We all can learn something from Horton (who stars in Horton Hears a Who), from The Lorax (starring in a new animated tree-loving movie)  - and from the silliness and fantastical creativity found in so many Dr. Seuss books.

“I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells.  Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living, it’s a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope.  Which is what I do, and that enables you to laugh at life’s realities,” said Theodore Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss.

In honor of his birthday, I present three quotes and three questions about the amazing and astounding author of The Circus McGurkus, Green Eggs and Ham and of course, The Cat in the Hat.

“And will you succeed? Yes indeed! Yes indeed. Yes indeed! Ninety-eight and three quarters percent guaranteed.”  – Dr. Seuss in O The Places You’ll Go!

“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself Any direction you choose.” – Ibid.

“From there to here from here to there funny things are everywhere.” -One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish Blue Fish

1. So where did Theodore Seuss Geisel get his fascination with rhymes? His mother helped  him to sleep with “chanting rhymes” recalled from her childhood – and he has credited her for her influence, according to his biographers on an official site.
2. How did he get his start?  Though his father hoped he would become a university professor, he became a cartoonist . Geisel drew cartoons for the Saturday Evening Post, and other magazines, and advertisements for Standard Oil Co. During World War II, he helped create animated military training movies with a character called Private Snafu. 
3.  Which of his books seems to spring from his childhood in Springfield, Mass.?  His first children’s book, And To Think That I Saw It On Mulberry Street ,  is riddled with it, from the look-alike of one of its mayors to police officers riding red motorcycles.

Now here’s one for you to answer: What’s your favorite Dr. Seuss book and what does it say to you?

I’ll leave you with this great quote from the dear doctor in Happy Birthday to You: “Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.”

If you’re looking for a Dr. Seuss story of redemption and hope, the animated move The Lorax debuts this weekend.

For more Dr. Seuss quotes for business and workplace, read Tracy Schutz’s post on 12Most. 

For still more Geisel quotes, check out these on GoodReads (source of one or two shared here).