150 Short Mirror Quotes That Will Change Your Perception

Today, we have brought you a collection of mirror quotes from insightful minds to change the way you see its reflective surface. 

The mirror is the muse of many, be it authors, poets, artists, or musicians.

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

According to a study by Harvard Business Review, reflecting on our progress and learning from it can increase job performance by 23%.

To be successful, it’s essential to evaluate our progress constantly, and mirror quotes can be a helpful tool to remind us of the importance of reflecting and learning from our experiences.

What are the benefits of reading these mirror quotes?

The mirror has an early history, dating back to 6000 BC in Anatolia, otherwise known as modern-day Turkey.

Mirrors have been constructed from many materials, including:

• Stone
• Copper
• Bronze

Metal-coated glass mirrors, which are most commonly used today, were first produced in the first-century A.D. in Sidon, modern-day Lebanon.

Since its initial production thousands of years ago, many have been inspired by mirrors, whether conceptually or literally. 

Below is our collection of mirror quotes to highlight how great minds around us view mirrors. 

Reading these mirror quotes will:

• Cause you to evaluate your perception of the things around you
• Give you a new perspective on self-love, self-worth, and the opinions of others
• Leave you with some wise and inspiring thoughts to keep you motivated

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. 

Mirror quotes about perception

According to a study by the University of Pennsylvania, regularly reflecting on our progress can increase motivation and self-awareness, leading to higher levels of achievement.

Reflecting on our progress can help us stay motivated and on track toward our goals, and mirror quotes can provide a helpful prompt to engage in this reflection regularly.

1. “My job has always been to hold a mirror up to nature.” – Tom Hanks

2. “Let us be grateful to the mirror for revealing to us our appearance only.” – Samuel Butler

3. “I think it’s important to hold a mirror up to society and yourself.” – Ricky Gervais

4. “If art reflects life, it does so with special mirrors.” – Bertolt Brecht

5. “Look in a mirror and one thing’s sure; what we see is not who we are.” – Richard Bach

6. “Every man carries with him through life a mirror, as unique and impossible to get rid of as his shadow.” – W.H. Auden

7. “We look into mirrors but we only see the effects of our times on us – not our effects on others.” – Pearl Bailey

8. “Who sees the human face correctly: the photographer, the mirror, or the painter?” – Pablo Picasso

You will also enjoy our article on transformation quotes.

9. “The world is a great mirror. It reflects back to you what you are.” – Thomas Dreier

You will also enjoy our article on ricky gervais quotes.

Mirror quotes that will change the way you think

A research paper published in the Journal of Applied Psychology found that individuals who reflected on their work had a greater sense of personal learning and job satisfaction.

Mirror quotes can inspire us to engage in this reflection.

10. “A man’s manners are a mirror in which he shows his portrait.” – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

11. “Our environment, the world in which we live and work, is a mirror of our attitudes and expectations.” – Earl Nightingale

12. “I know that mirrors give us a false sense of confidence. I continued. The reflection that we see every day has nothing to do with how others see us. The glass lies.” – Rasmenia Massoud

13. “I’m a mirror. If you’re cool with me, I’m cool with you, and the exchange starts. What you see is what you reflect. If you don’t like what you see, then you’ve done something.” – Jay-Z

14. “I learned, when I look in the mirror and tell my story, that I should be myself and not peep whatever everybody is doing.” – Kendrick Lamar

You will also enjoy our article on The Karate Kid quotes.

15. “I used to live in a room full of mirrors; all I could see was me. I take my spirit and I crash my mirrors, now the whole world is here for me to see.” – Jimi Hendrix

You will also enjoy our article on smart quotes.

16. “We only see what we want to see; we only hear what we want to hear. Our belief system is just like a mirror that only shows us what we believe.” – Don Miguel Ruiz

You will also enjoy our article on criticism quotes.

17. “The mirror can lie. Doesn’t show you what’s inside. And it, it can tell you you’re full of life. It’s amazing what you can hide just by putting on a smile.” – Demi Lovato

You might also like these perception quotes about truth and reality.

