Whenever your life gets off the tracks, you can find your inspiration here.
Consistency is something that we all need in our lives. And we can agree upon the fact that our motivation, inspiration and willingness to keep things going as they are, can fluctuate. Immensely.
Therefore, I have made a list of words to live by, to which you can always come back when you lack inspiration for everyday challenges you face.
Enjoy it, and find your inspiration to keep going!
10 Best Words To Live By
1. “No matter how many people give me advice, I am going to do what my heart tells me to do” ― Lana Del Rey
2. “We are the books we read and the things we love.” ― Cath Crowley, Words in Deep Blue
3. “Others have the right to criticize you unfairly. And you have the right to ignore them.” ― Mokokoma Mokhonoana
4. “I would rather be damned by my honesty, than caged by my lies.” ― Omega Maverick, Gothic Inferno
5. “Take care of your words and the words will take care of you.” ― Amit Ray
6. “The World is my country, all mankind are my brethren, and to do good is my religion.” ― Thomas Paine, Rights of Man
7. “Your life is a movie. You are the main character. You say your scripts and act to your lines. Of course you do your lines in each scene. There is a hidden camera and a director who you can ask for help anytime up above.” ― Happy Positivity
8. “Life is a mystery to be lived not a problem to be solved” ― Clive Ollies
9. “Sometimes you have to give something up to make room for something new.” ― Suzanne Woods Fisher, The Moonlight School
10. “When God takes out the trash, don’t go digging back through it. Trust Him.” ― Amaka Imani Nkosazana, Heart Crush
See also: 70 Best Trust God Quotes To Boost Your Spiritual Growth
30 Unique Quotes On Life We Can Live By
1. “Why bother with a cunning plan when a simple one will do?” ― Terry Pratchett, Thud!
2. “The greatest win is walking away and choosing not to engage in drama and toxic energy at all.” ― Lalah Delia
3. “You will do foolish things, but do them with enthusiasm!” ― Collette
4. “I’ve decided to confront it. Confront whatever life throws at me, as I always have. However much I can feel, nothing more, nothing less.” ― Won-pyung Sohn, Almond
5. “Oh darling, your only too wild, to those whom are to tame, don’t let opinions change you.” ― Nikki Rowe
6. “You push the TRUTH off a cliff, but it will always fly. You can submerge the TRUTH under water, but it will not drown. You can place the TRUTH in the fire, but it will survive. You can bury the TRUTH beneath the ground, but it will arise. TRUTH always prevails!” ― Amaka Imani Nkosazana, Heart Crush
7. “If you run into a wall and pretend it doesn’t exist, you’ll never make any progress. The wall will never change. so you’re the one who has to change.” ― Sorachi Hideaki
8. “Life is just a slide. Back and forth between loving and leaving, remembering and forgetting, holding on and letting go.” ― Nicole Lyons
9. “I’m about to do something very clever and a tiny bit against the rules of the universe. It’s important that I’m properly dressed.” ― Tommy Donbavand, Doctor Who: Shroud of Sorrow
10. “Dreams. They start in your beautiful mind. Think of beautiful things and it will manifest into actions because your body will listen to you. Like it always does.” ― Happy Positivity
11. “I know exactly who I am, what I’m about and who I will become.” ― Emma Paul
12. “Be free, quirky, & true, even if the world tells you, you shouldn’t.” ― Kitty Reese
13. “You don’t have to say a word, because your actions speak volumes for you.” ― Frank Sonnenberg, The Path to a Meaningful Life
14. “Do not underestimate anything, no matter how small. Everything exists for a reason, and nothing is too small.” ― Bhuwan Thapaliya
15. “There is nothing stronger than gentleness.” ― John Wooden, Wooden: A Lifetime of Observations and Reflections On and Off the Court
16. “We are what we repeatedly do. Greatness then, is not an act, but a habit” ― Will Durant
17. “Be wise today so you don’t cry tomorrow.” ― E.A. Bucchianeri
18. “Never underestimate the power you have to take your life in a new direction.” ― Germany Kent
19. “There are times when wisdom cannot be found in the chambers of parliament or the halls of academia but at the unpretentious setting of the kitchen table.” ― E.A. Bucchianeri
20. “Friendship is the source of the greatest pleasures, and without friends even the most agreeable pursuits become tedious.” ― St. Thomas Aquinas
21. “If you’re reading this…
Congratulations, you’re alive.
