150 Self-Respect Quotes To Remind You How Much You Matter

These self-respect quotes offer some ideas and examples of what self-respect looks like and its impact on your life.

In the words of the wise and sassy Samantha Jones from Sex and the City, ‘I love you, but I love me more.’

Self-respect is a potent and transformative quality that lies at the core of our self-worth and personal fulfillment.

It is the staunch belief in our own value, boundaries, and deservingness of happiness.

Throughout history, influential figures and thought leaders have shared profound self-respect quotes that inspire us to honor ourselves and cultivate a healthy sense of self.

Let us know your favorite self-respect quote in the comment section below.

What Are The Benefits Of Reading Self-Respect Quotes?

People with a healthy amount of self-respect can take pride in what they do and believe in things like treating people fairly.

You make sure and prioritize your:

• health
• mental well-being
• life goals  

These self-respect quotes will help you understand that you matter!

It is not too difficult to identify those with a high self-respect level.  

A good sign that you might need to work on building up your self-respect is if you constantly try to please others.

Another indicator might be that you feel you are no longer being your “true self.”

Check out these tips for finding yourself and improving the amount of self-respect you have.

Hopefully, these words from authors, philosophers, and writers can inspire you to see how much being you is the most important thing you can bring to the table.

Check out our most popular quote article, a list of short inspirational quotes for daily inspiration. 

Our inspirational quote category page has even more inspirational and educational quotes.

Self-Respect Quotes About How Self-Respect Looks

Research by the University of Kentucky suggests that individuals with high levels of self-respect are more likely to set and achieve their goals and are less likely to engage in self-destructive behaviors. 

This highlights the important role that self-respect plays in promoting personal growth and success.

1. “The greatest thing in the world is to know how to belong to oneself.” ― Michel de Montaigne

2. “Dare to love yourself as if you were a rainbow with gold at both ends.” ― Author-Poet Aberjhani

3. “If your compassion does not include yourself, it is incomplete.” ― Jack Kornfield

4. “Character — the willingness to accept responsibility for one’s own life — is the source from which self-respect springs.” ― Joan Didion

5. “Having healthy boundaries not only requires being able to say “no” but also being willing and able to enforce that “no” when necessary.” ― Jessica Moore

You will also enjoy our article on believe in yourself quotes and sayings.

6. “Everything and anything we communicate to others, communicates to them, how to see us and treat us.” ― Miya Yamanouchi

7. “Self-respect is the root of discipline: The sense of dignity grows with the ability to say no to oneself.” ― Abraham Joshua Heschel

You will also enjoy our article on i deserve better quotes.

8. “Self-control is the chief element in self-respect, and self-respect is the chief element in courage.” ― Thucydides

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9. “Happiness is the highest form of self-respect. A person who allows himself to be happy shows his self-respect.” ― Marty Rubin

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10. “A man with self-confidence has a natural smile on his face, sense in his mind, and strength in his hands.” ― Amit Kalantri

You will also enjoy our article on self care quotes.

11. “The most important form of respect is self-respect. Not only does it show others how to treat themselves, it teaches them how to treat you.” ― Richelle E. Goodrich

Self-Respect Quotes That Remind You To Take Care Of Yourself

A survey by the American Psychological Association found that over 80% of adults believe that having a healthy sense of self-respect is important for leading a successful and fulfilling life. 

This indicates that self-respect is a highly valued trait in our society.

12. “I care for myself. The more solitary, the more friendless, the more unsustained I am, the more I will respect myself.” ― Charlotte Brontë

You will also enjoy our article on integrity quotes-2.

13. “One of the greatest regrets in life is being what others would want you to be, rather than being yourself.” ― Shannon L. Alder

14. “Stand up for who you are. Respect yourself and ignite the divine sparks in you. Access your powers. Choose your rights and work together with others to bring blessings into the lives.” ― Amit Ray

15. “When you are content to be simply yourself and don’t compare or compete, everyone will respect you.” ― Lao Tzu

You will also enjoy our article on people pleaser quotes.

