Inspirational Quotes to Live By

There is a big difference between inspirational quotes to live by and inane clichs that might make sappy people feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Inspirational quotes are meant to ignite passion or turn the light on and make one realize a hidden truth or some sort of breakthrough epiphany. Great quotes almost always turn clichs on their heads and offer profound insights that can make one rethink one or many long held beliefs. The very best quotes inspire men and women to take action and will ring loud and clear in history and historical events. The following are some of my favorite quotes to live by.

Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote: Most of the shadows of this life are caused by our standing in our own sunshine. This is a very deep statement with the ultimate message that we are our own worst enemies sometimes. We tend to destroy our own happiness and many times cannot even recognize that we are happy or believe that we deserve to be happy.

The ability to convert ideas to things is the secret to outward success. This is attributed to the late great Henry Ward Beecher. Napoleon Hill had his own version of the same message when he wrote, Thoughts are things, in his bestselling inspirational book Think and Grow Rich. The whole concept is deceptively simple, that is, that ephemeral thoughts can become solid realities, or things. This was and remains a revolutionary concept and one that if followed will inevitably lead to success, both financially and spiritually. Millions of devout followers of Napoleon Hill will attest to the simple yet inspirational words that seem to resonate louder than ever in todays complex world. Truly these are quotes to live by.

The very best quotes to live by will inspire men and women to take action. Doug Firebaugh suggested that people should Every day do something that will inch you closer to a better tomorrow. This message tells us to take baby steps towards our long term goals and if you do something, anything positive each day that you will bring yourself all that much closer to your dreams. Sophocles said Heaven never helps the man who will not act. Without action, we cannot get aid from divinity or fate or whatever you want to call it. Divine intervention occurs to those with the courage and conviction to actually do something, not just talk about it.

One of my favorite all time quotes to live by is by the great philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre who once said We only become what we are by the radical and deep-seated refusal of that which others have made of us. This means that in order to find ourselves and out true destinies we need to ignore the opinions of others. People love to label and categorize others. It is their way of reducing the accomplishments of others so that they can feel better about their own inaction or inability to succeed. We are labeled and boxed in by these fraudulent limitations. True artists and bohemians never allow the opinions of others to shape their art.