If that’s not something to smile about,
then I don’t know what is.” ― Chad Sugg, Monsters Under Your Head
22. “When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down ‘happy’. They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life.” ― John Lennon
23. “A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing.” ― George Bernard Shaw
24. “Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark in the hopeless swamps of the not-quite, the not-yet, and the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish in lonely frustration for the life you deserved and have never been able to reach. The world you desire can be won. It exists.. it is real.. it is possible.. it’s yours.” ― Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged
25. “Be the reason someone smiles. Be the reason someone feels loved and believes in the goodness in people.” ― Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart
26. “The flower that blooms in adversity is the rarest and most beautiful of all.” ― Walt Disney Company, Mulan
27. “The most important thing is to enjoy your life—to be happy—it’s all that matters.” ― Audrey Hepburn
28. “Be mindful. Be grateful. Be positive. Be true. Be kind.” ― Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart
29. “Accept yourself, love yourself, and keep moving forward. If you want to fly, you have to give up what weighs you down.” ― Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart
30. “The best index to a person’s character is how he treats people who can’t do him any good, and how he treats people who can’t fight back.” ― Abigail Van Buren
40 Inspirational Words To Live By
1. “Success in life is not for those who run fast, but for those who keep running and always on the move.” ― Bangambiki Habyarimana, Pearls Of Eternity
2. “Bravery is the choice to show up and listen to another person, be it a loved one or perceived foe, even when it is uncomfortable, painful, or the last thing you want to do.” ― Alaric Hutchinson
3. “Once your soul is awakened, you never return to the sleepwalking state of mind. Some people become complacent in life. They are just going through the motions and not aware of truth. Seek the knowledge, wisdom, and the understandings that vivify your existence.” ― Amaka Imani Nkosazana, Heart Crush
4. “God can take the ordinary and create the extraordinary. Our incredible God has the power to transform your simple life and give you the life of your dreams. Remarkable things happen in your life when you believe.” ― Amaka Imani Nkosazana, Heart Crush
5. “Everyday is another chance to do something great.” ― Emma Paul
6. “I hope I am more kind, patient, mindful, and forgiving than any previous days’ version.” ― Eric Overby, Legacy
7. “The harder I work, the luckier I get.” ― Alpha M.
8. “Words are powerful seeds. If you plant them for good, they will bloom beautifully.” ― sophieya
9. “We can’t please everyone in life. If you know what you’re doing is not wrong, If you’re not hurting someone, If it’s not really wrong then there is nothing to be worried about. Let’s always give more and expect less.” ― Jyoti Patel
10. “When someone hurts you with their words, pray for their healing. For deep inside they are hurting.” ― Zybil Rogan
12. “How long are you going to wait before you demand the best for yourself and in no instance 11. “Don’t settle for stuff. That’s pretty much the only thing I learned in life. You see something, some chance for something great, you take it. You grab your keys and jump on your bike and go, no regrets.” ― Sarah Ockler, The Book of Broken Hearts
bypass the discriminations of reason? You have been given the principles that you ought to endorse, and you have endorsed them. What kind of teacher, then, are you still waiting for in order to refer your self-improvement to him? ― Epictetus (From Manual 51)
13. “Who says you need to wait until you ‘feel like’ doing something in order to start doing it? The problem, from this perspective, isn’t that you don’t feel motivated; it’s that you imagine you need to feel motivated. If you can regard your thoughts and emotions about whatever you’re procrastinating on as passing weather, you’ll realise that your reluctance about working isn’t something that needs to be eradicated or transformed into positivity. You can coexist with it. You can note the procrastinatory feelings and act anyway.” ― Oliver Burkeman, The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can’t Stand Positive Thinking
14. “Live your life in such a way that you’ll be remembered for your kindness, compassion, fairness, character, benevolence, and a force for good who had much respect for life, in general.” ― Germany Kent
15. “There is no sun without shadow, and it is essential to know the night.” ― Albert Camus
16. “Success is getting what you want. Happiness is liking what you get.” ― H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
17. “We can’t know or say what other people do. You have to think what you want to do to get the situation where you want it to be.” ― E. Lockhart, The Boy Book: A Study of Habits and Behaviors, Plus Techniques for Taming Them
18. “If you don’t want to be in an argument with someone, it is probably best to try to solve the problem, rather than lying around hoping the other person will do it for you.” ― E. Lockhart, The Boy Book: A Study of Habits and Behaviors, Plus Techniques for Taming Them
