The best thought of the day is one that wakes and shakes us.
It may capture a general truth or moral lesson, or it may simply challenge us to see beyond our current perspective.
Sometimes a wise saying can simply get us to question our thought patterns and assumptions that we are making on auto-pilot – or help to remind us of what’s most important in life right now.
Some days a wise quote speaks directly to us and is exactly what we need in this point of time.
We hope this is the case for you, especially with this enormous list of powerful, wise and inspirational thoughts for the day. There truly is something for everyone to motivate, remind, inspire, encourage and uplift:
Inspirational Thought of The Day
“The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.” Lao Tzu
“If you don’t know where you are going, any road will get you there.” Lewis Carroll
“The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.” Socrates
“O, what a tangled web we weave when first we practise to deceive!” Walter Scott
“Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.” Napoleon Bonaparte
“He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.” Jim Elliot
“The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails.” William Arthur Ward
“In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks.” John Muir
“The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short; but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark.” Michelangelo
“It’s not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.” Epictetus
“Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world.” Archimedes
“We are what our thoughts have made us; so take care about what you think. Words are secondary. Thoughts live; they travel far.” Swami Vivekananda
“The young man knows the rules, but the old man knows the exceptions.” Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.
“Being entirely honest with oneself is a good exercise.” Sigmund Freud
“Work like you don’t need the money. Love like you’ve never been hurt. Dance like nobody’s watching.” Satchel Paige
“I’d rather regret the things I’ve done than regret the things I haven’t done.” Lucille Ball
“What happens is not as important as how you react to what happens.” Ellen Glasgow
“I will not follow where the path may lead, but I will go where there is no path, and I will leave a trail.” Muriel Strode
“It’s better to be a lion for a day than a sheep all your life.” Elizabeth Kenny
“Quick decisions are unsafe decisions.” Sophocles
“Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.” Judy Garland
“Knowledge is of no value unless you put it into practice.” Anton Chekhov
“A tree is known by its fruit, a man by his deeds. A good deed is never lost; he who sows courtesy reaps friendship, and he who plants kindness gathers love.” Saint Basil
“It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.” Henry David Thoreau
“If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.” Nelson Mandela
“If the world were perfect, it wouldn’t be.” Yogi Berra
“We cannot become what we need to be by remaining what we are.” Max de Pree
“Knowledge comes, but wisdom lingers. It may not be difficult to store up in the mind a vast quantity of facts within a comparatively short time, but the ability to form judgments requires the severe discipline of hard work and the tempering heat of experience and maturity.” Calvin Coolidge
“Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” Will Rogers
“My father said there were two kinds of people in the world: givers and takers. The takers may eat better, but the givers sleep better.” Marlo Thomas
“If you set out to be liked, you would be prepared to compromise on anything at any time, and you would achieve nothing.” Margaret Thatcher
“The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance – it is the illusion of knowledge.” Daniel J. Boorstin
“Set your course by the stars, not by the lights of every passing ship.” Omar N. Bradley
“You are a product of your environment. So, choose the environment that will best develop you toward your objective. Analyze your life in terms of its environment. Are the things around you helping you toward success – or are they holding you back?” W. Clement Stone
“Slow and steady wins the race.” Robert Lloyd
“Be happy. It’s one way of being wise.” Sidonie Gabrielle Colette
“Experience is not what happens to you; it’s what you do with what happens to you.” Aldous Huxley
“Today’s mighty oak is just yesterday’s nut, that held its ground. David Icke
“You’ve got to go out on a limb sometimes because that’s where the fruit is.” Will Rogers
“Wisdom is always an overmatch for strength.” Phil Jackson
“Beware, so long as you live, of judging men by their outward appearance.” Jean de La Fontaine
“Between saying and doing, many a pair of shoes is worn out.” Iris Murdoch
“Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.” Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best.” Henry Van Dyke
“The best way to predict the future is to invent it.” Alan Kay
“The superior man blames himself. The inferior man blames others.” Don Shula
“Don’t follow any advice, no matter how good, until you feel as deeply in your spirit as you think in your mind that the counsel is wise.” Joan Rivers
“Our character is what we do when we think no one is looking.” H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