16. “Respect yourself enough to walk away from anything that no longer serves you, grows you, or makes you happy.” ― Robert Tew

17. “Don’t ever stray from yourself, in order to be close to someone that doesn’t have the courtesy to remind you of your worth or the integrity of a gentleman to walk you home.” ― Shannon L. Alder

18. “Do not be scared to say “I love you” to yourself. Stand in front of the mirror and look at yourself and say to yourself as loudly as you can “I love you. I respect you for what you have faced in life. And I love you for what you have become.” ― Avijeet Das

19. “Not being yourself is the worst form of self-disrespect.” ― Mokokoma Mokhonoana

20. “The best gift you can give to others is your presence. The best gift you can give to yourself is perseverance.” ― Maxime Lagacé

21. “Do things that give you happiness, increasing your respect in yourself.” ― Giridhar Alwar

22. “Remember who you are. This creature wants to take it from you. Do not let him.” ― Jim Butcher

23. “I want to feel proud and happy about my selflessness. But what happens when being selfless takes away a big part of yourself?” ― Jaye Robin Brown

If you enjoy this article, check out our collection of reputation quotes everyone must read.

Self-Respect Quotes The Impact It Has On Others

24. “I think the reward for conformity is that everyone likes you except yourself.” ― Rita Mae Brown

25. “Respect yourself and others will respect you.” ― Confucius

26. “If you want to be respected by others, the great thing is to respect yourself. Only by that, only by self-respect will you compel others to respect you.” ― Fyodor Dostoyevsky

27. “Once you embrace your value, talents, and strengths, it neutralizes when others think less of you.” ― Rob Liano

28. “They cannot take away our self-respect if we do not give it to them.” ― Mahatma Gandhi

29. “Deeply respecting yourself is the first step toward having a deep respect for others.” ― Amy Leigh Mercree

30. “Who wouldn’t live in utter despair if their sense of self depended entirely on the opinions of others?” ― Marty Rubin

31. “Their opinions are not your oxygen. They should only fan your fucking flames.” ― Curtis Tyrone Jones

32. “When you like yourself, you are free to enjoy others, and in your presence, people experience an invitation to become and enjoy who they truly are.” ― Stasi Eldredge

33. “The respect you show to others (or lack thereof) is an immediate reflection on your self-respect.” ― Alex Elle

Quotes About Self-Respect That Will Leave You Contemplative

34. “I cannot conceive of a greater loss than the loss of one’s self-respect.” ― Mahatma Gandhi

35. “Never esteem anything as of advantage to you that will make you break your word or lose your self-respect.” ― Marcus Aurelius

36. “In yourself right now is all the place you’ve got.” ― Flannery O’Connor

37. “I have an inward treasure born with me, which can keep me alive if all extraneous delights should be withheld, or offered only at a price I cannot afford to give.” ― Charlotte Brontë

38. “Take your self-respect with you where ever you go and hold onto it tightly. There are many who are just waiting for you to leave it up for grabs.” ― Christine E. Szymanski

39. “Self-Respect and wisdom are the only symbols of human beings.” ― Periyar E. V. Ramasamy

40. “You already hold the most valuable possession you will ever own, your integrity.” ― T Jay Taylor

41. “Self-respect is the noblest garment with which a man may clothe himself, the most elevating feeling with which the mind can be inspired.” ― Samuel Smiles

42. “The great thing in the world is not so much to seek happiness as to earn peace and self-respect.” ― Thomas Huxley

43. “This was the pain that gouged out great holes in the soul, hollowing out self-esteem and cratering a person’s self-respect” ― Chris Bohjalian

44. “Self-respect and reality is tough to rival when it comes to balancing it honestly.” ― Ankit Samrat

Self-Respect Quotes And The Power It Has On Your Life

45. “Those with high self-esteem and self-knowledge take the plunge and trust. They realize life happens in the river, not the shore.” ― Maxime Lagacé

46. “Not having self-worth can be detrimental to your health, wealth, success, relationships, parenting ability, happiness, and probably a lot more. It ruins your experience of life. Worth is like a light switch. Low self-worth switches the light off. You live in the darkness and the shadows, unable to see all the beautiful things in the world around you. By increasing self-worth, the light switches on. Now you can see all the beauty life has to offer in all its colorful glory.” ― Rachel D. Greenwell