19. “I am I and my circumstance; and, if I do not save it, I do not save myself.” ― José Ortega y Gasset, Meditations on Quixote
20. “Perception shapes priorities, priorities shape people.” ― Ben Thompson
21. “You only struggle because you’re ready to grow but aren’t willing to let go.” ― Drew Gerald
22. “If you measure your life by what you own, the cavern of your heart will never be filled.” ― James D. Maxon
23. “Duty were our games.” ― William Wordsworth, The Prelude
24. “Love all, trust a few,
Do wrong to none: be able for thine enemy
Rather in power than use; and keep thy friend
Under thy own life’s key: be check’d for silence,
But never tax’d for speech.” ― William Shakespeare, All’s Well That Ends Well
25. “Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.” ― Lao Tzu
26. “There is nothing I would not do for those who are really my friends. I have no notion of loving people by halves, it is not my nature.” ― Jane Austen, Northanger Abbey
27. “In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: it goes on.” ― Robert Frost
28. “You cannot find peace by avoiding life.” ― Michael Cunningham, The Hours
29. “May you live every day of your life.” ― Jonathan Swift
30. “You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.” ― Mae West
31. “I wanted a perfect ending. Now I’ve learned, the hard way, that some poems don’t rhyme, and some stories don’t have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what’s going to happen next.” ― Gilda Radner
32. “Where there is love there is life.” ― Mahatma Gandhi
33. “There are two basic motivating forces: fear and love. When we are afraid, we pull back from life. When we are in love, we open to all that life has to offer with passion, excitement, and acceptance. We need to learn to love ourselves first, in all our glory and our imperfections. If we cannot love ourselves, we cannot fully open to our ability to love others or our potential to create. Evolution and all hopes for a better world rest in the fearlessness and open-hearted vision of people who embrace life.” ― John Lennon
34. “These woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.” ― Robert Frost, Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening
35. “If my life is going to mean anything, I have to live it myself.” ― Rick Riordan, The Lightning Thief
36. “We have to dare to be ourselves, however frightening or strange that self may prove to be.” ― May Sarton
37. “Anyone who lives within their means suffers from a lack of imagination.” ― Oscar Wilde
38. “Life is a book and there are a thousand pages I have not yet read.” ― Cassandra Clare, Clockwork Princess
39. “Instead of worrying about what you cannot control, shift your energy to what you can create.” ― Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart
40. “Don’t be pushed around by the fears in your mind. Be led by the dreams in your heart.” ― Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart
See also: 100 Taking Chances Quotes To Help You Conquer Your Fears
20 Famous Words To Live By
1. “Don’t judge a book by it’s cover” ― George Eliot
2. “Plants are more courageous than almost all human beings: an orange tree would rather die than produce lemons, whereas instead of dying the average person would rather be someone they are not.” ― Mokokoma Mokhonoana
3. “If you do not have control over your mouth, you will not have control over your future.” ― Germany Kent
4. “Hardship often prepares an ordinary person for an extraordinary destiny.” ― Christopher Markus
5. “Punctuality is but the thief of time.” ― Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray
6. “Life is never made unbearable by circumstances, but only by lack of meaning and purpose.” ― Victor Frankl
7. “Don’t bite off more than you can chew because nobody looks attractive spitting it back out.” ― Carroll Bryant
8. “A bird is safe in its nest – but that is not what its wings are made for.” ― Amit Ray, World Peace: The Voice of a Mountain Bird
9. “No matter how many plans you make or how much in control you are, life is always winging it.” ― Carroll Bryant
10. “When what you hear and what you see don’t match, trust your eyes.” ― Dale Renton
11. “Stay low, stay quiet, keep it simple, don’t expect too much, enjoy what you have.” ― Dean Koontz
12. “Anyone who says “Trust me” is the last motherfuc*er you should ever trust.” ― R.D. Ronald
13. “He who hesitates is lost.” ― Cato
14. “My recipe for dealing with anger and frustration: set the kitchen timer for twenty minutes, cry, rant, and rave, and at the sound of the bell, simmer down and go about business as usual.” ― Phyllis Diller
15. “It comes from within.” ― Stephen R. Covey, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change
16. “If one’s bowels move, one is happy, and if they don’t move, one is unhappy. That is all there is to it.” ― Lin Yutang, The Importance of Living
17. “You’ve gotta dance like there’s nobody watching,
Love like you’ll never be hurt,
Sing like there’s nobody listening,
And live like it’s heaven on earth.” ― William W. Purkey
18. “It is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for what you are not.” ― Andre Gide, Autumn Leaves
19. “Maybe the world isn’t really different, but I am different, and I am in the world.” ― Rachel Hartman, Tess of the Road
20. “Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.” ― Martin Luther King Jr.
