31 Quotes That Changed How I Think About Life

If anyone loves a good quote, it's me. Over the years, these snippets of wisdom have been so powerful in challenging, illuminating and shaping my perspectives. From one human figuring out life to another, take what you need and let the eloquence of these words breathe life into the depths of your soul. Sit with it and let it radiate inside you for a more grounded outward perspective on life.


ON LEADERSHIP

A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves. Lao Tzu

There will be no end to the troubles of states, or of humanity itself, till philosophers become kings in this world, or till those we now call kings and rulers really and truly become philosophers, and political power and philosophy thus come into the same hands. Plato

Hardship often prepares an ordinary person for an extraordinary destiny. Christopher Markus

Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. Friedrich Nietzsche

Patience is necessary, and one cannot reap immediately where one has sown. Soren Kierkegaard


"It’s not the beauty is hard to find, it’s that it’s easy to overlook." - Unknown Photo by Javier Allegue Barros

ON LIVING

Fear does not prevent death. It prevents life. Buddha

It is not death that a man should fear, but he should fear never beginning to live. Marcus Aurelius

When there is no desire, all things are at peace. Lao Tzu

Science is organised knowledge. Wisdom is organised life. Will Durant

Well-being is attained little by little, and nevertheless is no little thing itself. Zeno

You have to assemble your life yourself—action by action. And be satisfied if each one achieves its goal, as far as it can. No one can keep that from happening. Marcus Aurelius

The good and the wise lead quiet lives. Euripides

A lot of things broke my heart but fixed my vision. Unknown

The flame that burns twice as bright burns half as long. Lao Tzu


"No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man." - Heraclitus Photo by Florian Bernhardt

ON THE MIND

The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts. Marcus Aurelius

Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth. Marcus Aurelius

Thoughts are the shadows of our feelings - always darker, emptier and simpler. Friedrich Nietzsche


ON PHILOSOPHY

Philosophy teaches us to act, not to speak. It requires every person to live according to his own standard. It requires that his life should not be at odds with his words and that his inner life should be united and not out of harmony with all his actions. Seneca

All philosophy lies in two words, sustain and abstain. Epictetus


"Life must be understood backward. But it must be lived forward." - Søren Kierkegaard Photo by Gonz DDL

ON SPEAKING THE TRUTH

An empty vessel makes the loudest sound, so they that have the least wit are the greatest babblers. Plato

Those who know do not speak. Those who speak do not know. Lao Tzu

Hide nothing, for time, which sees all and hears all, exposes all. Sophocles

The superior man is modest in his speech, but exceeds in his actions. Confucius

What comes from the heart, goes to the heart. Unknown


ON OTHERS

I have often wondered how it is that every man loves himself more than all the rest of men, but yet sets less value on his own opinion of himself than on the opinion of others. Marcus Aurelius

The best revenge is to be unlike him who performed the injury. Marcus Aurelius

Paper is more patient that people. Anne Frank

Be careful to leave your sons well instructed rather than rich, for the hopes of the instructed are better than the wealth of the ignorant. Epictetus


Allowing myself to ruminate over these words and then being open-minded to reframing my perspectives on life have shaped me into a more tranquil and grounded person. We are all on our own journeys and applying the wisdom of other extraordinary individuals will allow you to stand on the shoulders of giants. □

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