Mirror quotes about self-love

18. “Never look down on yourself when the whole world turn against you, just look in the mirror then you’ll find out that you’re not alone. That person you see in the mirror is your reflection, it shows that even if everybody ignore you it will always stick around with you.” – Usman Ismaheel

You will also enjoy our article on self acceptance quotes.

19. “Smile in the mirror. Do that every morning and you’ll start to see a big difference in your life.” – Yoko Ono

20. “I had to fight, a lot of years, to be really proud of the person I see in the mirror and really love this person.” – Jonathan Van Ness

21. “Stop saying these negative things about yourself. Look in the mirror and find something about yourself that’s positive and celebrate that!” – Tyra Banks

22. “I used to look in the mirror and feel shame, I look in the mirror now and I absolutely love myself.” – Drew Barrymore

23. “It’s really important to talk to yourself and look at yourself in the mirror and love who you are.” – Lilly Singh

24. “You decide how to show up, and you’d better come correct: the way you look, what you say, how you act and react. No excuses! Get in front of the mirror and own what you see. You may have to drag your fabulousness out of hiding, but it’s there.” – Alyssa Edwards

Be sure to take a minute and check out these hiding quotes!

25. “When I was around 18, I looked in the mirror and said, ‘You’re either going to love yourself or hate yourself.’ And I decided to love myself. That changed a lot of things.” – Queen Latifah

26. “There’s nothing more, nothing better in life to wake up in the morning, look at yourself in the mirror, and feel comfortable with yourself and who you are.” – Caitlyn Jenner

27. “Do you want to meet the love of your life? Look in the mirror.” – Byron Katie

28. “Nobody needs to prove to anybody what they’re worthy of, just the person that they look at in the mirror. That’s the only person you need to answer to.” – Picabo Street

You might also like these self-worth quotes and sayings to boost your confidence.

Mirror quotes about life

29. “Mirror should think longer before they reflect.” – Jean Cocteau

30. “Mirrors don’t lie. They only show a part of truth. A broken mirror can enlarge a face up to a dimension of a small planet. A problem of reflection? A point of view.” – Lara Biyuts

31. “Everybody else needs mirrors to remind themselves who they are. You’re no different.” – Jonathan Nolan

32. “Whatever may be their use in civilized societies, mirrors are essential to all violent and heroic action.” – Virginia Woolf (see more quotes from Virginia Woolf)

33. “Mirrors are ice which do not melt: what melts are those who admire themselves in them.” – Paul Morand

34. “The mirror is a powerful tool because it forces you to deal with yourself on a deeper level.” – Mickalene Thomas

35. “The mirror is my best friend, because when I cry it never laughs.” – Charlie Chaplin (see more Charlie Chaplin quotes)

36. “No matter what’s behind us in the rearview mirror, it’s always about what’s next.” – Dabo Swinney

37. “Life is a mirror and will reflect back to the thinker what he thinks into it.” – Ernest Holmes

38. “The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows.” – Sydney J. Harris

39. “The face is the mirror of the mind, and eyes without speaking confess the secrets of the heart.” – St. Jerome

40. “A true soul mate is a mirror, the person who shows you everything that is holding you back, the person who brings you to your own attention so you can change your life.” – Elizabeth Gilbert

41. “Everything in your life, every experience, every relationship is a mirror of the mental pattern that is going on inside of you.” – Louise Hay

42. “I love mirrors. They let one pass through the surface of things.” – Claude Chabrol

43. “The best mirror is an old friend.” – George Herbert

Also check out these motivational RuPaul quotes that will help boost your self confidence.