See also: Brilliant List Of 120 Light Quotes To Awaken Your Mind
30 Good Words To Live By For A Better Life
1. “You used to pray for this level of strength.” ― Kierra C.T. Banks
2. “May you never become so cynical that you let a star fall without its wish.” ― Nicole Lyons, Blossom and Bone
3. “Soak up every moment, be generous with your love, and be thankful for those who love us back.” ― Jacquelyn Middleton, Until the Last Star Fades
4. “Life is beautiful, and my words have allowed me to find and revel in that beauty.” ― Sandra Marinella, The Story You Need to Tell: Writing to Heal from Trauma, Illness, or Loss
5. “Don’t just read books, learn to read people.” ― Isa Muh’d
6. “Actions have consequences; words do, too.” ― Frank Sonnenberg, Listen to Your Conscience: That’s Why You Have One
7. “You can never say ‘I love you’ enough, and the people you love can never hear it too much. Say it warmly, say it often.” ― Jacquelyn Middleton, Until the Last Star Fades
8. “If people don’t react to hearing that, it’s better not to say it again.” ― Barbara Ismail, Moon Kite
9. “If you believe in nothing else, please believe in love. It can make miracles happen.” ― Jacquelyn Middleton, Until the Last Star Fades
10. “It may not be easy, but it is possible.” ― Zybil Rogan
11. “Admitting mistakes, apologizing is very important in life but change! Someone can’t just apologize and disappear. We need to be responsible. We have to clean up our mess. Actions are much more important than the words. Don’t repeat the same mistake over and over again and end up saying sorry. ‘I’m Sorry’ just isn’t enough always!
If you still have the chance to undo the hurt with your actions, then you should. You must!” ― Jyoti Patel
12. “No matter how good you are, chances are that others can hate you the most but you don’t always have to care about what others think of you. Just do good, be good and spread smiles.” ― Jyoti Patel
13. “Have patience. Sometimes, Great things can take a lot of time and we need to learn how to be patient. The way we act during this stage of waiting for someone or something to happen matters much more.” ― Jyoti Patel
14. “I’m selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can’t handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don’t deserve me at my best.” ― Marilyn Monroe
15. “A smile and kind words have so much power.” ― Jyoti Patel
16. “It is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for what you are not.” ― Andre Gide, Autumn Leaves
17. “Life is what happens to us while we are making other plans.” ― Allen Saunders
18. “I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be.” ― Douglas Adams, The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul
19. “Everything you can imagine is real.” ― Pablo Picasso
20. “To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.” ― Oscar Wilde
21. “When someone loves you, the way they talk about you is different. You feel safe and comfortable.” ― Jess C. Scott, The Intern
22. “Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day. You shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson
23. “We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be.” ― Kurt Vonnegut, Mother Night
24. “But better to get hurt by the truth than comforted with a lie.” ― Khaled Hosseini
25. “Just when you think it can’t get any worse, it can. And just when you think it can’t get any better, it can.” ― Nicholas Sparks, At First Sight
26. “The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.” ― Mark Twain
27. “I speak to everyone in the same way, whether he is the garbage man or the president of the university.” ― Albert Einstein
28. “If you don’t know where you’re going, any road’ll take you there” ― George Harrison
29. “Do not read, as children do, to amuse yourself, or like the ambitious, for the purpose of instruction. No, read in order to live.” ― Gustave Flaubert
30. “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” ― Margaret Mead
30 Wise Words To Live By
1. “If you argue with a fool, you become a fool.” ― L.A. Hilden
2. “It is better to grope in the dark and wade through a million errors to reach the Truth than to entrust oneself to someone who knows not that he knows not. Has a man ever learnt swimming by tying a stone to his neck? So let me go my own way even if it is the wrong one.” ― Sudhir Kakar, The Seeker: A Novel
3. “Actions prove who someone is; words just prove who they want to be. If you want to know your true value in someone’s life, mute their words and watch their behavior.” ― Anthon St. Maarten
4. “The reasonable man adapts himself to the world: the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.” ― George Bernard Shaw, Man and Superman