47. “Life is finite. (Duh.) Time is valuable. (Ditto.) And so am I. I’m valuable. I’m starting to treat myself as valuable.” ― Louie Anderson

48. “Being well and wellbeing is my way of life.” ― Akosua Dardaine Edwards

49. “They will call you crazy once you stop living someone else’s dream and start living your own.” ― Efrat Cybulkiewicz

50. “Be honest with who you are, what you want, and how you want to be treated. Boundaries only scare off the people that were not meant to be in your life.” ― Shannon L. Alder

More Self-Respect Quotes And Sayings

51. When you tolerate disrespectful people you disrespect yourself.” – Wayne Gerard Trotman

52. “Having self-esteem is easy, obtaining self-respect is the real challenge.” – Jeffrey Fry

53. “Self-respect is the fruit of discipline.” – Abraham Heschel

54. “If you don’t love yourself it’s tough to love anything about your life. Appreciating who you are is essential to your happiness.” – Karen Salmansohn

55. “Love yourself, love your uniqueness. You are the only person can be true to yourself.” – Lailah Gifty Akita

56. “We all deserve to be treated with nothing but respect. In order to command respect from others, we must first and foremost respect ourselves.” – Julie-Anne

57. “Love yourself for what you are, instead of hating yourself for what you are not.” – Faraaz Kazi

58. “Don’t let loving someone be the reason you allow them to hurt you.” – R.H. Sin

59. “They who care the self-respect, their love is real and true, and they don’t break the trust and certainty of their beloved. Love cannot stay where is no self-respect.” – Ehsan Sehgal

60. “Don’t apologize for being yourself, but ask for an apology if they want you to be something else.” – Amit Kalantri

Self-Respect Quotes To Help You Focus Less On People’s Opinions

61. “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” – Eleanor Roosevelt.

62. “Your peers will respect you for your integrity and character, not your possessions.” – David Robinson

63. “The best day of your life is the one on which you decide your life is your own.” – Bob Moawad

64. “What’s important to me is not others’ opinions of me, but what’s important to me is my opinion of myself.” – C. Joybell C.

65. “If you do not respect your own wishes, no one else will. You will simply attract people who disrespect you as much as you do.” ― Vironika Tugaleva.

66. “Respect your efforts, respect yourself. Self-respect leads to self-discipline. That’s real power.” – Clint Eastwood

67. “That’s what I grew up with. I didn’t aspire to be anything besides that.”– Jennifer Lopez.

68. “The final forming of a person’s character lies in their own hands.” ― Anne Frank.

69. “If you do not respect your own wishes, no one else will. You will simply attract people who disrespect you as much as you do.”― Vironika Tugaleva

70. “I don’t want everyone to like me; I should think less of myself if some people did.” – Henry James.

Self Respect Quotes That Will Boost Your Confidence

71. “Do we not realize that self-respect comes with self-reliance?” — A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

72. “Our self-respect tracks our choices.” — Dan Coppersmith

73. “Self-respect is the cornerstone of all virtue.” — John Herschel

74. “The respect you show to others is an immediate reflection of your own self-respect.” — Alex Elle

75. “Self-respect means valuing all levels of yourself from the soul, mind, and body. You know you’ve made mistakes at times and you’ve owned up to them. You have dignity and integrity. You’re honest in your dealings with others.” — Kevin Hunter

76. “Self-respect permeates every aspect of your life.” — Joe Clark

77. “Self-respect knows no considerations.” — Mahatma Gandhi

78. “Don’t. Self respect is everything.” — Jordan Christy

79. “The more you know and respect yourself, the less you fear rejection, setbacks and failure. The more inner power you gain, the less outer control you allow.” — Gordana Biernat

80. “Having self – respect also means honoring your own thoughts and feelings.” — Lucia Raatma

Self-Respect Quotes To Make Your Life Better

81. “There are days I drop words of comfort on myself and remember that it is enough to be taken care of by myself.” — Brian Andreas

82.“I prefer to be true to myself, even at the hazard of incurring the ridicule of others.” — Frederick Douglass

