David Seabury

David Seabury – Life, Thought, and Famous Quotes

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Delve into the life and work of David Seabury (1885–1960), an American psychologist, lecturer, and author. Explore his philosophy, key contributions, and inspiring quotes by David Seabury.

Introduction

David Seabury (1885 – April 1, 1960) was an American psychologist, writer, and public lecturer, noted for his accessible style and his efforts to bring psychological insights into everyday life. Centralist School of Psychology, operated his own educational institutions, and published numerous books aimed at self-understanding, personal development, and psychological health.

Though not always aligned with academic psychology, Seabury’s legacy lies in his bridging of psychological ideas and popular reflection. In what follows, we examine his life, ideas, selected quotations, and what we might learn from his approach today.

Early Life and Career

David Seabury was born in 1885 in the United States (exact birthdate not always specified).

In 1923, Seabury married Florence Guy Woolston, a journalist and advocate of feminist ideas.

Seabury founded the Centralist School of Psychology, which reflected his effort to find a middle path in psychological thinking—balancing extremes of theory and practice. David Seabury School of Psychology (in 1949) in Los Angeles as part of his broader educational vision. Sequoia University (originally the College of Drugless Healing), though that institution’s accreditation and status were controversial.

Seabury produced a substantial body of writing — over fifteen books — tackling topics such as happiness, worry, self-knowledge, personal energy, and mental resilience. Unmasking Our Minds (1924), The Art of Selfishness (1937), How to Worry Successfully (1936), Help Yourself to Happiness (1937), and The Art of Living Without Tension (1958).

Seabury died on April 1, 1960.

Ideas, Philosophy & Approach

Though Seabury was not a mainstream figure in academic psychology, his work reflects several recurring themes and orientations:

• Psychological practicality
  Seabury aimed to translate psychological insights into tools people could use in everyday life: dealing with worry, self-esteem, energy, and emotional resilience.

• Balance and centralism
  His founding of the Centralist approach suggests an attempt to avoid extremes—neither excessive introspection nor shallow behaviorism—but a balanced orientation.

• Self-responsibility and agency
  Many of his writings emphasize that individuals have power over choices, impulses, attitudes, and how they respond to internal conflicts.

• Confronting internal conflict
  Seabury acknowledged psychological ambivalence—the tension between thought and feeling—as central to inner experience:

  “Modern science knows much about such conflicts. We call the mental state that engenders it ‘ambivalence’: a collision between thought and feeling.”

• The power of humor, wholeheartedness, courage
  Seabury placed importance on qualities like good humor, courage, and wholeheartedness as psychological virtues—not mere decorations but active supports in life.

• Integration of the inner and outer
  He often urged that we not isolate our internal life from our outward actions—ideas should be tested through real engagement, not just thought.

  “Try out your ideas by visualizing them in action.”

Seabury’s thinking participates in what might be called the “psychology of self-help” tradition, with roots in early 20th-century optimism about applying psychological insight to everyday living.

Selected Famous Quotes by David Seabury

Below are some of David Seabury’s more memorable quotations, reflecting his psychological sensibilities:

“The facts, if they are there, speak for themselves.” “Try out your ideas by visualizing them in action.” “Your desires and true beliefs have a way of playing blind man’s bluff. You must corner the inner facts…” “Courage and conviction are powerful weapons against an enemy who depends only on fists or guns. Animals know when you are afraid; a coward knows when you are not.” “He who doesn’t consider himself is seldom considerate of others.” “Good humor isn’t a trait of character, it is an art which requires practice.” “A wise unselfishness is not a surrender of yourself to the wishes of anyone, but only to the best discoverable course of action.” “Nature is at work. Character and destiny are her handiwork. She gives us love and hate, jealousy and reverence. All that is ours is the power to choose which impulse we shall follow.” “Those who fume at their problems become their victims.”

These quotes display Seabury’s emphasis on internal clarity, personal responsibility, courage, and the balance between thought and feeling.

Legacy & Influence

While Seabury never gained wide academic renown, his influence lies in the realm of popular psychology, motivational writing, and counseling education. His books remained in circulation and have influenced generations of readers interested in self-understanding and practical psychological insight.

The archives of the David Seabury School of Psychology and associated materials remain a resource for those curious about mid-century humanistic psychology and counseling practices.

His style—blending psychological reflection, moral aphorism, and encouragement—anticipates later self-help and humanistic movements. His attention to the conflict between thought and feeling, and to the idea of psychological balance, resonates with later psychological traditions (e.g. existential psychology, humanistic psychology).

Though less cited in scholarly journals, his writing continues to show up in collections of quotations, self-improvement literature, and spiritual-psychological reading.

Lessons & Takeaways

From David Seabury’s life and work, we might draw several lessons useful for personal reflection:

• Don’t merely think—experiment
  Seabury encourages us not to stay in pure speculation but to test our ideas in lived action.

• Cultivate internal clarity
  His emphasis on “cornering inner facts” suggests the importance of honest self-examination.

• Balance extremes
  His centralist orientation reminds us to avoid the pitfalls of overreaction, whether in emotion or in rigid logic.

• Nurture psychological virtues
  Humor, courage, wholeheartedness, and agency are not passive traits but skills to be practiced.

• Accept internal conflict as part of life
  Rather than denying ambivalence, recognizing it can help us choose wisely among competing impulses.

• Self-help with humility
  Seabury’s writing is accessible and motivational, yet he often points back to difficulty, struggle, and the work of maintaining balance—not facile solutions.

Conclusion

David Seabury occupies an interesting position in the history of applied psychology: not a dominant theorist, but a bridge figure who tried to bring psychological insight to ordinary life. His books, lectures, and schools aimed to help individuals find clarity, courage, and consistency in their inner lives.