Here they are, the most inspirational quotes ever uttered, sure to stir you and get you moving through the day.
Whether you feel stuck or just need a good dose of inspiration from great minds, these should do the trick. Be sure to feed your brain inspiring quotes and phrases daily, since it needs to be fed regularly just like the rest of your body.
1. Winston Churchill Tells How to Be a Success
“Success is going from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm.” ~Winston Churchill |
Getting knocked around by failures is never fun or easy, but this advice from Churchill reminds us that it’s vital that you remain enthusiastic when facing your next venture, or you can expect more of the same. It’s not an easy task, but it’s clear to see that if you let your defeats get you down you only make it harder to get that next success under your belt. Make an effort to get enthusiastic about your current endeavor, regardless of how many times you’ve fallen short in the past. This is sure to result in a success or two, which builds momentum and makes it easier to get excited about what you’ll do next.
2. Lao Tzu on Taking That First Step
“The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.” ~Lao Tzu |
Each step you take toward a bigger goal might not seem like much. It may seem like you’re not really doing much at all. This will be especially true of any outside observers. Others might think you’re not getting anywhere, that you’re not getting anything done. That’s why you have to have a lot of confidence in where you’re going. You need to be clear about where you want to end up so that you have the conviction that the small steps you are taking will eventually get you to where you want to be, and you can squash any naysayers.
3. Norman Vaughan on Big Dreams
Having small dreams and being afraid to fail is the antithesis of this advice, and it’s something many of us do, even though we may not want to admit it. The two go hand in hand, if you are too afraid of failing you’ll keep your dreams on a leash. But if you overcome that fear, and jump out there fully willing to completely fail, you free your mind to dream up new adventures and goals for your life. Failure comes with trying, and a life of not trying will not leave you satisfied, so it’s good to continually put yourself out there.
4. Emerson on the Importance of Action
“What you do speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson |
Here’s a take on the “Actions speak louder than words. adage. It’s true that words can often be contradicted by the actions we take. This may be because words are easy to spew out, but you can only perform so many actions in a day. Actions must be more thought out and are a more accurate measure of what you really intend to do. Make sure to choose your actions wisely, as others will come to their conclusions about you based on what you do rather than what you say. Many times there is a big discrepancy between what is said and what is done, which is why what you do matters more.
5. Gandhi on How to Change the World
“You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” ~Gandhi |
It’s easy to get frustrated by all the violence and pain being experienced around the world, and even easier to feel helpless about it. But rather than sitting around waiting for the world to change, it’s better to start making changes within your own sphere of influence. The theory behind this quote is that if everyone tended to their own selves the world would be the way we all want it to be. What can you do today that would help make the world around you a better place? By making the changes you wish the world would make you instantly and automatically make the world better.
6. Dr. Robert Schuller on Being Tough
“Tough times never last, but tough people do.” ~Dr. Robert Schuller |
It’s true that even the toughest of times don’t last forever, and as long as you remain strong you’ll make it through and be able to weather whatever storms come your way. The human spirit has shown that it’s capable of making it through tough times, and getting to the end of the tunnel. The best part of dealing with adversity is that it toughens you up for the next trial in your life. Knowing that you’re only getting better with each new struggle can be an inspiration during those times when you feel like giving up. Being a tough person doesn’t mean you have to be callous, it just means you have an inner strength that’s battle-tested.
7. Helen Keller on Keeping the Best Outlook
“Keep your face to the sunshine and you can never see the shadow.” ~Helen Keller |
As long as you’re looking on the bright side of things you’ll be ignoring the not-so-good things in your life. What you give attention to grows, so if you’re focusing on what’s wrong in your life you’ll just get more of it to focus on. But if you focus on what’s right in your life, what makes you happy, what you’re grateful for, and why things are so fantastic for you, you’ll only get more of the same to be happy and grateful for. Some days are easier to face towards the sunshine than others, but it’s always there, you just have to try harder during hard times.
8. Christopher Morley on the One True Success
“There is only one success: to be able to spend your life in your own way.” ~Christopher Morley |
It’s your life, your one and only life, and it would be a shame to spend it in a way that doesn’t suit you. But many of us wish that things were different. Either we’re unsatisfied with our jobs, or our relationships, or just the way things are going. It’s vital to your overall success to make changes as you see fit so that you can have your life be the way you really want it to be. It’s the foundation to all other success, and you can’t really have a different success without first tending to this matter.
9. Robert Frost on Making It Through Tough Times
“The best way out is always through.” ~Robert Frost |
If you’re in a tough spot it’s tempting to think of a clever way around it, but this serves as a reminder to just take the most direct route: through. You’ll find that a funny thing happens when you make up your mind to barrel through whatever dilemma you’re facing. Everything starts shifting when you stop hemming and hawing and finally decide to take actions to make your way through. It’s a way to get yourself on board with the idea of sticking it out and making it through, and when you stop the internal bickering you start to use your full potential to solve the problem at hand.
10. John Muir Reminds Us of Our Own Power
“The power of imagination makes us infinite.” ~John Muir |
You use your imagination each day, even if you think you don’t. No matter how big or small your accomplishments today, it all began in your imagination. You can use it as much or as little as you want, but it’s the starting point for everything that happens in your life, from what you eat, to what you wear, to what you do. It all begins as pictures in your mind. Be sure to harness the full power of your imagination to dream up bigger and better things for yourself. It’s the part of you that taps into the infiniteness of the universe, so don’t neglect it.
