50 Inspirational Quotes to Uplift and Motivate

Whether it’s a day you wish you’d stayed in bed, or you just happen to be searching for a little more direction to get the world straight and develop success in your day-to-day life, sometimes all it takes is a few words of wisdom from fellow human beings to push you in the right direction. Learn a little from those who have lived life to the fullest - a successful outcome may only be a quote away! 

And don’t forget, motivation determines the course of our lives, and if you could use some help manifesting your desires, these quotes may help you jumpstart the happy life you envisioned for yourself. No matter what situation you’re dealing with, you’re sure to find an inspirational quote (or three) in the list below that speaks power to your current challenges and helps you lift your chin up just a little higher. Sometimes, the only limit to success is the limit you set yourself - so enjoy the quotes below!

Live by these inspirational words

Words are more powerful than many would like to admit to themselves. So why not use this power for good? Since we could all do with a little inspirational boost every now and then, using words to anchor us and help us to live well should be a no-brainer. The following quotes are all noble anchors.

“Nothing is impossible. The word itself says ‘I’m possible!’” - Audrey Hepburn

“Spread love everywhere you go.” - Mother Teresa

“Belief creates the actual fact.” - William James

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.” - Albert Einstein

“Keep your face always toward the sunshine, and shadows will fall behind you.” - Walt Whitman

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” - Winston Churchill

"You don't have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great." - Zig Ziglar

“At the end of the day, whether or not those people are comfortable with how you’re living your life doesn’t matter. What matters is whether you’re comfortable with it.” - Dr. Phil

“People tell you the world looks a certain way. Parents tell you how to think. Schools tell you how to think. TV. Religion. And then at a certain point, if you’re lucky, you realize you can make up your own mind. Nobody sets the rules but you. You can design your own life.” - Carrie Ann Moss

“I’m going to be gone one day, and I have to accept that tomorrow isn’t promised. Am I OK with how I’m living today? It’s the only thing I can help. If I didn’t have another one, what have I done with all my todays? Am I doing a good job?” - Hayley Williams

“If you have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely.” - Roald Dahl

The very best inspirational quotes for deeper meaning

Life is a hustle; we get so busy sometimes that it’s easy to forget that magic underlies everything we do. When you need to re-centre, dig a little deeper, and make contact with the source within, these quotes are for you.

“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

“You make a choice: continue living your life feeling muddled in this abyss of self-misunderstanding, or you find your identity independent of it. You draw your own box.” - Duchess Meghan

“You define your own life. Don’t let other people write your script.” - Oprah Winfrey

“For me, becoming isn’t about arriving somewhere or achieving a certain aim. I see it instead as forward motion, a means of evolving, a way to reach continuously toward a better self. The journey doesn’t end.” - Michelle Obama

“I care about decency and humanity and kindness. Kindness today is an act of rebellion.” - Pink

“When it comes to luck, you make your own.” - Bruce Springsteen

“If you don’t like the road you’re walking, start paving another one!” - Dolly Parton

“Wake up determined, go to bed satisfied.” - Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson

“Take the attitude of a student, never be too big to ask questions, never know too much to learn something new.” - Augustine Og Mandino

“I am not a product of my circumstances. I am a product of my decisions.” - Stephen R. Covey

“Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence.” - Vince Lombardi 

Uplifting quotes for positive thinking

Most of us have a routine that we adhere to on a daily basis in order to get us from point A to point B without wasting time, energy, or needless worry. But how many of us schedule time for some daily inspiration? While Mark Twain quotes are a respectable source of uplifting wisdom, many others can also help ground us in the wonder of the day-to-day.

