I’ve always loved quotes.
When I feel stuck or things get tough, recalling some of my favorites motivates me to not give up and take action.
No matter what areas in life you’re focused on at the moment, these quotes will hopefully help remind you what’s important and that you can achieve anything that you set your mind to.
Overview
Life philosophy, purpose, and direction
Fear and courage
Freedom, forgiveness, and letting go
Suffering and hope
The power of thoughts and perception
Happiness, slowing down and feeling at peace
Time is precious
Being grateful
Learning, curiosity, and creativity
Relationships and acceptance
Being present
Success, mindset, and entrepreneurship
Accountability and choices
Get things done, commit and take action (bye, excuses)
Life Philosophy, Purpose, and Direction
“There is one quality that one must possess to win, and that is definiteness of purpose, the knowledge of what one wants, and a burning desire to possess it.”
– Napoleon Hill
“You were not born on earth to please anyone; you have to live life to express yourself, not to impress someone. Don’t pretend to be someone you’re not, and never lose yourself in search of other people’s acceptance and approval.”
– Roy T. Bennett
“A lifestyle where you work less but accomplish more is possible.”
– Unknown
“Create the highest, grandest vision possible for your life, because you become what you believe.”
– Oprah Winfrey
“When I discover who I am, I’ll be free.”
– Ralph Ellison
Fear and Courage
“We suffer more in imagination than in reality.”
– Lucius Annaeus Seneca
“Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.”
– Anais Nin
“Fearlessness is not only possible, it is the ultimate joy. When you touch non-fear, you are free.”
– Thich Nhat Hanh
“May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears.”
– Nelson Mandela
Freedom, forgiveness and letting go
“Letting go gives us freedom, and freedom is the only condition for happiness. If in our heart we still cling to anything – anger, anxiety, or possessions, we cannot be free.”
– Thich Nhat Hanh
“Freedom lies in being bold.”
– Robert Bold
“Now that she had nothing to lose, she was free.”
– Paulo Coelho
“True forgiveness is when you can say – ‘Thank you for the experience.'”
– Oprah
“As I walked out the door toward the gate that would lead to my freedom, I knew if I didn’t leave my bitterness and hatred behind, I’d still be in prison.”
– Nelson Mandela
“Knowing when to leave is so important. The job. The party. The relationship.”
– Unknown
“Forgiveness is healing…especially forgiving yourself.”
– Alyson Noël
“Sometimes it’s better to just let things be, let people go, don’t fight for closure, don’t ask for explanations, don’t chase answers, and don’t expect people to understand where you’re coming from.”
— Rania Naim
Suffering and Hope
“Suffering is not enough. Life is both dreadful and wonderful…How can I smile when I am filled with so much sorrow? It is natural – you need to smile to your sorrow because you are more than your sorrow.”
– Thich Nhat Hanh
“The only reason you suffer is that you choose to suffer. Happiness is a choice, so is suffering.”
– Miguel Angel Ruiz
“To survive is to find some meaning in the suffering.”
– Friedrich Nietzsche
“Hope is important because it can make the present moment less difficult to bear. If we believe that tomorrow will be better, we can bear a hardship today.”
― Thich Nhat Hanh
“In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: It goes on.”
― Robert Frost
The Power of Thoughts and Perception
“Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habits. Watch your habits; they become character. Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.”
— Lao-Tze
“A negative mind will never give you a positive life”
– Ziad K. Abdelnour
“Your perception may not be my reality.”
– Aporva Kala
“I believe I am in Hell; therefore I am.”
– Arthur Rimbaud
“Change the way you look at things and the things you look at change.”
– Wayne W. Dyer
“We don’t see things as they are. We see them as we are.”
– Anais Nin
Happiness, Slow Down and Feel at Peace
“The unhappiest people in this world, are those who care the most about what other people think.”
– C. JoyBell C
“When ego is lost, limit is lost. You become infinite, kind, and beautiful.”
– Yogi Bhajan
“Many people think excitement is happiness… But when you are excited you are not peaceful. True happiness is based on peace.”
– Thich Nhat Hanh
“Do more of what makes you happy.”
– Unknown
“My practice is the practice of nonpractice.”
– Buddha
“One of the best lessons you can learn in life is to master how to remain calm.”
– Dr. Ariadna Cymet Lanski
“Today I will not allow myself to stress for things I can’t control.”
– Buddha
“There is no need to run, strive, search or struggle. Just be. Just being in the moment in this place is the deepest practice of meditation. Most people cannot believe that just walking as if you have nowhere to go is enough.”
– Thich Nhat Hanh
Time Is Precious
“Life becomes more meaningful when you realize the simple fact that you’ll never get the same moment twice.”
– Unknown
“If you love life, don’t waste time, for time is what life is made up of.”
– Bruce Lee
“Enjoy your life today. Yesterday is gone, and tomorrow is never promised.”
– Alan Coren
“Time and attention are the most valuable assets in life. Make sure whatever you’re doing is worth the investment.”
– Unknown
Being Grateful
“Keep smiling, because life is a beautiful thing and there’s so much to smile about.”
– Marilyn Monroe
“Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.”
– Dr. Seuss
“Always have an attitude of gratitude.”
– Sterling K. Brown
“Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.”
– Robert Brault
“Be happy with what you have while working for what you want.”
– Hellen Keller
“I think gratitude is a big thing. It puts you in a place where you’re humble.”
– Andra Day
“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.”
– Epicurus
“We must find time to stop and thank the people who make a difference in our lives.”
– John F. Kennedy
Learning, Curiosity, and Creativity
“There is no end to education. It is not that you read a book, pass an examination, and finish with education. The whole of life, from the moment you are born to the moment you die, is a process of learning.”