11. John Wooden Constructing a Masterpiece
“Make each day your masterpiece.” ~John Wooden |
It’s easy to lose sight of the importance of each day, because we seem to have so many of them. But it’s been said that a single day serves as a microcosm of your life, so be sure to spend your days in a way that embodies the way you want to live your life. At the end of it all your life will boil down to the accumulation of all of your days, and will serve as your masterpiece, so be sure to spend time each day chiseling the great sculpture that is your life. Treat each day the same, don’t write off days as being “bad, they still count towards the total work of art.
12. Cherie Gilderbloom on Dreaming While Awake
“The best dreams happen when you’re awake.” ~Cherie Gilderbloom |
Living a life that feels like a dream is the ultimate goal, isn’t it? You don’t want to save your best experiences for dreams experienced while you’re sleeping, because as tantalizing as they are they aren’t real. Having real moment in life that feel surreal and dreamlike is a wonderful thing to have, and the good news is that you can create this with focus and determination by making it your goal. Pick something you think would be a dream to be, do, or have, and then put all of your resources into attaining it. When you get there once you’ll be hooked, and you’ll want to move onto the next dreamlike moment.
13. Christopher Reeve and the Power of Hope
“Once you choose hope, anything’s possible.” ~Christopher Reeve |
The opposite of this quote is also true, once you give up hope or choose hopelessness, nothing’s possible. Hope is the feeling that things will somehow get better, that they will somehow work out. You don’t even have to know how it will happen, but it’s the believe or even the wish that it will. That’s why it’s never a good idea to give up hope because you just don’t know how things will pan out. When going about your day it’s better to feel hopeful about the things you’re working on, or the task at hand. If you have hope, it’s quite possible that it can all turn out for the best.
14. T.S. Eliot on Starting Anew
“Every moment is a fresh beginning.” ~T.S. Eliot |
It’s interesting to think that you can start anew with each passing moment. You can let go of the past, let go of whatever is holding you back, and start again, doing whatever it is you want to do. It’s refreshing to know that the present is not entirely enmeshed in the past, and your future is being created moment by moment. If you’ve been mired in doubt and hesitation to start a new project or to mend a relationship because of things that have happened to you in the past, remember that this moment is totally new and you can move in the direction you want to go.
15. Charles Kettering on Failure as an Impossibility
What a great way to greet the world! Acting might come before believing on this one, as it’s not an easy task to believe that it’s impossible to fail. It might be a case of faking it until you make it, taking bold actions as if you really believe that you can’t fail, and then building up your confidence and your belief that you really can’t. Even if things don’t work out you still infused them with the right energy, rather than taking a defeatist approach that it probably wouldn’t work. It means you’ll try bigger and bolder things than if you are doubting yourself the whole time.
16. Muhammad Ali on Counting Days
“Don’t count the days, make the days count.” ~Muhammad Ali |
It can be dangerous to start counting down your days, because you want to make each one count. But many times there will be an event coming up that makes you start counting down how many days until it arrives. But each day between now and then is important, and you don’t want to breeze over any part of your life just to get to the next, seemingly better part. Putting the most of yourself into each day will make it so you never have any regrets about how you spent your time here, and you’ll know that you really did make it count each day.
17. Jimmy Johnson on Giving That Little Extra
“The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little extra.” ~Jimmy Johnson |
This is a cute way of pointing out the difference between what makes things extraordinary rather than ordinary. It really is a matter of a few degrees, going that little bit further to push things past the point of regularity. The key is that you want to always strive for the extraordinary. Doing a few extraordinary things might make you complacent, and ready to rest on your laurels. But then you run the risk of slipping back into ordinary behaviors. Always ask yourself if what you’re doing is ordinary or extraordinary and then give that little extra if needed.
18. Henry David Thoreau on Hitting the Target
“You must not only aim right, but draw the bow with all your might.” ~Henry David Thoreau |
Thoreau points out that it’s not enough to get yourself focused in the right direction, but also to give as much effort as possible to propel yourself forward. The situation can arise where you know exactly where you want to go, but you just can’t muster up the motivation to build up the momentum to get you there. Another point to consider is that you can spend a lot of energy and give a lot of action, but if you’re not pointed in the right direction you won’t end up where you want to be. Both are necessary for true success and progress.
19. Elizabeth Barrett Browning on How to Use Today
“Light tomorrow with today.” ~Elizabeth Barrett Browning |
Today is your opportunity to make your tomorrow better. If you think of it from the point that your today is the result of your yesterdays, it’s clear that what you are doing today is either moving your forward or moving you backward. That’s why you want to grab today by the horns and make the most of it as you can. Do that enough times and you’ll start to see signs that your todays are getting better, which only sets you up better and better for tomorrow. You can find yourself in negative or positive spiral based on how well you are spending your days.
20. Will Rogers on Keeping on the Right Track
“Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” ~Will Rogers |
It’s often hard just getting on the right track, but you have to remember that once you’re there it’s no place to idle. You’ve got to not only get on the right track, but move yourself forward along that track once you make it there. If it took you a long time to get on the right track, you may find it daunting to have to still give a strong effort to stay on it. But things get easier as you go along, and once you have the hang of it it’s easy to stay on the right track and keep the pace so you don’t get run over.
“The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson |
Not just the creation of a thousand forests, but thousands of wooden products like desks and chairs. That acorn has a lot to offer, so don’t be discouraged if the tasks you’re completing seem miniscule. The potential of each little thing you do is great, and can lead to big things. You can also look at your ideas as the acorn, with so much abundance locked within, all that is required is the proper nutrition to get it to grow and produce more seeds, more ideas to grow into big trees. There are many ways to look at this saying, but its core message is that big things come in small packages.
