The quality of a person's life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence regardless of their chosen field of endeavor.

But I think Steve's main contribution besides just the pure leadership is his passion for excellence. He's a perfectionist. Good enough isn't good enough. And also his creative spirit. You know he really really wants to do something great.

Be a yardstick of quality. Some people aren't used to an environment where excellence is expected.

Film is the manipulative medium par excellence. When you think back on the history of film and the 20th century you see the propaganda that's been made. So there are moral demands on the director to treat the spectators as seriously as he or she takes himself and not to see them merely as victims that can be manipulated to whatever ends they have.

There is no excellence without labor. One cannot dream oneself into either usefulness or happiness.

The society which scorns excellence in plumbing as a humble activity and tolerates shoddiness in philosophy because it is an exalted activity will have neither good plumbing nor good philosophy: neither its pipes nor its theories will hold water.

Perfect friendship is the friendship of men who are good and alike in excellence for these wish well alike to each other qua good and they are good in themselves.

I had spent many years pursuing excellence because that is what classical music is all about... Now it was dedicated to freedom and that was far more important.

The mandate I have received and for which I will speak with heart and head to implement over the next seven years had its four pillars - an inclusive citizenship equality and participation and respect in a creative society creating an excellence in everything we Irish do.

Opportunity expands when there is excellence and choice in education when taxes are lowered when every citizen has affordable portable health insurance and when constitutional freedoms are preserved.