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83.“Respect for self is the beginning of cultivating virtue in men and women.” —  Gordon B. Hinckley

84. “In my day, we didn’t have self-esteem, we had self-respect and no more of it than we had earned.” — Jane Haddam

85.“Love yourself first, and then others.” – Chetan Bhagat

86.“Don’t lose your self-respect for your feelings.” — Priyanshu Singh

87. “To free us from the expectations of others, to give us back to ourselves – there lies the great, singular power of self-respect.” — Joan Didion

88. “A person without self-respect cannot respect others.” — Eleanor Roosevelt

89. “The only way to have self-respect is to take what you need.” — Alice Walker

90. “If you have earned your self-respect, respect by others is a luxury; if you haven’t, respect by others is a necessity.” — Nassim Nicholas Taleb

Self-Respect Quotes To Give You Confidence

91. “Overcoming difficulties leads to courage, self-respect, and knowing yourself.” — Alfred Adler

92. “Maintaining self-respect in the face of a devastating experience is of prime importance.” — Ann Landers

93. “Know yourself. Feel yourself. Love yourself. Respect yourself. Take good care of yourself. You are your most precious possession on Earth.” — Robert Muller

94. “Self respect beats social approval, every time.” — Robin Sharma

95. “There is no use of simply acquiring titles or amassing wealth if one has no self-respect and scientific knowledge.” — Periyar E. V. Ramasamy

96. Hard work breeds self-respect.” — Pat Summitt

97. “I did learn that it was the greatest thing in the world to respect yourself. Respect other people.” — Little Milton

98. “Self-respect to be nourished in the mind of the pupil, is one of the most valuable results of a well conducted education.” — William Godwin

99. “Find joy in simplicity, self-respect, and indifference to what lies between virtue and vice. Love the human race. Follow the divine.” — Marcus Aurelius

100. “Finding out what you’re good at, and doing it to the best of your ability, is the route to self-respect.” — J. K. Rowling

Self-respect Quotes To Make You Feel Powerful

101. If one doesn’t respect oneself one can have neither love nor respect for others.” — Ayn Rand

102. “Self respect, Colie. If you don’t have it, the world will walk all over you.” — Sarah Dessen

103. “It is easiest to “be all things to all men,” but it is not honest. Self-respect must be sacrificed every hour in the day.” — Abraham Lincoln

104. “Self-respect and a clear conscience are powerful components of integrity and are the basis for enriching your relationships with others.” — Denis Waitley

105. “Nothing resembles selfishness more closely than self-respect.” — George Sand

106. “The one who fights back retains his dignity and his self-respect.” — Jeff Cooper

107. “The conquering of adversity produces strength of character, forges self-confidence, engenders self-respect, and assures success in righteous endeavor.” — Richard G. Scott

108. “The proper response toward what we occasionally imagine to be democracy, methinks, is to retain one’s self-respect by not participating in it.” — Fred Reed

109. “Exercise often moves us straight from stagnation to inspiration, from problem to solution, from self-pity to self-respect.” — Julia Cameron

110. “Have respect for yourself, and no one can take away your self-respect.” — Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

Self-Respect Quotes To Improve Your Self-esteem

111. “Self-respect: the secure feeling that no one, as yet, is suspicious.” — H. L. Mencken

112. “Everyone in society should be a role model, not only for their own self-respect but for respect from others.” — Barry Bonds

113. “Ego is false confidence, self-respect is true confidence.” — Naval Ravikant

114.“Everyone is worthy of respect. Dignity begins with poise and self-respect.” — Juliann Mangino

115. “When you have self-respect, you have enough.” — Gail Sheehy 

116. “Perhaps the surest test of an individual’s integrity is his refusal to do or say anything that would damage his self-respect.” — Thomas S. Monson

117. “Our self-respect does not have a price tag.” — Nawaz Sharif

118. “Self-love, self-respect, self-worth….there is a reason they all start with ‘self.’ You cannot find them in anyone else.” — Liz

119. “Self-respect is a question of recognizing that anything worth having has a price.” — Joan Didion

120. “Never violate the sacredness of your individual self-respect.” — Theodore Parker