“Stay away from those people who try to disparage your ambitions. Small minds will always do that, but great minds will give you a feeling that you can become great too.” - Mark Twain

“Do not allow people to dim your shine because they are blinded. Tell them to put some sunglasses on.” - Lady Gaga

"Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration." - Thomas Edison

“There can be no deep disappointment where there is not deep love.” - Martin Luther King Jr

“We generate fears while we sit. We overcome them by action. Fear is nature's way of warning us to get busy.” - Dr. Henry Link

“I’m not going to continue knocking that old door that doesn’t open for me. I’m going to create my own door and walk through that.” - Ava DuVernay

“In a gentle way, you can shake the world.” - Mahatma Gandhi

“Learning how to be still, to really be still and let life happen—that stillness becomes a radiance.” - Morgan Freeman

“All you need is the plan, the road map, and the courage to press on to your destination.” - Earl Nightingale

“Live your beliefs and you can turn the world around.” - Henry David Thoreau

“Our lives are stories in which we write, direct and star in the leading role. Some chapters are happy while others bring lessons to learn, but we always have the power to be the heroes of our own adventures.” - Joelle Speranza

“I have learned over the years that when one’s mind is made up, this diminishes fear; knowing what must be done does away with fear.” - Rosa Parks

“The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity.” - Amelia Earhart

Meaningful and motivational quotes for the day

Even the most motivated among us can use a little pick-me-up every now and again to help set us back on course and keep our eye on the prize. After all, our attitude determines almost everything! No one said it was easy, least of all anyone who’s ever accomplished anything. So here’s a great idea: use the following inspirational quotes moving forward, and they may just  help you crystallize your intentions and set off down the road of action to find the light tomorrow. 

“When you have a dream, you’ve got to grab it and never let go.” - Carol Burnett

“There is nothing impossible for those who will try.” - Alexander the Great

“If you make your internal life a priority, then everything else you need on the outside will be given to you and it will be extremely clear what the next step is.” - Gabrielle Bernstein

“What lies behind you and what lies in front of you, pales in comparison to what lies inside of you.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

“I am experienced enough to do this. I am knowledgeable enough to do this. I am prepared enough to do this. I am mature enough to do this. I am brave enough to do this.” - Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

“Weaknesses are just strengths in the wrong environment.” - Marianne Cantwell

“Everyone has inside of him a piece of good news. The good news is that you don’t know how great you can be! How much you can love! What you can accomplish! And what your potential is!” - Anne Frank

“We must let go of the life we have planned, so as to accept the one that is waiting for us.” - Joseph Campbell

“Real change, enduring change, happens one step at a time.” - Ruth Bader

“We are not our best intentions. We are what we do.” - Amy Dickinson

Best inspirational quotes for hard times

Most of us are extremely well acquainted with the reality that life is fraught with challenges of all stripes, and that these challenges occur rather continually at times. When times are hard, it becomes necessary to turn inward and seek inspiration. Once again, the lived experiences of others can be an invaluable resource at times like these. From Nelson Mandela quotes to nuggets of wisdom spoken by people you’ve never heard of, hearing the right words at the right time can be a game-changer.

“The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.” - Michael Altshuler

“I just want you to know that if you are out there and you are being really hard on yourself right now for something that has happened … it’s normal. That is what is going to happen to you in life. No one gets through unscathed. We are all going to have a few scratches on us. Please be kind to yourselves and stand up for yourself, please.” - Taylor Swift

“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” - Malala Yousafzai

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” - Nelson Mandela

“I want to be in the arena. I want to be brave with my life. And when we make the choice to dare greatly, we sign up to get our asses kicked. We can choose courage or we can choose comfort, but we can’t have both. Not at the same time.” - Brene Brown

“It is during our darkest moments that we must focus to see the light.” - Aristotle 

“Not having the best situation, but seeing the best in your situation is the key to happiness.” - Marie Forleo

“Try to be a rainbow in someone’s cloud.” - Maya Angelou

“Find out who you are and be that person. That’s what your soul was put on this earth to be. Find that truth, live that truth, and everything else will come.” - Ellen Degeneres

You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.’ You must do the thing you think you cannot do.” - Eleanor Roosevelt

The bottom line

It’s perfectly natural to lose inspiration from time to time, as we go through the motions, and as we travel from one task to the next. Next time you need a little boost, consider referring back to this list of inspirational quotes to help you realign with your truest self. Or, if you liked these and want some more, maybe these motivational quotes are just what the doctor ordered.