Be gentle to all and stern with yourself.
Expect problems and eat them for breakfast.
The most effective way to do it, is to do it.
Always desire to learn something useful.
Begin to be now what you will be hereafter.
Quality is not an act, it is a habit.
Without hard work, nothing grows but weeds.
You never know what motivates you.
Never complain and never explain.
If you're going through hell, keep going.
I learned easily and had time to follow my inclination for sports (light athletics and skiing) and chemistry, which I taught myself by reading all textbooks I could get.