road about it, just as you can't be middle-of-the-road about life. I mean, you can't say about Hitler, I can take him or leave him. Well, I can't be middle-of-the-road about a performance, especially my own. I feel that if I can vomit at seeing a bad performance, I'm ahead of the game. ~ Patricia Bosworth

Surrogate fathers and other male figures stepped in to give guidance after my dad died. Businessmen taught me to honor my commitments; others gave me opportunities beyond my wildest imaginations. Authors and speakers set good, solid examples of high standards and lofty goals for me; mature, committed Christians nurtured and instructed me. ~ Zig Ziglar

Being authentic can be a good thing in that often people who are fixated on that are also fixated on having very high standards, so they may maintain something they think has tremendous value. On the other hand, most of the kinds of music that I've been excited about are hybrid in their origins. ~ Edgar Meyer

As Governor of Texas, I have set high standards for our public schools, and I have met those standards. ~ George W. Bush

We can't win the struggle for high standards if we just talk a good game ... we've got to play a good game. ~ Price Pritchett

It's better to be single with high standards than in a relationship settling for less. ~ Patrick Stevens

Just because she has high standards, doesn't mean she's high maintenance. Don't confuse the two. ~ Steve Maraboli

Nobody wakes up when they want to. Nobody did all of their reading (except maybe the crazy people who win the prizes...). We have these impossibly high standards and we'll probably never live up to our perfect fantasies of our future selves. But I feel like that's okay.
We're so young. We're so young. We're twenty-two years old. We have so much time. ~ Marina Keegan

My darling, patient friends tell me that I'm still single only because I'm picky, and because I haven't met the right person yet. This would feel truer if I hadn't been shut down by quite so many wrong people that I, despite my allegedly high standards, chased after. ~ Katie Heaney

I've got a reason for running. I talk about a larger goal, which is to call upon the best of America. It's part of the renewal. It's reform and renewal. Part of the renewal is a set of high standards and to remind people that the greatness of America really does depend on neighbors helping neighbors and children finding mentors. I worry. I'm very worried about, you know, the kid who just wonders whether America is meant for him. I really worry about that. ~ George W. Bush

We make no apologies for setting high standards. ~ Nancy L. Zimpher

I have high standards I hold myself to, besides Christianity. ~ Jason David Frank

I don't mind a little disappointment now and then. It just means you've got high standards. I'd rather shoot high and be disappointed sometimes than just live in the middle with the illusion of being satisfied. ~ Priscilla Glenn

I set myself high standards on the pitch and I know I have not always lived up to them this season. ~ Rio Ferdinand

Nothing is a hobby - each discipline is its own world with its own high standards. Of course, every artist has 'minor works' that they do, but I don't think I have any 'minor disciplines.' ~ Patti Smith

From the pleasure podium of Ali Qapu, beyond the enhanced enclosure, the city spread itself towards the horizon. Ugly buildings are prohibited in Esfahan. They go to Tehran or stay in Mashhad. Planters vie with planners to outnumber buildings with trees. Attracting nightingales, blackbirds and orioles is considered as important as attracting people. Maples line the canals, reaching towards each other with branches linked. Beneath them, people meander, stroll and promenade. The Safavids' high standards generated a kind of architectural pole-vaulting competition in which beauty is the bar, and ever since the Persians have been imbuing the most mundane objects with design. Turquoise tiles ennoble even power stations.
In the meadow in the middle of Naghshe Jahan, as lovers strolled or rode in horse-drawn traps, I lay on my back picking four-leafed clovers and looking at the sky. There was an intimacy about its grandeur, like having someone famous in your family. The life of centuries past was more alive here than anywhere else, its physical dimensions unchanged. Even the brutal mountains, folded in light and shadows beyond the square, stood back in awe of it. At three o'clock, the tiled domes soaked up the sunshine, transforming its invisible colours to their own hue, and the gushing fountains ventilated the breeze and passed it on to grateful Esfahanis. But above all was the soaring sky, captured by this snare of arches.(p378) ~ Christopher Kremmer

Luke's like no other guy that I know. I mean, I respect him. I have really high standards and I only respect two other guys," she said, casually.
"I know." I said dryly, "Jesus and Martin Luther King Jr. ~ Tijan

We have a high standard of living ... In Norway, we've tripled our income since 1970. In the rest of western Europe, income has merely doubled. ~ Jens Stoltenberg

High standards generally
about workmanship and creation of objects, about what is owed in friendship, about the quality of art and much else
far from being snobbish, are required to maintain decency in life. ~ Joseph Epstein

I have my own high standards for what I want in a partner and how I want to be treated. I bring a lot to the table. I'm not talking about material things but what I have to offer as a person - love and loyalty and all the things that make a good relationship. ~ Jennifer Lopez

Be with a person who treats you like their crown,
proudly honoring you infront of the world.
Not with someone who treats you like a trophy,
secured for their sense of achievement ~ Henna Sohail

