50 Compass Quotes to Make Sure You Are Never Lost

By Stephanie Kirby

Writer, Entrepreneur and Inspirational quote curator

Published March 7, 2023

You will love these compass quotes that show how vital this way-finding tool is.

A compass is a handheld navigation tool that shows the four cardinal points, North, East, South, and West, on its face.

A compass is a tool that can:

keep you from getting lost
help you out when you are lost
save your life by directing you back to safety

Tell us your favorite compass quote in the comment section below.

Some compasses also have points for NorthEast, SouthEast, SouthWest, and NorthWest, but all compasses have a point that shows which way is North.

Using the compass to determine North allows you to determine the other cardinal directions.

This can lead you to your desired destination.

There are many types of compasses that you can learn more about, including:

magnetic compasses
gyrocompasses
thumb compasses

Enjoy learning more about the compass through these compass quotes!

Best compass quotes

We love to connect the use of a compass to real life, as you’ll see in these quotes.

1. “Democracy needs a moral compass.” — Jill Stein

2. “Conscience is a man’s compass.” — Vincent Van Gogh

3. “Develop your own compass, and trust it.” — Aaron Sorkin

4. “Live your life by a compass, not a clock.” — Stephen Covey

5. “One’s vision is not a road map but a compass.” — Peter Block

6. “Desire sets our compass, but real life steers our course.” — Mitch Albom

7. “A nation cannot be truly great without a moral compass.” — Marcia Fudge

8. “Whatever happens here, trust your heart. It’s as true as any compass.” — Dean Koontz

9. “You don’t throw a compass overboard because the ocean is calm.” — Matshona Dhilwayo

10. “A good leader has a compass in their head and a magnet in their heart.” — Howard G. Hendricks

Compass Quotes that relate to real life

As you’ll see in these quotes, there are many uses for compasses.

11. “We are asleep with compasses in our hands.” — W. S. Merwin

12. “Living without an aim is like sailing without a compass.” — John Ruskin

13. “Conscience is our magnetic compass; reason our chart.” — Joseph Cook

14. “You need to adjust your compass to an obtainable goal.” — Guillermo del Toro

15. “I always have a sense of trembling, but so does a compass, after all.” — Jerzy Kosiński

16. “Kids who evolve into creative adults tend to have a strong moral compass.” — Adam Grant

17. “I think of the inner voice as a compass or as a way-shower to guide our path.” — Echo Bodine

18. “The biggest challenge, I think, is always maintaining your moral compass.” — Barack Obama

19. “For all the compasses in the world, there’s only one direction, and time is its only measure.” — Tom Stoppard

20. “The artist is the compass which, through the raging of the storm, points steadily to the north.” — Romain Rolland

Compass quotes to point you north

Your inner compass can guide you in life, love, and relationships, as shown in these quotes.

21. “Your personal values are the best compass for your unique journey.” — Chris Hutchinson

22. “Creativity is like a compass; each one has its own, and all point to the North.” — Efrat Cybulkiewicz

23. “On the ocean of life, let your mind be the ship, and your heart be the compass.” — James David Manning

24. “If you have a moral compass, and you stay with it, people will always gravitate towards you.” — Carol Alt

25. “Fear is not your enemy. It is a compass pointing you to the areas where you need to grow.” — Steve Pavlina

26. “My kids are at a point in their lives where I’m a moral compass for them. God help them both.” — Jack Wagner

25. “He never broke my heart. He only turned it into a compass that always points me back to him.” — Clementine von Radics

28. “Let your heart be your compass, your mind your map, your soul your guide, and you will never get lost.” — Ritu Ghatourey

29. “Much of the world’s moral compass is broken. The moral north reads south, and the moral south reads north.” — Dennis Prager

30. “Families are the compass that guide us. They are the inspiration to reach great heights, and our comfort when we occasionally falter.” — Brad Henry

Compass quotes to motivate you

If you need a little motivation to follow your dreams, these quotes are for you.

31. “If you don t know where you are, a map won’t help.” —Watts Humphrey

32. “There are no points of the compass on the chart of true patriotism.” — Robert Charles Winthrop

33. “Listen to the compass of your heart. All you need lies within you.” — Mary Ann Radmacher

34. “A rusted nail, placed near the faithful compass, Will sway it from the truth, and wreck the argosy.” — Walter Scott

35. “When kindness is your compass, you will find guidance to the right path in this life and the next.” — Stewart Stafford

36. “Why is it that we don’t worry about a compass until we’re lost in a wilderness of our own making?” — Craig D Lounsbrough

37. “It is necessary to keep one’s compass in one’s eyes and not in the hand, for the hands execute, but the eye judges.” — Michelangelo

38. “Every man has to learn the points of the compass again as often as he awakes, whether from sleep or any abstraction.” — Henry David Thoreau

39. “If you persevere, stick with it, work at it, you have a real opportunity to achieve. If you do your best and keep a true compass, you’ll get there.” — Edward Kennedy

40. “People travel to wonder at the height of mountains, at the huge waves of the sea, at the long courses of rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean, at the circular motion of the stars; and they pass by themselves without wondering.” — Saint Augustine

Inspirational compass quotes for the journey of life

Find inspiration in these quotes as you navigate the challenges of life.

41. “Ask to know what you are born to do. Follow the compass of joy.” — Barbara Marx Hubbard

42. “Every mind has a new compass, a new direction of its own, differencing its genius and aim from every other mind.” — Ralph Waldo Emmerson

43. “Having an exciting destination is like setting a needle in your compass. From then on, the compass knows only one point – it’s ideal.” — Daniel Boone

44. “Education is of no value, and talent is worthless—unless you have an unwavering aim. Never find yourself without a compass.” — Condoleezza Rice

45. “The only map of your right life is written on your soul at its most peaceful, and the only sure compass is your heart at its most open.” — Martha Beck

46. “Sometimes, in order to follow our moral compass and/or our hearts, we have to make unpopular decisions or stand up for what we believe in.” — Tabatha Coffey

47. “He who loves practice without theory is like the sailor who boards ship without a rudder and compass and never knows where he may cast.” — Leonardo da Vinci

48. “True beauty is about who you are as a human being, your principles, your moral compass.” — Ellen DeGeneres

49. “A compass calibrated by my greed is a rather shrewd way to legitimize my agenda. However, true north on a compass such as this is a straight line to the edge of a really big cliff.” — Craig D Lounsbrough

50. “Because your own strength is unequal to the task, do not assume that it is beyond the powers of man; but if anything is within the powers and province of man, believe that it is within your own compass also.” — Marcus Aurelius