Empty the cup every time and it comes back at twice as full. I developed that attitude when I was very, very young, when I decided I didn't want to be a gangster anymore. Whether it's just shining shoes, I said okay, I'm going to do this better than anybody else did it in my life.

Quincy Jones

Not one ounce of my self worth depends on your acceptance of me.

Quincy Jones

depends self-worth acceptance

Greatness occurs when your children love you, when your critics respect you and when you have peace of mind.

Quincy Jones

greatness love-you children

I've been driven all my life by a spirit of adventure and a criminal level of optimism. I believed in my dreams because they were my only option. The people who make it to the top are addicted to their calling. You have to honor the gift God has given you. The people who get the call are the ones who'd be doing whatever it is they love, even if they weren't being paid.

Quincy Jones

dream adventure people

You can study orchestration, you can study harmony and theory and everything else, but melodies come straight from God.

Quincy Jones

harmony music study

Let's not get too full of ourselves. Let's leave space for God to come into the room.

Quincy Jones

space rooms

Music was the one thing I could control. It was the one world that offered me freedom. When I played music, my nightmares ended. My family problems disappeared. I didnt have to search for answers. The answers lay no further than the bell of my trumpet and my scrawled, pencilled scores. Music made me full, strong, popular, self-reliant and cool.

Quincy Jones

strong self answers

I learned real early why God gave us two ears and one mouth, because you're supposed to listen twice as much as you talk.

Quincy Jones

real ears two

You Make Your Mistakes To Learn How To Get To The Good Stuff

Quincy Jones

mistake stuff

Every day, my daddy told me the same thing. 'Once a task is just begun, never leave it till it's done. Be the labour great or small, do it well or not at all.'

Quincy Jones

daddy tasks done

The people who make it to the top - whether they're musicians, or great chefs, or corporate honchos - are addicted to their calling ... [they] are the ones who'd be doing whatever it is they love, even if they weren't being paid.

Quincy Jones

loving-what-you-do motivational inspirational

Imagine what a harmonious world it could be if every single person, both young and old shared a little of what he is good at doing.

Quincy Jones

family happiness love

What happens when you get a big break and you haven't prepared yourself? That becomes the biggest mistake you've ever made. I see it happen all the time.

Quincy Jones

biggest-mistake break mistake

Every day you must be able to say, I have to get up because I'm needed by someone. As long as you have that, you're healthy.

Quincy Jones

healthy long

The process is the most beautiful part.

Quincy Jones

process beautiful

I've always thought that a big laugh is a really loud noise from the soul saying, "Ain't that the truth."

Quincy Jones

smile happiness funny

Excellence isn't an act, it's a habit

Quincy Jones

habit excellence

It has been proven time and time again in countless studies that students who actively participate in arts education are twice as likely to read for pleasure, have strengthened problem-solving and critical thinking skills, are four times more likely to be recognized for academic achievement, four times more likely to participate in a math and science fair.

Quincy Jones

math art thinking

I used to practice piano for hours, and now, with a synthesizer, you can input the music and the machine perfects the song. That's why we have so many people in the music business who should be plumbers. They don't really understand music because they haven't been trained.

Quincy Jones

hours song people

Jazz has the power to make men forget their differences and come together... Jazz is the personification of transforming overwhelmingly negative circumstances into freedom, friendship, hope, and dignity.

Quincy Jones

differences music men

There’s nothing in the world worse than having an opportunity that you’re not prepared for. Good luck usually follows the collision of opportunity and preparation - it’s a result of that collision. You’ve got to be prepared. So, make your mistakes now and make them quickly. If you’ve made the mistakes, you know what to expect the next time. That’s how you become valuable.

Quincy Jones

good-luck mistake opportunity