Uplifting Quotes For Life’s Tough Moments

Most of us realize that life is not fair, but sometimes it can be downright brutal, challenging, and grueling.

In these moments, we often search for some positive quotes to help us through.

But with so many uplifting quotes out there, you might feel a little overwhelmed trying to find the best ones. 

There are uplifting quotes for when you feel like nothing is going right.

Some passages will remind you how important it is to keep moving forward and grow with every day.

Others can be especially helpful for those moments when you ask yourself, “what is the meaning of life?”

There are some great quotes for when you need a reminder to stay optimistic, which can seem complicated when chaos erupt around you.

My favorites are those that remind us of the power behind our thoughts and what we believe.

Hopefully, one of these uplifting quotes has just the inspiration you came looking for!

Uplifting quotes for when you feel you are failing

1. “Even a stopped clock is right twice every day. After some years, it can boast of a long series of successes.”—Marie Con Ebner-Eschenbach

2. “Learn from the mistakes of others. You can never live long enough to make them all yourself.”—Groucho Marx

3. “Consider the postage stamp: its usefulness consists in the ability to stick to one thing ’til it gets there.”—Josh Billings

4. “Fall seven times, stand up eight.”—Japanese Proverb

5. “No one is perfect; that’s why pencils have erasers.”—Anonymous

6. “A big part of being a well-adjusted person is accepting that you can’t be good at everything.”—Kelly Williams Brown

7. “Learn from the mistakes of others. You can never live long enough to make them all yourself.”—Groucho Marx

8. “If there is no struggle, there is no progress.”—Frederick Douglass

9. It is impossible to live without failing at something unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all – in which case, you fail by default.”— J. K. Rowling

10. “Just don’t give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don’t think you can go wrong.”—Ella Fitzgerald

11. “Take criticism seriously, but not personally. If there is truth or merit in the criticism, try to learn from it. Otherwise, let it roll right off you.”—Hillary Clinton

12. “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.”—Thomas Edison

Uplifting quotes about your growth potential

13. “There is nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it’s going to be a butterfly.”—Buckminster Fuller

14. “You’ve got to do your own growing, no matter how tall your grandfather was.”—Irish Proverb

15. “You have brains in your head; you have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who’ll decide where to go.”—Dr. Seuss

16. “We grow great by dreams.”—Woodrow Wilson

17. “One can choose to go back toward safety or forward toward growth. Growth must be chosen again and again; fear must be overcome again and again.”—Abraham Maslow

18. “Don’t go through life, grow through life.”—Eric Butterworth

19. “We can’t become what we need to be by remaining what we are.”—Oprah Winfrey

20. “Be patient with yourself. You are growing stronger every day. The weight of the world will become lighter…and you will begin to shine brighter. Don’t give up.”—Robert Tew

These uplifting quotes might help answer some of life’s biggest questions

21. “Life is a question and how we live it is our answer.”—Gary Keller

22. “You only live once, but if you do it right once is enough.”—Mae West

23. “Don’t search for the meaning of life. Simply be present for the people you love.”—Maxime Lagacé

24. “Life can only be understood backwards, but it must be lived forwards.”—Soren Kierkegaard

25. “Three things in life—your health, your mission, and the people you love. That’s it.”—Naval Ravikant

26. “The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away.”—Anonymous

27. “In three words, I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life. It goes on.”—Robert Frost

28. “Here is a test to find whether your mission on earth is finished: If you’re alive, it isn’t.”—Richard Bach

29. “Sometimes in life, we take a leap of faith. Remember, the leap is not about getting from one side to the other. It’s simply about taking the leap… and trusting the air. The universal breath will support your wings so that you may sour.”—Kristi Bowman

30. “Incredible change happens in your life when you decide to take control of what you have power over instead of craving control over what you don’t.”—Steve Maraboli

Uplifting quotes about luck and optimism

31. “Choose to be optimistic, it feels better.”—Dalai Lama

32. “People who wonder whether the glass is half empty or half full miss the point. The glass is refillable.”—Simon Sinek

33. “Luck is what you have leftover after you give 100 percent.”—Langston Coleman

34. “The average pencil is seven inches long, with just a half-inch eraser–in case you thought optimism was dead.”—Robert Brault

35. “Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence.”—Helen Keller

36. “Optimism is a strategy for making a better future. Because unless you believe that the future can be better, you are unlikely to step up and take responsibility for making it so.”—Noam Chomsky

37. “Self-belief, optimism, and hard work, these things don’t guarantee to get any of us to the top, but they at least give us a fighting chance.”—Jason Ayers

38. “True hopefulness and optimism is what leads one to dare. It is also what lifts one back up to dare again after a failed attempt.”—Bibi Bourelly

39. “I’m a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it.”—Thomas Jefferson

Your thoughts and sense of self are your fountains for uplifting quotes

40. “If they don’t like you for being yourself, be yourself even more.”—Taylor Swift

41. “We do not need magic to change the world; we carry all the power we need inside ourselves already. We have the power to imagine better.”—J. K. Rowling

42. “Why fit in when you were born to stand out?”—Dr. Seuss

43. “Believe that life is worth living and your belief will help create the fact.”—William James

44. “You are today where your thoughts have brought you; you will be tomorrow where your thoughts take you.”—James Allen

45. “You’ve got to get up every morning with determination if you’re going to go to bed with satisfaction.”—George Lorimer

46. “Accept no one’s definition of your life; define yourself.”—Harvey Fierstein

47. “When you do not know what you are doing and what you are doing is the best–that is inspiration.”—Robert Bresson

