40 Quotes To Empower You To Take Control of Your Life
If you’re going through a funk and need to take control of your life, it often helps to talk to someone who has gone through something similar, to meditate or even go away for a few days on a retreat, or even just spend some time reflecting upon a few inspirational quotes.
For many, sitting down and reflecting is the easiest way to start, so we’ve compiled a few of our favorite inspirational quotes that will help inspire you to take control of your life.
40. Failure Is Good for Us
“Failure is the condiment that gives success its flavor.”
— Truman Capote
39. Be True To Yourself
“The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson
38. Learn From Your Failures
“Not taking failures personally allows us to recover — and even to thrive.”
— Cheryl Sandberg
Author of Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead, and the founder of Leanin.org, an organization devoted to empowering women, Cheryl Sandberg was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine in 2012. See how she told Harvard’s graduating class to take control in her commencement speech.
37. Stand Up for What You Believe
“You have enemies? Good. That means you’ve stood up for something, sometime in your life.”
— Sir Winston Churchill
36. Happiness Is a Choice
“Happiness is an attitude. We either make ourselves miserable, or happy and strong. The amount of work is the same.”
— Francesca Reigler
35. On Being Driven
“Success isn’t a result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire.”
— Arnold Glasgow
34. Never Settle
“Don’t settle. Don’t finish crappy books. If you don’t like the menu, leave the restaurant. If you’re not on the right path, get off it.”
— Chris Brogan
33. On Looking Inward
“Adventure is not outside man; it is within.”
— George Eliot
32. On How You Look At The World
“We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.”
— Oscar Wilde
31. Make Good Choices
“It is our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.”
— J.K. Rowling
30. Never Give Up
“It is never too late to be who you might have been.”
— George Eliot
29. Don’t Wait for Things To Happen; Make Them Happen
“If your ship doesn’t come in, swim out to it.”
— Jonathan Winters
28. Just Try
“You get older and you learn there is one sentence, just four words long, and if you can say it to yourself it offers more comfort than almost any other. It goes like this: At least I tried.”
— Ann Brashares
27. Have Faith
“Whether you say you can or you can’t, you’re right.”
— Walt Disney
26. Don’t Give in to Negativity
“If you hear a voice within you say ‘you cannot paint,’ then by all means paint and that voice will be silenced.”
— Vincent Van Gogh
25. Take Action
“You can’t just hope for happy endings. You have to believe in them. Then do the work, take the risks.”
— Nora Roberts
24. Never Quit. And At Least Try To Stay Positive.
“Never despair. But if you do, work on in despair.”
— Edmund Burke
23. Dare
“Fortune sides with him who dares.”
— Virgil
22. Believe in Yourself
“You are as amazing as you let yourself be. Let me repeat that. You are as amazing as you let yourself be.”
— Elizabeth Alraune
21. Don’t Despair
“Don’t let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.”
— John R. Wooden
20. Strategize
“You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.”
— Margaret Thatcher
19. Remember: You Are Powerful
“The most common waypeople give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.”
— Alice Walker
18. You Are Your Own Worst Enemy
“If you could kick the person in the pants responsible for most of your trouble, you wouldn’t sit for a month.”
— Theodore Roosevelt
17. Realize The Things You Can Change and The Things You Cannot
“Incredible change happens in your life when you decide to take control of what you do have power over instead of craving control over what you don’t.”
— Steve Maraboli
16. Fight for Yourself
“Stop fighting yourself and start fighting for yourself.”
— The Revolutionary Impact
15. Be Brave
“Somedays there won’t be a song in your heart. Sing anyway.”
— Emory Austin
14. You Can Change Your Future
“Every time you are tempted to react in the same old way, ask yourself if you want to be a prisoner of the past or a pioneer of the future.”
— Deepak Chopra
13. Live Without Limits
“When we argue for our limitations, we get to keep them.”
— Evelyn Waugh
12. Remember: You Are Invincible
“In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer.”
— Albert Camus
11. It’s Okay To Walk Away
“Respect yourself enough to walk away from anything that no longer serves you, grows you, or makes you happy.”
— Robert Tew
10. Desire Can Take You To Great Heights
“I survived because the fire inside me burned brighter than the fire around me.”
— Joshua Graham
9. Don’t Wait for Opportunity – Make It
“Opportunity does not knock, it presents itself when you beat down the door.”
— Kyle Chandler
8. Let The Past Stay There
“Stop being a prisoner of your past. Become the architect of your future.”
— Robin Sharma
7. Decide Who You Want to Be
“You’ve got a lot of choices. If getting out of bed in the morning is a chore and you’renot smiling on a regular basis, try another choice.”
— Steven D. Woodhull
6. Don’t Waste Away in Misery
“If you ever find yourself in the wrong story, leave.”
— Mo Willems
5. Don’t Be Afraid To Ask for What You Want
“A lot of people are afraid to say what they want. That’s why they don’t get what they want.”
— Madonna
4. You Control Your Destiny
“Your past does not equal your future.”
— Tony Robbins
Perhaps one of the most well known and inspirational speakers of our time, Tony Robbins teaches people how to take control of their lives and change their destiny. Check out his new Netflix exclusive, I Am Not Your Guru.
3. If You’re Not Happy, Make a Change
“Stand up and walk out of your history.”
— Dr. Phil McGraw
2. Never Give Up
“Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence.”
— Helen Keller
1. Charity Is Everything
“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.”
— Sir Winston Churchill
Do you have a favorite quote you turn to when you need inspiration to take control of your life? Want more inspiration? Click “Next Story” to read some of our favorite Stephen Hawking quotes.
