Success in life is founded upon attention to the small things rather than to the large things to the every day things nearest to us rather than to the things that are remote and uncommon.

The sentence distills a recurring theme in Washington’s public advice: durable “success” is built through disciplined habits, practical service, and steady competence rather than dramatic gestures or rare opportunities. By contrasting “small” with “large,” and the “every day things nearest to us” with the “remote and uncommon,” the quote urges attention to immediate duties—work quality, reliability, thrift, and incremental self-improvement. It also implies a moral dimension: progress is not merely a matter of ambition but of conscientiousness in ordinary life. In Washington’s broader rhetoric, such counsel often functioned as a program for individual and communal uplift through practical education and character formation.