Not everyone's high standards have to be the same thing. ~ Aja Naomi King

Cynics are - beneath it all - only idealists with awkwardly high standards. ~ Alain De Botton

Cynics are merely idealists with unusually high standards. ~ Alain De Botton

What distinguishes love-driven leaders from tyrants? "Great affection" coupled with the passion to see others "run at full speed towards perfection." Love-driven leadership is not urging others forward without concern for their aspirations, well-being, or personal needs. Nor is it being the nice-guy manager who overlooks underperformance that could damage a subordinate's long-term prospects. Instead, love-driven leaders hunger to see latent potential blossom and to help it happen. In more prosaic terms, when do children, students, athletes, or employees achieve their full potential? When they're parented, taught, coached, or managed by those who engender trust, provide support and encouragement, uncover potential, and set high standards. ~ Chris Lowney

You have competition every day because you set such high standards for yourself that you have to go out every day and live up to that. ~ Michael Jordan

One of the real worries I had before the first season of 'Treme' aired was that, man, people in New Orleans really hold movie and television shows up to a high standard in how they depict the city. ~ Wendell Pierce

There have been screenwriters who I'm sure would gladly kill me, because I've been very fast and loose with their work, because I felt like it wasn't up to my high standards. I would push and pull it on set, and make changes all the time. But then when you're working with an original screenplay, my theater instincts kick in, and I suddenly become very keeper-of-the-words. ~ Sam Mendes

high standards from long ago are part of the infinite now.. as a quest for perfection; along with the awareness that perfection is infinite with no final destination..... ~ Leland Lewis

I can't help it! I'm just a woman with high standards! ~ Josie Maran

I do have high standards, but I don't expect anything from anyone that I don't expect from myself. ~ Olivia Newton-John

I've also seen that great men are often lonely. This is understandable, because they have built such high standards for themselves that they often feel alone. But that same loneliness is part of their ability to create. ~ Yousuf Karsh

It was a staggering moment when I first heard the news. Lennon was a most talented man and above all, a gentle soul. John and his colleagues set a high standard by which contemporary music continues to be measured. ~ Frank Sinatra

It was a world of order, of high standards met and maintained. Mac felt curiousity reassured that a place like this still existed. ~ Jojo Moyes

In the metaphysical sense we based the expression "All Power to the People" on the idea of man as God. I have no other God but man, and I firmly believe that man is the highest or chief good. If you are obligated to be true and honest to anyone, it is to your God, and if each man is God, then you must be true to him. If you believe that man is the ultimate being, then you will act according to your belief. Your attitude and behaviour toward man is a kind of religion in itself, with high standards of responsibility. ~ Huey P. Newton

My life has had meaning, with the friendships full and valuable and essential to me. My children, Steve, Leslie, and Sam, are all different-all first-rate human beings with high standards-whom I completely and unequivocally adore-don't always agree with-but always admire and respect. They all have wit and a sense of humor and, thank God, I have hung on to mine. ~ Lauren Bacall

Keep your standards even when everyone around you is losing theirs. ~ Habeeb Akande

You get held to a high standard, almost an unmaintainable standard, in the public eye that you don't even come close to touching. ~ Tiki Barber

Today the Secretary of State said that of the 247 candidates, so far 115 of them have been certified. How embarrassing is that? Imagine if you were turned down because you didn't meet the high standards set by Larry Flynt and Gallagher. ~ Jay Leno

Aim to be the blue ribbon best. Have high standards and work to be exceptional. Develop yourself from practice to be a winner at what you do. ~ Mark F. LaMoure

It's OK for China to invent cancer drugs that cure patients in the United States. We want them to catch up. But as the leader, we want to keep setting a very, very high standard. We don't want them to catch up because we're slowing down or, even worse, going into reverse. ~ Bill Gates

Let us be about setting high standards for life, love, creativity, and wisdom. If our expectations in these areas are low, we are not likely to experience wellness. Setting high standards makes every day and every decade worth looking forward to. ~ Greg Anderson

Serena and I, we don't have anything to prove ... we still set a very high standard. ~ Venus Williams

In Catholic countries we saw (and sometimes still see) a large number of illiterates side by side with an intellectual élite of high standards. The Protestant goal of education is usually one of good averages- the optimum for a democracy. In democracies there will always be resentment and contempt for the "highbrow" and the illiterate, the intellectual and the "peasant. ~ Erik Von Kuehnelt-Leddihn

You have people with high standards and values as well as people with low ones no matter where you are ~ Amanda Lee

Let's not be afraid to speak the common sense truth: you can't have high standards without good discipline. ~ William Hague

The moment I realised that my history was an excuse for nothing, was the moment I was freed from my history. The great danger of history is that we use it as an excuse and remain trapped in it. I cannot blame my history for anything, and therefore I have to have high standards for myself. ~ Stefan Molyneux