48. “What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.”—Jane Goodall

49. “People who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do.”—Rob Siltanen  

50. “What we fear doing most is usually what we most need to do.”—Ralph Waldo Emerson

Other uplifting quotes and sayings

51. Sometimes our light goes out, but is blown again into instant flame by an encounter with another human being.” – Albert Schweitzer

52. “Next to trying and winning, the best thing is trying and failing.” – Lucy Maud Montgomery

53. “If it’s not exactly like you thought it would be, you think it’s a failure. What about the spectrum of colors in between.” – Sara Evans

54. Life is not breaths you take, but the moments that take your breath away.” – George Strait

55. “Work with what you have. Look good, feel good.” – Claire Betita de Guzman

56. “A problem is an answer waiting to be opened.” – Peter Lerangis

57. “We rise and we fall, we fall and we rise, and this is the life we are living with, and it is truly great.” – Santosh Kumar (San)

58. “Giving any place in life to the evil and greedy humans is also a symbol of cowardice.” – Santosh Kumar (San)

59. “When you progress expect stagnant people to say you have changed.” – Thebe Kegomoditswe

Uplifting Quotes that Bring about Positive Change

60. “Hope is important because it can make the present moment less difficult to bear. If we believe that tomorrow will be better, we can bear a hardship today.” – Thich Nhat Hanh

61. The key is to keep company only with people who uplift you, whose presence calls forth your best.” – Epictetus

62. “No work is insignificant. All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.” – Martin Luther King Jr.

63. “Somebody needs what you have to give. It may be your listening ear. It may be your smile to uplift.” – Joel Osteen

64. “Your destiny is to fulfill those things upon which you focus most intently. So choose to keep your focus on that which is truly magnificent, beautiful, uplifting and joyful. Your life is always moving toward something.” – Ralph Marston

65. “I am often asked how I can work with a subject as morbid as trauma without becoming burned out or depressed. My answer to this question is that witnessing the transformation that takes place in people when they master their traumas has proven to be a deeply sustaining and uplifting experience in my life.” – Peter A. Levine

66. “A memoir should have some uplifting quality, inspiring or illuminating, and that’s what separates a life story that can influence other people.” – Mitch Albom

67. “Being able to change the world and change hearts and minds – it’s uplifting.” – Mj Rodriguez

68. “You can try to be catchy without being slick, poppy without being pop, and you can be uplifting without being pompous. Because we’re sometimes playing quieter stuff, it’s hard to sound like we’re trying to change things, but we wanted to be a reaction against soulless rubbish.” – Chris Martin

69. A positive attitude gives you power over your circumstances instead of your circumstances having power over you.” – Joyce Meyer

Uplifting quotes on different ways in getting that extra push

70. “Your inner strength is your outer foundation” – Allan Rufus

71. “True love is supposed to make you into a better person-uplift you.” – Emily Giffin

72. We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.” – Oscar Wilde

73. “Promise Yourself to be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind. To talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person you meet.” – Christian D. Larson

74. “Don’t be pushed around by the fears in your mind. Be led by the dreams in your heart.” – Roy T. Bennett

75. “Instead of worrying about what you cannot control, shift your energy to what you can create.” – Roy T. Bennett

76. “I really just wanted to make something special for women. There aren’t enough records uplifting them out there.” – Brent Faiyaz

77. “One of the things I learned the hard way was that it doesn’t pay to get discouraged. Keeping busy and making optimism a way of life can restore your faith in yourself.” – Lucille Ball

78. “We can choose to wake up and grumble all day and be bitter and angry and judge others and find satisfaction in others doing bad instead of good. Or we can we wake up with optimism and love and say, ‘Just what is this beautiful day going to bring me?” – Margaret Trudeau

79. Part of being optimistic is keeping one’s head pointed toward the sun, one’s feet moving forward.” – Nelson Mandela

Uplifting Quotes To make You Find Your Purpose

80. “Listen. I wish I could tell you it gets better. But, it doesn’t get better. You get better.” ― Joan Rivers

81. “You are never given a dream from within your soul that you don’t also have the power to achieve.” Evelyn Brooks.” ― Evelyn Roberts Brooks

82. “Be grateful for all of your imperfections and flaws. They are your teachers.” ― Tiffany Fenton

83. “My mission is to be a positive, uplifting, constructive, and healing influence in the lives of those I touch.” ― Laurie Buchanan

84. “Everything is within your power, and your power is within you.” ― Janice Trachtman

85. “Logically the bright side is the only side you can look on, because the other side is dark.” ― Brandon Sanderson

86. “Find the peaceful moment in the new day to bring forth the best of who you are.” ― Tracy R.L. O’Flaherty

87. “I’m looking towards my future and enjoying every race, no need to look behind me because my past has been erased.” ― Pre.Kaya’ Gilkey

88. “Do not give up. The tide can change any time.”― Lailah Gifty Akita

89. “Why let sadness chase you, and pain haunt you, when all you have to do is simply… let go?” ― Dr Salma Farook

Which of these uplifting quotes resonated with you best?

It isn’t easy to stay positive when it feels like your carefully constructed house of cards is crumbling, but you can do it. 

There are many benefits to staying positive in the face of adversity, but it’s easy to get pulled down in the abyss.

You matter; so do your doubts, fears, and bad days, but try not to stay there too long. 

If you came looking for a quote that inspired you to go a little farther or dig a little deeper, I hope you found it!

If you need something to help you take that first step toward making some positive changes in your life, I hope you felt encouraged.

You have everything you need to accomplish your goals inside you!

Leave a comment below and let us know which of these uplifting quotes and sayings is your favorite?