40 Favorite Quotes That Have Changed my Life
There really is nothing like your favorite quote or sound bite to make you stop and think.
Let us know your favorite quotes in the comment section at the end of the article.
I call them the “aha,” or “hit me in the head because they are so profound,” moments.
These tidbits help shape our lives and our feelings around certain situations.
There are many that I love, but these resonate with me the most.
Check out our most popular quote article, a list of short inspirational quotes for daily inspiration.
Check out our entire collection of motivational quotes here.
Favorite Quotes From Incredible People
1. Maya Angelou wrote, “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
2. This translates well in both my personal and my business life. Personally, I think back to my favorite people, and the biggest thing I remember is how safe and warm they made me feel.
They made me believe I could accomplish anything. In business, it means the best customer service and loyalty.
If we treat our customers with love and respect, the whole buying experience will become equally as special as the product they just purchased.
This feeling will bring them back time and time again, and they will share us with their friends and family. Not just because we make good products, but because the connection is real and the feelings are genuine.
3. Maya Angelou also said, “It’s one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself, to forgive. Forgive everybody.”
This one reminds me to be human. And it reminds me that others are human too. It means that harboring hateful feelings, even when wronged, will create stress and bad feelings.
I believe that forgiveness opens our hearts and our heads and allows for clearer thinking. Forgiving ourselves is one of the most basic things if you want to live a happy life.
Everyone messes up. It’s those that learn from their mistakes, forgive themselves, and move on that are the most content people in the world. If you don’t forgive yourself, you will forever be saddled with unnecessary guilt.
4. The Go-Giver is one of my favorite business books. It is a simple story with a big message.
There are 5 Laws of Stratospheric Success, and they are all good. However, two draw me in all the time. The first is The Law of Authenticity – “The most valuable gift you have to offer is yourself.”
In life and in business, giving of your true self will get you the most authentic response and actions. In life, it means always being 100% real. Many businesses create fantastic products and services.
However, it is the person, the you, behind the brand that people come back to purchase repeatedly. My second favorite from The Go-Giver is The Law of Value – “Your true worth is determined by how much more you give in value than you take in payment.”
Personally, this quote makes me remember to give my all to my family, friends, and myself, too, without worrying about a “favor for favor” mentality. In business, it reminds me to give my customers more.
More product filled in their jars and more customer service to satisfy their needs. We want them to have value way beyond the item they bought.
If you’re enjoying this article, make sure to also check out these wise sayings about life to expand your understanding.
5. Anna Quindlen has written some wonderful books, but her speeches and quotes have always been an inspiration to me. This one in particular, “All of us want to do well. But if we do not do good, too, then doing well will never be enough,” makes me remember to be humble and to give back.
It makes me want to do more than just go to work and make something to sell. It made me start a fundraiser for Breast Cancer because I know many survivors and others going through treatment.
2016 will be our 10th event. It has made me create products that donate with each purchase. I am grateful for what I have in my life, and so doing good is one way I can say thank you.
6. Another quote by Anna Quindlen resonates with my way of life and state of mind. “Think of life as a terminal illness because if you do you will live it with joy and passion as it ought to be lived.”
I love life. Yes, I have had many sad/bad things happen. I have lost best friends and loved ones to disease and heart attacks, and a mugging, even.
I have been through personal strife as well. But, I see the beauty of love and life amongst the strife. I embrace its challenges because I see so much joy, too. I think apathy is one of the saddest things, and so I do my best to be passionate about everything I am trying to do.
7. Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “When you were born you were crying and everyone else was smiling. Live your life so at the end, you’re the one who is smiling and everyone else is crying.”
This makes me remember to live a full, loving, adventurous life. To be kind and giving to the people that matter. If I do, then when I am gone, I will have satisfied all my desires, and they will cry because they miss my passion and my smile.
I fill my days with people that make a difference. This is the same way I try to run my business. This translates into caring friends, great customers, and loving family.
8. “Lowest price is not always the best value,” is a quote I use often! Yes, businesses can undercut to the bottom of the pricing barrel, but for what reason?
After the first sale, you hope the customer will be back, but if they come again, they’ll want the same reduced pricing and not what you should charge. I think it is better to place a real and true value on something and not the lowest price.
I stopped trying to justify our pricing structure ages ago, and not one person complained. I think it is because they all knew they were getting great value.
9. “The happiest of people don’t necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way.”
Various people have said this in different ways, and it makes sense every time. Wanting more and more leads to emptiness and sadness for what you don’t have.
Why bother with this self-torture? Loving your life and what you have been lucky enough to put in it leads to pride and ultimate satisfaction.
10. Alfred Tucker had said, “What’ up? Whatever’s not down!” more times than I could ever count.
It is his favorite quote and one I hear in my head all the time. My dad has Alzheimer’s disease, and what I wouldn’t give to hear him say it again. It reminds me to always look up both physically and mentally.
It makes me alert to my surroundings and to the people in them. It makes me remember that the glass can be half full, too. And it’s a pretty glass too.
There are so many more. However, I believe these quotes literally have changed my thinking and, therefore, my life. I use them all the time.
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11. “At any given moment, you have the power to say: this is not how the story is going to end.” — Christine Mason Miller
12. “Do what is right, not what is easy nor what is popular.” — Roy T. Bennett
13. “If there’s a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.” — Toni Morrison
14. “Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.” — Arthur Ashe
15. “By changing nothing, nothing changes.” — Tony Robbins
16. “You can, you should, and if you’re brave enough to start, you will.” — Stephen King
17. “A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for.” — John A. Shedd
18. “Fear is forward. No one is afraid of yesterday.” — Renata Adler
19. “There is nothing brilliant or outstanding in my record, except perhaps this one thing. I do the things I believe ought to be done. And when I make up my mind to do a thing, I act.” —Theodore Roosevelt
20. “The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision.” — Helen Keller
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21. “The measure of intelligence is the ability to change.” — Albert Einstein
22. “Every day the clock resets. Your wins don’t matter. Your failures don’t matter. Don’t stress on what was, fight for what could be.” — Sean Higgins
23. “Play to your strengths. If you aren’t great at something, do more of what you’re great at.” — Jason Lemkin
24. “Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.” — Harriet Tubman
25. “Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.” ― Rumi
26. “When you have a dream, you’ve got to grab it and never let go.” — Carol Burnett
27. “The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.” — Michael Altshuler
28. “Keep your face always toward the sunshine, and shadows will fall behind you.” — Walt Whitman
29. “Be courageous. Challenge orthodoxy. Stand up for what you believe in. When you are in your rocking chair talking to your grandchildren many years from now, be sure you have a good story to tell.” — Amal Clooney
30. “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” — Winston Churchill
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31. “Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.” — Mahatma Gandhi
32. “Believe you can, and you’re halfway there.” — Theodore Roosevelt
33. “Believe and act as if it were impossible to fail.” — Charles Kettering
34. “It takes courage to grow up and turn out to be who you really are.” — E.E. Cummings
35. “Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.” — Anais Nin
36. “A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new.” — Albert Einstein
37. “Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.” — Maya Angelou
38. “If you cannot do great things, do small things in a great way.” — Napoleon Hill
39. “In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: It goes on.” — Robert Frost
40. “The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little extra.” — Jimmy Johnson
What are some of your favorite quotes?
Which quote inspires you to live a better life?
Do they come from famous people or people you are close to?
Remember, inspiration can come from anywhere!
Tell us in the comment section below!