“If you’re trying to achieve, there will be roadblocks. I’ve had them; everybody has had them. But obstacles don’t have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don’t turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.” Michael Jordan
“The greater our knowledge increases the more our ignorance unfolds.” John F. Kennedy
“When it is obvious that the goals cannot be reached, don’t adjust the goals, adjust the action steps.” Confucius
“If you want a thing done well, do it yourself.” Napoleon Bonaparte
“True knowledge exists in knowing that you know nothing.” Socrates
“It is like the seed put in the soil – the more one sows, the greater the harvest.” Orison Swett Marden
“When in doubt, don’t.” Benjamin Franklin
“Once you label me you negate me.” Soren Kierkegaard
“Blessed are those who give without remembering and take without forgetting.” Elizabeth Bibesco
“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.” George Bernard Shaw
“Talent is God given. Be humble. Fame is man-given. Be grateful. Conceit is self-given. Be careful.” John Wooden
“Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.” Carl Jung
“Sorrow is knowledge, those that know the most must mourn the deepest, the tree of knowledge is not the tree of life.” Lord Byron
“Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal.” Henry Ford
“It requires wisdom to understand wisdom: the music is nothing if the audience is deaf.” Walter Lippmann
“Never does nature say one thing and wisdom another.” Juvenal
“The smallest deed is better than the greatest intention.” John Burroughs
“True wisdom comes to each of us when we realize how little we understand about life, ourselves, and the world around us.” Socrates
“The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook.” William James
“Perhaps too much of everything is as bad as too little.” Edna Ferber
“The way you see people is the way you treat them, and the way you treat them is what they become.” Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
“As you walk down the fairway of life you must smell the roses, for you only get to play one round.” Ben Hogan
“Start with what is right rather than what is acceptable.” Franz Kafka
“We are made wise not by the recollection of our past, but by the responsibility for our future.” George Bernard Shaw
“Dost, thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that is the stuff life is made of.” Benjamin Franklin
“Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.” Jim Rohn
“It’s the little details that are vital. Little things make big things happen.” John Wooden
“Always keep an open mind and a compassionate heart.” Phil Jackson
“Wisdom begins in wonder.” Socrates
“A man must be big enough to admit his mistakes, smart enough to profit from them, and strong enough to correct them.” John C. Maxwell
“When written in Chinese, the word ‘crisis’ is composed of two characters. One represents danger and the other represents opportunity.” John F. Kennedy
“Honesty is the best policy.” Benjamin Franklin
“The lure of the distant and the difficult is deceptive. The great opportunity is where you are.” John Burroughs
“Never let your head hang down. Never give up and sit down and grieve. Find another way. And don’t pray when it rains if you don’t pray when the sun shines.” Richard M. Nixon
“Wisdom is knowing what to do next; virtue is doing it.” David Starr Jordan
“The teacher who is indeed wise does not bid you to enter the house of his wisdom but rather leads you to the threshold of your mind.” Khalil Gibran
“Common sense in an uncommon degree is what the world calls wisdom.” Samuel Taylor Coleridge
“Knowledge comes, but wisdom lingers.” Alfred Lord Tennyson
“It is not who is right, but what is right, that is of importance.” Thomas Huxley
“People don’t notice whether it’s winter or summer when they’re happy.” Anton Chekhov
“The fall of dropping water wears away the stone.” Lucretius
“Knowing others is wisdom, knowing yourself is Enlightenment.” Lao Tzu
“The higher we are placed, the more humbly we should walk.” Marcus Tullius Cicero
“Wisdom doesn’t necessarily come with age. Sometimes age just shows up all by itself.” Tom Wilson
“Whatever you do in life, surround yourself with smart people who’ll argue with you.” John Wooden
“Memory is the mother of all wisdom.” Aeschylus
“It is impossible to love and to be wise.” Francis Bacon
“If you only have a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail.” Abraham Maslow
“Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.” Thomas A. Edison
“There are many ways of going forward, but only one way of standing still.” Franklin D. Roosevelt
“Knowledge is proud that it knows so much; wisdom is humble that it knows no more.” William Cowper
“Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone.” Pablo Picasso
“Suffering is one of life’s great teachers.” Bryant H. McGill
“No one wants advice – only corroboration.” John Steinbeck
“A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination.” Nelson Mandela
“Commitment is an act, not a word.” Jean-Paul Sartre
“To be satisfied with a little, is the greatest wisdom; and he that increaseth his riches, increaseth his cares; but a contented mind is a hidden treasure, and trouble findeth it not.” Akhenaton
“You always have two choices: your commitment versus your fear.” Sammy Davis, Jr.