Inspirational mirror quotes

44. “There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it.” – Edith Wharton

45. “Beauty is eternity gazing at itself in a mirror.” – Khalil Gibran

46. “When I look at myself in the mirror, I don’t see the bad guy.” ― Patrick Heusinger

47. “Don’t stare into a mirror when you are trying to solve a problem.” – Mason Cooley

48. “Hold up a mirror and ask yourself what you are capable of doing, and what you really care about. Then take the initiative – don’t wait for someone else to ask you to act.” – Sylvia Earle

49. “Go look in the mirror and have a talk with your real boss.” ― Bryant McGill

50. “To live in prison is to live without mirrors. To live without mirrors is to live without the self.” – Margaret Atwood (see more Margaret Atwood quotes)

More mirror quotes and sayings

51. “Never pass a mirror without looking at it.” ― Cheryl Blossom, Riverdale

52. “The world is the mirror of myself dying.” – Henry Miller

53. “All sorts of things in this world behave like mirrors.” – Acques Lacan

54. “The world is a mirror representing the divine life.” – William A. Dembski

55. “Everyone is a mirror image of yourself-your own thinking coming back to you.” – Byron Katie

56. “We drive into the future using only our rearview mirror.” – Marshall McLuhan

57. “Good actors I’ve worked with all started out making faces in a mirror, and you keep making faces all your life.” – Bette Davis

58. “It’s like your my mirror, my mirror staring back at me.” – Justin Timberlake, “Mirrors”

59. “I find it painful and angering to look in a mirror.” – Jack Abbott

60. “Family faces are magic mirrors. Looking at people who belong to us, we see the past, present and future.” – Gail Buckley

Mirror quotes to reflect on

61. “The mirror is the worst judge of true beauty”  – Sophia Nam 

62. “What does a mirror look at?”  – Frank Herbert

63. “A beautiful woman should break her mirror early.”  – Balthasar Gracian

64. “Mirrors show us what we look like, not who we are.” – Unknown

65. “Look in the mirror, and laugh at yourself.” ― Bernie Glassman

66. “Only see the truth when I’m staring in the mirror.” – Drake, “Used To”

67. “If you’re searching for the one person who can change your life, take a look in the mirror.” – Unknown

68. “Before you criticize, look at the mirror first!” ― Prathit Mahapatra

69. “The only two words you should ever say to a mirror are ‘Hello, Beautiful.'” ― Richelle E. Goodrich

70. “The person in the mirror is your only competition.” – Unknown

Thought-provoking mirror quotes

71. “And if you can’t see anything beautiful about yourself, get a better mirror.” – Shane L. Koyczan

72. “Mirror becomes a razor when it’s broken.” – Yoko Ono

73. “Looking at yourself in a mirror isn’t exactly a study of life.” – Lauren Bacall

74. “You can’t see the world through a mirror.” – Avril Lavinge

75. “Nobody really knows what they look like. The mirror shows you only what you want to see.” – Terry Wogan

76. “Broken bones can heal, but a broken mirror must be replaced.” – Luke Taylor

77. “I leaned over the sink, closer to my reflection, and stare at myself hard. I don’t know what I see I don’t even know what I want to see.” – Nina LaCour

78. “I don’t care what people think about me. When I look in the mirror, I wanna like what I see.” – Kat Von D

79. “Film is a mirror. I want to see more filmmakers. We all want to see ourselves.” – Ava DuVernay

80. “When I look in the mirror, I also see a mother and a wife and someone I am proud to be. I see an advocate. I see a survivor.” – Elizabeth Smart

Mirror Quotes To Clear Your Mind

81. “I stare at the mirror as I try to remember who I am and who I am not.” — Suzanne Collins

82. “The pure heart is a spotless mirror in which images of infinite beauty are reflected.” — Rumi

83. “Maturity is when all of your mirrors turn into windows.” — Henry David Thoreau

84. “Before you leave the house, look in the mirror and remove one accessory.” — Coco Chanel

85. “Life is for each man a solitary cell whose walls are mirrors.” — Eugene O’Neill

86. “A game is like a mirror that allows you to look at yourself.” — Robert Kiyosaki

87. “Shadows cannot see themselves in the mirror of the sun.” — Evita Peron

88. “Books are mirrors: you only see in them what you already have inside you.” — Carlos Ruiz Zafon

89. “It’s the spectator and not life, that art really mirrors.” — Oscar Wilde

90. “Water is the mirror of nature.” — Francis of Assisi

Mirror Quotes To Give You Confidence

91. “Art is sometimes likened to a mirror… an expression of universal human truth, executed with a degree of skill.” — Sara Genn

92. “I also dance to music that makes me feel sexy in front of a mirror.” — Alannah Myles

93. “When I started working with mirrors, it seemed to be the perfect material to stand in for that waiting.” — Jim Hodges

94. “And I usually use myself as a model, posing in front of a mirror as I dab the strokes on the canvas.” — Cleo Moore

95. “Sometimes, when I’m alone, I put on six inch heels and wear nothing else and dance around in front of the mirror and do my little stripper dance.” — Tori Spelling

96. “Lovers are mirrors to each other. Love makes you aware of your original face.” — Rajneesh

97. “I never felt so close to a guitar as that silver one with mirrors that I used on stage all the time.” — Syd Barrett

98. “Lord knows, I never want to waste any more of my time in mirrors.” — Lauren Hutton

99. “One day I took the list into the bathroom, and I put it up against my face and looked in the mirror, and I realized I had one of two choices, change the list or change myself.” — Star Jones

100. “When I draw a character, very often as I’m doing a face, my face mirrors the expression.” — Matthew Ashford

Mirror Quotes About Art

101. “Looking at yourself through the media is like looking at one of those rippled mirrors in an amusement park.” — Edmund Muskie

102. “Poetry, it is often said and loudly so, is life’s true mirror. But a monkey looking into a work of literature looks in vain for Socrates.” — Franz Grillparzer

103. Sure, being a reservist wasn’t as glamorous, but I was the one who had to look at myself in the mirror.” — Larry David

104. “Look in the mirror. The face that pins you with its double gaze reveals a chastening secret.” — Diane Ackerman

105. “I stare at myself in the mirror and I think, ‘Wow, I’m really great-looking.’… I think I’m the greatest, anyway.” — Iggy Pop

106. “Art is not a mirror held up to reality but a hammer with which to shape it.” — Bertolt Brecht

107. “It doesn’t upset artists to find out that artists used lenses or mirrors or other aids, but it certainly does upset the art historians.” — Chuck Close

108. “The earth we inhabit is an error, an incompetent parody. Mirrors and paternity are abominable because they multiply and affirm it.” — Jorge Luis Borges

109. “Inside you’re like some kind of mirror, reflecting everything without absorbing it.” — Arthur J. Deikman

110. “Were there not these still mirrors to reflect the beauty of the heavens to us, it might be lost to eyes so seldom lifted upwards.” — John Sullivan Dwight

Mirror Quotes To Give You Confidence

111. “Instead of pointing out the faults of others, look in the mirror, find your own faults and start to better yourself. That should keep you busy!” — Nishan Panwar

112. “Looking in the mirror, staring back at me isn’t so much a face as the expression of a predicament.” — Colin Firth

113. “The eye is not open when it is limited to the passive role of a mirror… if it has only the capacity to reflect.” — Andre Breton

114. “When I look back on my life, I see pain, mistakes and heart ache. When I look in the mirror, I see strength, learned lessons, and pride in myself.” — Ritu Ghatourey

115. “If you begin to think you’re something you’re not, you’re looking in the wrong mirror.” — Eugene Cernan

116. “When I look in the mirror and the only one there is me. Every freckle on my face is where its suppose to be.” — India Arie

117. “The practice mirror is to be used for the correction of faults, not for a love affair, and the figure you watch should not become your dearest friend.” — Agnes De Mille

118. “My fashion advice is to have a flattering mirror & then forget about it.” — Vivienne Westwood

119. “Fantasy mirrors desire. Imagination reshapes it.” — Mason Cooley

120. “The world is like a mirror; frown at it, and it frowns at you. Smile and it smiles, too.” — Herbert Samuel

Exploring the Wisdom and Beauty in Mirror Quotes

121. “A mirror reflects not just your appearance, but the strength and beauty that lie within.” ― Michelle Obama