5. “The wise strive for their best. The foolish strive for perfection.” ― Mokokoma Mokhonoana
6. “Those who are wise won’t be busy, and those who are too busy can’t be wise.” ― Lin Yutang, The Importance of Living
7. “All I know is that I do not know anything” ― Socrates
8. “Thus the man who is responsive to artistic stimuli reacts to the reality of dreams as does the philosopher to the reality of existence; he observes closely, and he enjoys his observation: for it is out of these images that he interprets life, out of these processes that he trains himself for life.” ― Friedrich Nietzsche, Twilight of the Idols / The Antichrist
9. “It is more necessary for the soul to be cured than the body; for it is better to die than to live badly.” ― Epictetus
10. “It’s no use going back to yesterday, because I was a different person then.” ― Lewis Carroll
11. “Good friends, good books, and a sleepy conscience: this is the ideal life.” ― Mark Twain
12. “This life is what you make it. No matter what, you’re going to mess up sometimes, it’s a universal truth. But the good part is you get to decide how you’re going to mess it up. Girls will be your friends – they’ll act like it anyway. But just remember, some come, some go. The ones that stay with you through everything – they’re your true best friends. Don’t let go of them. Also remember, sisters make the best friends in the world. As for lovers, well, they’ll come and go too. And baby, I hate to say it, most of them – actually pretty much all of them are going to break your heart, but you can’t give up because if you give up, you’ll never find your soulmate. You’ll never find that half who makes you whole and that goes for everything. Just because you fail once, doesn’t mean you’re gonna fail at everything. Keep trying, hold on, and always, always, always believe in yourself, because if you don’t, then who will, sweetie? So keep your head high, keep your chin up, and most importantly, keep smiling, because life’s a beautiful thing and there’s so much to smile about.” ― Marilyn Monroe
13. “Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple.” ― Dr. Seuss
14. “Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.” ― George Bernard Shaw
15. “There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” ― Albert Einstein
16. “Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.” ― Dr. Seuss, Happy Birthday to You!
17. “Things change. And friends leave. Life doesn’t stop for anybody.” ― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks of Being a Wallflower
18. “Who are you to judge the life I live?
I know I’m not perfect
-and I don’t live to be-
but before you start pointing fingers…
make sure you hands are clean!” ― Bob Marley
19. “The only way out of the labyrinth of suffering is to forgive.” ― John Green, Looking for Alaska
20. “Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.” ― Albert Einstein
21. “The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference. The opposite of art is not ugliness, it’s indifference. The opposite of faith is not heresy, it’s indifference. And the opposite of life is not death, it’s indifference.” ― Elie Wiesel
22. “We have to dare to be ourselves, however frightening or strange that self may prove to be.” ― May Sarton
23. “A day without laughter is a day wasted.” ― Nicolas Chamfort
24. “One, remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Two, never give up work. Work gives you meaning and purpose and life is empty without it. Three, if you are lucky enough to find love, remember it is there and don’t throw it away.” ― Stephen Hawking
25. “Be the change that you wish to see in the world.” ― Mahatma Gandhi
26. “You do not write your life with words…You write it with actions. What you think is not important. It is only important what you do.” ― Patrick Ness, A Monster Calls
27. “Simplicity, patience, compassion.
These three are your greatest treasures.
Simple in actions and thoughts, you return to the source of being.
Patient with both friends and enemies,
you accord with the way things are.
Compassionate toward yourself,
you reconcile all beings in the world.” ― Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching
28. “Trust yourself. You know more than you think you do.” ― Benjamin Spock
29. “There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest.” ― Elie Wiesel
30. “Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible.” ― Frank Zappa
See also: 110 Amazing Albert Einstein Quotes To Think About
Final Word
I hope that you have enjoyed reading my collection of words to live by, that I have made using various online sources.
May you find your inspiration between these words, just as I did!
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