Finding motivation and inspiration to power through life’s daily obstacles can be tough — let alone if tragedy or conflict is in the way of an optimistic outlook. The stress in your career, amid relationships and in life can take a mental toll before you know it. Taking the time to look to other inspiring leaders, both within your own circle and the world at large, can help keep the flame of positivity burning bright within your life (at any age!).
Our list of the very best inspirational quotes can help; these short, powerful and often funny metaphors, written excerpts and snippets of historical speeches can provide a much-needed spark of motivation. Hearing from these celebrated personalities and notable thought pioneers can get you started on brand-new goals in 2023, get you through recent personal tragedies or empower you to take charge of your relationships.
Below, you’ll find our collection of quotes from beloved figures — powerhouse actors, musicians, authors and more — who have experienced a lot of ups and downs, but still managed to derive some insight through it all. From Michelle Obama to Marilyn Monroe, C.S Lewis to Franklin Roosevelt, these positive affirmations will uplift you and prepare you for what lies ahead.
- It is often the small steps, not the giant leaps, that bring about the most lasting change. — Queen Elizabeth II
- Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.— Nelson Mandela
- There is always light. If only we’re brave enough to see it. If only we’re brave enough to be it.— Amanda Gorman
- If you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else.— Booker T. Washington
- I have learned not to allow rejection to move me.— Cicely Tyson
- I scorched the earth with my talent and I let my light shine.— André Leon Talley
- You’re braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.— A.A. Milne
- It took me quite a long time to develop a voice, and now that I have it, I am not going to be silent.— Madeleine Albright
- You can’t rely on how you look to sustain you, what sustains us, what is fundamentally beautiful is compassion; for yourself and your those around you.— Lupita Nyong’o
- Attitude is the ‘little’ thing that makes a big difference.— Winston Churchill
- We will fail when we fail to try.— Rosa Parks
- All our dreams can come true — if we have the courage to pursue them.— Walt Disney
- Once you face your fear, nothing is ever as hard as you think.— Olivia Newton-John
- I don’t go to church regular. But I pray for answers to my problems.— Loretta Lynn
- Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.— Thomas Edison
- Don’t sit down and wait for the opportunities to come. Get up and make them.— Madam C.J Walker
- The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do.— Steve Jobs
- I never dreamed about success. I worked for it.— Esteé Lauder
- Champions keep playing until they get it right.— Billie Jean King
- A dead end street is a good place to turn around.— Naomi Judd
- A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new.— Albert Einstein
- If you’re not positive energy, you’re negative energy.— Mark Cuban
- We do not fall in love with the package of the person; we fall in love with the inside of a person.— Anne Heche
- We can’t help everyone, but everyone can help someone.— Ronald Reagan
- If what you have done yesterday still looks big to you, you haven’t done much today.— Mikhail Gorbachev
- My least favorite phrase in the English language is ‘I don’t care.’— James Caan
- Don’t save your best for when you think the material calls for it. Always bring your full potential to every take, and be on top of your job, or they will replace you.— Gabrielle Union
- One of the lessons that I grew up with was to always stay true to yourself and never let what somebody else says distract you from your goals.— Michelle Obama
- Always work hard and have fun in what you do because I think that’s when you’re more successful. You have to choose to do it.— Simone Biles
- Happiness is not something readymade; it comes from your own actions.— The Dalai Lama
- Our predecessors overcame many troubles and much suffering, but each time got back up stronger than before.— Shinzo Abe
- I don’t harp on the negative because if you do, then there’s no progression. There’s no forward movement. You got to always look on the bright side of things, and we are in control. Like, you have control over the choices you make.— Taraji P. Henson
- All dreams are within reach. All you have to do is keep moving towards them.— Viola Davis
- Tough times never last, but tough people do.— Robert H. Schuller
- When your dreams are bigger than the places you find yourself in, sometimes you need to seek out your own reminders that there is more. And there is always more waiting for you on the other side of fear.— Elaine Welteroth
- Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.— Henry David Thoreau
- Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does.— William James
- There is nothing impossible to they who will try. — Alexander the Great
- It has always been easy to hate and destroy. To build and to cherish is much more difficult. — Queen Elizabeth II
- The Sun himself is weak when he first rises, and gathers strength and courage as the day gets on. — Charles Dickens