122. “In the mirror, we see more than a reflection; we witness the evolution of our soul.” ― Nelson Mandela

123. The mirror doesn’t just show your face; it reveals the journey of your life etched in every line.” ― Oprah Winfrey

124. “In the mirror’s gaze, find the courage to embrace your imperfections, for they make you beautifully human.” ― Maya Angelou

125. A mirror is a reminder that the person you see is a masterpiece in progress.” ― Desmond Tutu

126. “The mirror reflects not just your image, but the story of your strength, resilience, and grace.” ― Dalai Lama

127. “In the mirror, we confront our true selves, stripped of masks and illusions, and find the power to transform.” ― Audrey Hepburn

128. Your reflection in the mirror is a reminder that you are a work of art, painted with the colors of your experiences.” ― Malala Yousafzai

129. “A mirror is not just a glass; it’s a portal to self-discovery, where you find the depths of your character.” ― Michelle Obama

130. “In the mirror, every scar tells a tale of survival, and every smile narrates a story of resilience.” ― Nelson Mandela

Mirror Quotes for Self-Discovery

131. “The mirror doesn’t define you; it reflects the strength and beauty you carry within.” ― Oprah Winfrey

132. “In the mirror’s truth, find the beauty in your flaws, for they are the brushstrokes that make your portrait unique.” ― Maya Angelou

133. “A mirror is a silent witness to your evolution, reminding you of the battles you’ve won and the victories you’ve earned.” ― Desmond Tutu

134. “The mirror reflects the journey of your soul; every reflection is a chapter in the book of your life.” ― Dalai Lama

135. In the mirror, find not just your image, but the echoes of your dreams and the footprints of your ambitions.” ― Audrey Hepburn

136. “The mirror doesn’t show your limitations; it reflects the boundless potential that resides within you.” ― Malala Yousafzai

137. “Your reflection is a canvas, and you are the artist, painting the masterpiece of your identity.” ― Michelle Obama

138. “In the mirror’s truth, find the strength to love yourself, embracing every curve, scar, and imperfection.” ― Nelson Mandela

139. “A mirror reflects the power of self-love; it’s not just glass, but a portal to your heart.” ― Oprah Winfrey

140. “In the mirror, see not just your face, but the story of your resilience, etched in every line and contour.” ― Maya Angelou

141. “It’s what’s buried deep inside that frightens me because it’s broken, like a shattered mirror.” ― Jessica Sorensen

142. “Every joy is like a piece of mirror: always reflecting..” ― Munia Khan

143. “There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it.” ― Edith Warton

144. “The mirror will only lie, when you look at it through a mask.” ― Anthony Liccione

145. “Trust is like a two-way mirror, transparent on one side, with a blind dimness unable to see through on the other side.” ― Anthony Liccione

146. “The purpose of a writer is to show the beauty and tragedy of life in the reader’s own mirror.” ― Debasish Mridha

147. “In old age, mirror is not a friend!” ― Mehmet Murat ildan

148. “Stop looking in the mirror and forget how you look like; we are all special the way we are.” ― M.F. Moonzajer

149. “Being angry at the mirror won’t change what it is reflecting. If you want to SEE something different, BE something different.” ― Steve Maraboli

150. “Never underestimate the importance of tragedy in life. Don’t fear it, make it the mirror of your life.” ― Debasish Mridha

When’s the last time you looked in the mirror?

Depending on where you are in the journey of self-acceptance, looking in the mirror could unearth feelings of anxiety and sadness.

To combat those negative feelings, recognize those negative thoughts and take them as just that, thoughts.

They aren’t real and they don’t describe the reality of how amazing of a person you are.

Being kind to yourself starts with self-talk.

Treat yourself the same way you would treat a close friend or a family member.

If you feel a negative comment floating around in your head, attack it with a positive one.

Sometimes, the first step of making a positive change is saying it out loud. 

Did we forget a mirror quote or saying that you love?

Let us know in the comments section below.