Self-Respect Quotes To Have You Dignity

121. “An occasional compliment is necessary to keep up one’s self-respect.” — Mark Twain

122. “Rudeness luxuriates in the absence of self-respect.” — Eric Hoffer

123. “A courageous man prefers death to the surrender of self-respect.” — Mahatma Gandhi

124. “The reward for doing right is mostly an internal phenomenon: self-respect, dignity, integrity, and self-esteem.” — Laura Schlessinger

125. “It has been said that self-respect is the gate of heaven, and the most cursory observation shows that a degree of reserve adds vastly to the latent force of character.” — Henry Theodore Tuckerman

126. “Learn to live in this world with self-respect.” — B. R. Ambedkar

127. “Without self-respect there can be no genuine success. Success won at the cost of self-respect is not success ? for what shall it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own self-respect.” — B. C. Forbes

128. “Self-respect is the best of all.” — Hosea Ballou

129. “Self-respect cannot be hunted.  It cannot be purchased.  It is never for sale.” — Alfred Whitney Griswold

130. “It is not the money but the self-respect and wanting to create good music.” — Barry Gibb

Self-Respect Quotes For Others To Value You

131. “If you don’t respect yourself, it’s pretty safe to say that no one else will respect you either.” — Remedy Murray

132. “Self-respect comes from the regard that an individual has. Self-esteem comes from talents.” — Zayd Haji

133. “Self-respect comes from a knowledge of self which makes you see yourself as \you are, then you can expect from yourself what you should.” — Louis Farrakhan

134. “If you don’t respect yourself, and if you do not value yourself, no one will, and people will run all over you.” — Amanda Waite

135. “You will never get the respect you deserve until you respect yourself first and demand respect from others by sticking up for yourself.” — Doug Kelley

136. “Self-respect comes easily when someone loves you. That someone should first be you.” — Jacques Weisel

137. “When you love and respect yourself, there is no way that you ever allow anybody to disrespect you or dishonor you.” — Don Miguel Ruiz

138. “When you don’t respect yourself, you act as if you don’t have value. When you allow others to mistreat you, you send a message that you have little worth.” — Karla Downing

139. “When you love, trust and respect yourself, you will love, trust and respect others.” — Betty Lue Lieber

140. “Love and respect are what we should also teach our children, but the only way to teach them love and respect is to love and respect ourselves.” — Don Miguel Ruiz

Self-Respect Quotes To Uplift You

141. “When you’re an original it may take time for people to catch on. So keep at it and don’t question yourself.” ― Lorin Morgan-Richards

142. “Self respect and reality is tough rival when it comes to balance it honestly.” ― Ankit Samrat

143. “You have to stop worrying about whether people like you. Some people don’t even like themselves.” ― Andrena Sawyer

144. “You can never please people enough. But you can only be yourself.” ― Lailah Gifty Akita

145. “Respect individuality, including your own.” ― Akiroq Brost

146. “The respect you show to others (or lack thereof) is an immediate reflection on your self respect.” ― Alex Elle

147. “Do things that give you happiness increasing your respect in yourself.” ― Giridhar Alwar

148. “If you respect yourself, you will respect others.” ― Lailah Gifty Akita

149. “Self-reliance is the highest expression of self-respect.” ― Mokokoma Mokhonoana

150. “Be selfish enough to have self love, self worth and self respect.” ― Robin Dabhi

Which Of These Self-Respect Quotes Resonated With You Best?

The amount of self-respect you have can affect your life in more ways than one.

For example, do you struggle when others compliment you?

I had the hardest time accepting compliments or when others would seem to think I genuinely had talent and purpose.

I struggled with my self-esteem and self-respect for most of my life, but I couldn’t see that for myself.

I had to dig deep, talk to a therapist, and read about how I could live the best life possible.

The life that each of us deserves to live.

You are a unique being like non-other on Earth!

It is practically a miracle that each of us exists and is who we are.

Don’t let anything else make you feel different. 

Try to do one thing today that helps you build self-respect, self-confidence, or self-esteem.

If you have any tips, please leave them in the comment section below and tell us what worked for you and what didn’t!

Also, let us know which of these self-respect quotes and sayings is your favorite.