Worldly Wise-Baltasar Gracian

Keep matters in suspense - Being too obvious is neither useful nor tasteful.

Know your best quality - Foster your most outstanding gift and nurture the rest.

Never exaggerate - The prudent show restraint, and would rather fall short than long.

Adapt to those around you - Don't show off every day, or you'll stop surprising people. There must always be some novelty left over.

Associate with those you can learn from - Make your friends your teachers, and blend the usefulness of learning with the pleasure of conversation. What you say will be rewarded with applause; what you hear, with learning.

Don't be tiresome - Good things, if brief: twice good.

Don't talk about yourself - You show a lack of good judgement and become a nuisance to others.

The wise do sooner what fools do later - The wise size up immediately what has to be done, sooner or later, and do it with pleasure, enhancing their reputation.

Never complain - Complaints will always discredit you. It is better to praise others, so as to win still more favors of them.

Do, but also seem - A fine exterior is the best recommendation of inner perfection.

Don't be made of glass - Some people break very easily, revealing how fragile they are.

Don't live in a hurry - Organize things. Show moderation, so that things known won't be badly known. Be quick to act, slow to enjoy.

Follow through on your victories - What is worth doing is worth finishing.

Quit while you are ahead - A fine retreat matters as much as a stylish attack.
What matters isn't being applauded when you arrive, but being missed when you leave.