“Never cut what you can untie.” Joseph Joubert
“It isn’t what you do, but how you do it.” John Wooden
“Never find fault with the absent.” Alexander Pope
“The golden opportunity you are seeking is in yourself. It is not in your environment; it is not in luck or chance, or the help of others; it is in yourself alone.” Orison Swett Marden
“Wisdom, compassion, and courage are the three universally recognized moral qualities of men.” Confucius
“A wise man is superior to any insults which can be put upon him, and the best reply to unseemly behavior is patience and moderation.” Moliere
“People seldom refuse help, if one offers it in the right way.” A. C. Benson
“The more you like yourself, the less you are like anyone else, which makes you unique.” Walt Disney
“Wisdom outweighs any wealth.” Sophocles
“Wise sayings often fall on barren ground, but a kind word is never thrown away.” Arthur Helps
“This is what I learned: that everybody is talented, original and has something important to say.” Brenda Ueland
“Turn your wounds into wisdom.” Oprah Winfrey
“Avoid having your ego so close to your position that when your position falls, your ego goes with it.” Colin Powell
“From the errors of others, a wise man corrects his own.” Publilius Syrus
“Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.” Albert Einstein
“Don’t taunt the alligator until after you’ve crossed the creek.” Dan Rather
“A promise made is a debt unpaid.” Robert W. Service
“Patience is the companion of wisdom.” Saint Augustine
“Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity.” George S. Patton
“Regret for the things we did can be tempered by time; it is regret for the things we did not do that is inconsolable.” Sydney J. Harris
“I didn’t get where I am today by worryin’ about how I’d feel tomorrow. Ron White
“A charming woman… doesn’t follow the crowd. She is herself.” Loretta Young
“Spectacular achievement is always preceded by unspectacular preparation.” Robert H. Schuller
“You can observe a lot by watching.” Yogi Berra
“Some folks are wise, and some are otherwise.” Tobias Smollett
“Never interrupt someone doing what you said couldn’t be done.” Amelia Earhart
“By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.” Confucius
“The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining.” John F. Kennedy
“One’s philosophy is not best expressed in words; it is expressed in the choices one makes… and the choices we make are ultimately our responsibility.” Eleanor Roosevelt
“Let deeds match words.” Plautus
“It’s not the having, it’s the getting.” Elizabeth Taylor
“Everything comes to us that belongs to us if we create the capacity to receive it.” Rabindranath Tagore
“The opinion which other people have of you is their problem, not yours.” Elisabeth Kubler-Ross
“In dwelling, live close to the ground. In thinking, keep to the simple. In conflict, be fair and generous. In governing, don’t try to control. In work, do what you enjoy. In family life, be completely present.” Lao Tzu
“A fool flatters himself, a wise man flatters the fool.” Edward G. Bulwer-Lytton
“It is a common experience that a problem difficult at night is resolved in the morning after the committee of sleep has worked on it.” John Steinbeck
“My advice to you is not to inquire why or whither, but just enjoy your ice cream while it’s on your plate.” Thornton Wilder
“Climb the mountains and get their good tidings.” John Muir
“We should not judge people by their peak of excellence; but by the distance they have travelled from the point where they started.” Henry Ward Beecher
“The truth is not for all men, but only for those who seek it.” Ayn Rand
“The man of knowledge must be able not only to love his enemies but also to hate his friends.” Friedrich Nietzsche
“The road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom.” William Blake
“People spend too much time finding other people to blame, too much energy finding excuses for not being what they are capable of being, and not enough energy putting themselves on the line, growing out of the past, and getting on with their lives.” J. Michael Straczynski
“The more one pleases everybody, the less one pleases profoundly.” Stendhal
“The more sand that has escaped from the hourglass of our life, the clearer we should see through it.” Jean Paul
“Think big thoughts but relish small pleasures.” H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
“Fear cannot be without hope nor hope without fear.” Baruch Spinoza
“It is better to rust out than wear out.” Edwin Markham
“Every man is a damn fool for at least five minutes every day; wisdom consists in not exceeding the limit.” Elbert Hubbard
“Our deeds determine us, as much as we determine our deeds.” George Eliot
“Life is a travelling to the edge of knowledge, then a leap taken.” D. H. Lawrence
“The three great essentials to achieve anything worthwhile are: Hard work, Stick-to-itiveness, and Common sense.” Thomas A. Edison
“We gain the strength of the temptation we resist.” Ralph Waldo Emerson
“There is a wisdom of the head, and a wisdom of the heart.” Charles Dickens
“Singleness of purpose is one of the chief essentials for success in life, no matter what may be one’s aim.” John D. Rockefeller
“It’s easier to resist at the beginning than at the end.” Leonardo da Vinci
“Habit is the nursery of errors.” Victor Hugo
“Giving opens the way for receiving.” Florence Scovel Shinn
“Make it your habit not to be critical about small things.” Edward Everett Hale
“Wisdom is not wisdom when it is derived from books alone.” Horace
“A long habit of not thinking a thing wrong gives it a superficial appearance of being right.” Thomas Paine
“Perspective is worth 80 IQ points.” Alan Kay
“Wise men make more opportunities than they find.” Francis Bacon
“To conquer fear is the beginning of wisdom.” Bertrand Russell
“It is always our own self that we find at the end of the journey. The sooner we face that self, the better.” Ella Maillart
“Success is not to be pursued; it is to be attracted by the person you become.” Jim Rohn
“All things must come to the soul from its roots, from where it is planted.” Saint Teresa of Avila
“Leave no stone unturned.” Euripides
“None knows the weight of another’s burden.” George Herbert
“Ignorant men raise questions that wise men answered a thousand years ago.” Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
“Knowledge can be communicated, but not wisdom. One can find it, live it, be fortified by it, do wonders through it, but one cannot communicate and teach it.” Hermann Hesse
“With pride, there are many curses. With humility, there come many blessings.” Ezra Taft Benson
“The wheel that squeaks the loudest is the one that gets the grease.” Josh Billings
“If you call failures experiments, you can put them in your resume and claim them as achievements.” Mason Cooley
For more inspirational quotes, be sure to check out: