I am always astounded how a simple quote can have a profound effect. Just one or two sentences can spark something in reader, leading them to discover something within themselves, well they often did and still do for me. Coming across the right quote at the right time can be a real ‘light bulb’ moment. I have had many of these moments over the years, so I thought I’d share with you some of my favourite quotes from some of the remarkable people that have influenced my journey in such a positive direction.
Each and every one of these people (and lots of others too, there are far too many to put into one list) have expressed a wisdom that I needed at the exact time I discovered each quote.
If a quote resonates with you, it probably means it’s something you need or want to hear (read). As you read through this list, make a note of those quotes that really stand out to you, there’s a reason it’s jumping off the page and into your head! How can it help you? Where is this applicable in your life?
Have fun reading these fabulous quotes let them inspire you, motivate you and get you on the path you want to be on:
Oprah Winfrey
Talk show host, media executive, actress and philanthropist. One of the richest and most influential women in the USA.
“I was once afraid of people saying ‘who does she think she is?’ Now I have the courage to stand and say ‘this is who I am’. – Oprah Winfrey
“Alone time is when I distance myself from the voices of the world, so I can hear my own.” – Oprah Winfrey
“Real courage is being afraid but doing it anyway.” – Oprah Winfrey
“If you make a choice that doesn’t please your mate, your friends, your mother, or whoever, the world will not fall apart – the people who truly love you want you to love yourself.” – Oprah Winfrey
W. Clement Stone 1902 – 2002
American businessman and philanthropist. He espoused what he called P.M.A – Positive Mental Attitude – as the key to achievement and wealth.
“Success if achieved and maintained by those who try and keep trying.” – W. Clement Stone
“Be careful of the environment you choose for it will shape you; be careful of the friends you choose for you will become like them.” – W. Clement Stone
“Aim for the moon. If you miss you may hit a star.” – W. Clement Stone
“Success if achieved and maintained by those who try and keep trying.” – W. Clement Stone
Dale Carnegie 1888-1955
American lecturer, author, and pioneer in the field of public speaking and the psychology of the successful personality. Most well known for his book ‘ How to Win Friends and Influence People.’
“Remember – today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.” – Dale Carnegie
“Success is getting what you want. Happiness is wanting what you get.” – Dale Carnegie
“In-action breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy.” – Dale Carnegie
“One of the most tragic things I know about human nature is that all of us tend to put off living. We are all dreaming of some magical rose garden over the horizon instead of enjoying the roses that are blooming outside our windows today.” – Dale Carnegie
William Morris 1834 – 1896
An artist, craftsman, writer and socialist who was a revolutionary force in Victorian Britain, dramatically changing the fashions and ideologies of the era.
“Have nothing in your home that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.” – William Morris
“The true secret of happiness lies in the taking a genuine interest in all the details of daily life.” – William Morris
“I do not want art for a few any more than I want education for a few, or freedom for a few.” – William Morris
“The true secret of happiness lies in the taking a genuine interest in all the details of daily life.” – William Morris
Abraham Maslow 1908 – 1970
American psychologist and philosopher best known for his self-actualisation theory of psychology and hierarchy of needs and was a major contributor in the US to humanistic psychology.
“If you plan on being anything less than you are capable of being, you will probably be unhappy all the days of your life.” – Abraham Maslow
“What a man can be, he must be. This need we call self-actualization.” – Abraham Maslow
“In any given moment we have two options: to step forward into growth or to step back into safety.” – Abraham Maslow
“When people appear to be something other than good and decent, it is only because they are reacting to stress, pain or the deprivation of basic human needs such as security, love and self-esteem.” – Abraham Maslow
Henry Ford 1863 – 1947
American industrialist who revolutionised factory production with his assembly line methods.
“When everything seems to be going against you, remember that the airplane takes off against the wind, not with it.” – Henry Ford
“Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty.” – Henry Ford
“Thinking is the hardest work there is, which is probably the reason few people engage in it.” – Henry Ford
“Quality means doing it right when no one is looking.” – Henry Ford
Norman Vincent Peale 1898 – 1993
An American minister and author known for his work in popularising the concept of positive thinking through his best-selling book – The Power of Positive Thinking.
“Become a possibilitarian. No matter how dark things seem to be or actually are, raise your sights and see possibilities – always see them, for they are always there.” – Norman Vincent Peale
“Change your thoughts and you change your world.” – Norman Vincent Peale
“Have great hopes and dare to go all out for them. Have great dreams and dare to live them. Have tremendous expectations and believe in them.” – Norman Vincent Peale
“It is always too early to quit.” – Norman Vincent Peale
Vince Lombardi 1913 – 1970
American football player, coach, and executive in the NFL National Football League). Won 5 NFL championships, including Superbowl’s I & II during his tenure with Green Bay Packers.
“Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence.” – Vince Lombardi
“It's not whether you get knocked down, it's whether you get up.” – Vince Lombardi
“The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge but rather a lack of determination.” – Vince Lombardi
“It is time for us to stand and cheer for the doer, the achiever - the one who recognises the challenges and does something about it.” – Vince Lombardi
Napoleon Hill 1883 – 1970
American self-help author. His book ‘Think and Grow Rich’ 1937 is among the ten best selling self-help books of all time.
“Patience, persistence, and perspiration make an unbeatable combination for success.” – Napoleon Hill
“The starting point of all achievement is desire.” – Napoleon Hill
“Remember, no more effort is required to aim high in life, to demand abundance and prosperity, than is required to accept misery and poverty.” – Napoleon Hill
“Every adversity, every failure, and every heartache carries with it the seed of an equivalent or greater success.” – Napoleon Hill
Mahatma Gandhi 1869 – 1948
Indian lawyer, politician, social activist, and writer who became the leader of the nationalist movement against the British rule of India.
“Happiness is when what you think, what you say and what you do are in harmony.” – Mahatma Gandhi
“The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.” – Mahatma Gandhi
“A man is but a product of his thoughts; what he thinks he becomes.” – Mahatma Gandhi
“You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty.” – Mahatma Gandhi
Mark Twain 1835 – 1910
American humourist, journalist, lecturer, and novelist. He transcended the apparent limitations of his origins to become a popular public figure and one of Americas best and most beloved writers.
“Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear – not absence of fear.” – Mark Twain
“Anger is an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured”. – Mark Twain
“Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you too can become great.” – Mark Twain
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do.” – Mark Twain
Buddha 563/480 – 483/400 BCE
Founder of Buddhism, one of the major religions and philosophical systems of southern and eastern Asia and of the world.
“Your worst enemy cannot harm you as much as your own thoughts, unguarded.” – Buddha
“You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and attention.” – Buddha
“Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn't learn a lot today, at least we leaned a little, and if we didn't learn a little, at least we didn't get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn't die; so let us all be thankful.” – Buddha
“Holding onto anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else: you are the one that gets burned.” – Buddha
Albert Einstein 1879 – 1955
German American physicist who developed the special and general theories of relativity and won the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1921.
“Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life's coming attractions.” – Albert Einstein
“No problem can ever be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it.” – Albert Einstein
“Everything is energy and that’s all there is to it. Match the frequency of the reality you want, and you cannot help but get that reality. It can be no other way. This is not philosophy. This is physics.” – Albert Einstein
“Never give up on what you really want to do. The person with the big dreams is more powerful than the one with all the facts.” – Albert Einstein
Winston Churchill 1874 – 1965
An inspirational statesman, orator and leaser who led Britain to victory in the second world war. He served as Prime minister twice – 1940-1945 & 1951-1955
“A pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist see opportunity in every difficulty.” – Winston Churchill
“Success if going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.” – Winston Churchill
“When you’re 20 you care about what everybody thinks, when you’re 40 you stop caring what everyone thinks, when you’re 60 you realise no-one was ever thinking about you in the first place.” – Winston Churchill
“When I look back at all theses worries, I remember the story of the old man who said on his death bed that he had had a lot of trouble in his life, most of which never happened.” – Winston Churchill
Ralph Waldo Emerson 1803 – 1882
American lecturer, poet, and essayist and philosopher who led the transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century.
“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
“A man is what he thinks about all day long.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Cultivate the habit of being grateful for every good thing that comes to you, and to give thanks continuously. And because all things have contributed to your advancement, you should include all things in your gratitude.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Beware what you set your heart upon, for it surely shall be yours.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
Oscar Wilde 1854 – 1900
Irish poet and playwright, a popular literary figure in late Victorian England.
“To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.” – Oscar Wilde
“Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught.” – Oscar Wilde
“Every saint has a past, and every sinner has a future.” – Oscar Wilde
“Life is too important to be taken seriously.” – Oscar Wilde
We can find inspiration and motivation in all sorts of places, these quotes are just a few of the ones that have resonated with me over the years. Wherever you find your motivation to get your life going in the direction you want, grab it, use it and let it inspire you. Our lives are what we make them, I’m on my journey, and I hope you are too. If we all share the things that inspired us, we never know who else we can help on their way!
I’d love you to share a quote that has inspired or motivated you! Please leave a comment below don't forget to Save them to your Pinterest boards for later :)
I hope you enjoyed these 64 Quotes to Inspire You to Change Your Life for the Better
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