– Jiddu Krishnamurti
“I am always ready to learn, although I do not always like being taught.”
– Winston Churchill
“It is what we know already that often prevents us from learning.”
– Claude Bernard
“Change is the end result of all true learning.”
– Leo Buscaglia
“The expert in anything was once a beginner.”
– Unknown
“Curiosity about life in all of its aspects, I think, is still the secret of great creative people.”
– Leo Burnett
“Every act of conscious learning requires the willingness to suffer an injury to one’s self-esteem. That is why young children before they are aware of their own self-importance, learn so easily.”
– Thomas Szasz
“Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn’t really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while.”
– Steve Jobs
“The power of imagination makes us infinite.”
– John Muir
“Don’t be intimidated by what you don’t know.”
– Sara Blakely
“Every child is an artist, the problem is staying an artist when you grow up.”
– Pablo Picasso
“The more I see, the less I know for sure.”
– John Lennon.
Relationships and Acceptance
“The first time someone shows you who they are, believe them.”
– Maya Angelou
“Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people.”
– Eleanor Roosevelt
“A friend is someone who gives you total freedom to be yourself.”
– Jim Morrison
“Your network is your net worth.”
– Jim Rohn
“A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out.”
– Walter Winchell
“For things to reveal themselves to us, we need to be ready to abandon our views about them.”
– Thich Nhat Hanh
“Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.”
– Stephen R. Covey
“Far too many people are looking for the right person, instead of trying to be the right person.”
– Gloria Steinem
“Never love anybody that treats you like you’re ordinary.”
– Oscar Wilde
“You must love in such a way that the person you love feels free.”
– Thich Nhat Hanh
“To be beautiful means to be yourself. You don’t need to be accepted by others. You need to accept yourself.”
– Thich Nhat Hanh
Being Present
“Be where you are, otherwise, you will miss your life.”
– Buddha
“People talk about entering nirvana, but we are already there. Aimlessness and nirvana are one.”
– Thich Nhat Hanh
“Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.”
– Buddha
“The present moment is filled with joy and happiness. If you are attentive, you will see it.”
– Thich Nhat Hanh
“People don’t realize that now is all there ever is; there is no past or future except as memory or anticipation in your mind.”
– Eckhart Tolle
“Life gives you plenty of time to do whatever you want to do if you stay in the present moment.”
– Deepak Chopra
“The past has no power over the present moment. It cannot survive in your presence. It can only survive in your absence.”
– Eckhart Tolle
“If you are depressed you are living in the past. If you are anxious you are living in the future.
If you are at peace you are living in the present.”
– Lao Tzu.
“Never get too caught up in showing others what you’re up to so that you miss out on actually living the moment. Don’t let what it appears to take over from what it is.”
– Part of my personal life philosophy
Success, Mindset, and Entrepreneurship
“You must expect great things from yourself before you can do them.”
– Michael Jordan
“Things work out best for those who make the best of how things work out.”
– John Wooden
“The secret of success lies not in doing your own work, but in recognizing the right man to do it.”
– Andrew Carnegie
“When you’re getting your life together, it can be a lonely journey. But choose growth over the company. Those people won’t stick around, but your future self will be so thankful for the work you put in today.”
– Unknown
“It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things.”
– Leonardo Da Vinci
“Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity.”
– George S. Patton
Accountability and Choices
“Life imposes things on you that you can’t control, but you still have the choice of how you’re going to live through this.”
– Celine Dion
“What you do speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say.”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson
“It is our choices, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.”
– J. K Rowling
“You must be the change you wish to see in the world.”
– Gandhi
“Every time you choose something, you also choose not to do something else. Be conscious”
– Unknown
“Life is 10 % what happens to you and 90 % how you respond to it.”
– Charles Swindoll
“Your choices create your reality.”
– Jason Harvey
“I discovered I always have choices and sometimes it’s only a choice of attitude.”
– Judith M. Knowlton
“Tell yourself that you have a choice, not that you are a product of your childhood, your environment, your culture, or your genes. Yes, you may have limitations, psychological damage, and a certain background, but you can make that choice every day: To be better.”
– Albert Rogers
“Some of the biggest acts of self-kindness are very difficult to do at the moment, but they’re the right long-term choice.”
– Lara Heacock
Get Things Done, Commit and Take Action (bye, excuses)
“The best way to predict your future is to create it.”
– Abraham Lincoln
“Doing the best at this moment puts you in the best place for the next moment.”
– Oprah Winfrey
“Being ambitious isn’t enough. Far more important than ambition is commitment.”
– Unknown
“We are what we repeatedly do; excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.”
– Aristotle
“Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.”
– George Bernard Shaw
“Create more than you consume. Do that and it will change your life.”
– Unknown
“If your execution is poor, nothing matters.”
– Unknown
“The person who reads too much and uses his brain too little will fall into lazy habits of thinking.”
– Albert Einstein
“If you really want to do it, you do it. There are no excuses.”
– Bruce Nauman
“We have more ability than willpower, and it is often an excuse to ourselves that we imagine that things are impossible.”
– François de la Rochefoucauld
“People with integrity do what they say they are going to do. Others have excuses.”
– Laura Schlessinger
“The choice to take action to accomplish what you want or what you deserve is entirely up to you. No one is going to seek you out and no one is going to do it for you. It’s your move.”
– Catherine Pulsifer
Inspiration To Get Where You Want
Whether you’re about to realize your dreamlife or just need some encouragement in everyday life, the lessons of others are priceless resources. Did I miss one of your favorite quotes? Let me know which one you resonated most with in the comments!
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