College is stressful. It's easy to get into a cycle where we lack motivation, confidence, and drive. We don't have to be stuck there, though. If you're an underclassman looking for a push to get you through finals week, a soon-to-be college student lacking confidence, or just want to read some beautiful words from noteworthy people, read on. If you've just graduated college (or are about to), these quotes may be the encouragement you need to take on the scary post-college world with determination and fearlessness. Whatever your situation, keep in mind: you are wonderful, you are capable, and, most importantly, you've got this.
1. These motivational words from F. Scott Fitzgerald:
"For what it's worth... it's never too late, or in my case too early, to be whoever you want to be. There's no time limit. Start whenever you want. You can change or stay the same. There are no rules to this thing. We can make the best or the worst of it. I hope you make the best of it. I hope you see things that startle you. I hope you feel things you never felt before. I hope you meet people who have a different point of view. I hope you live a life you're proud of, and if you're not, I hope you have the courage to start all over again."
2. This truth from Mark Twain:
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones that you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from safe harbor. Catch the winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."
3. Julia Child's inspirational advice:
"Find something you're passionate about and keep tremendously interested in it."
4. This quote from Van Gogh that perfectly sums up a college education:
"I am always doing what I cannot do yet in order to learn how to do it."
5. This short yet powerful advice from Abraham Lincoln:
"Whatever you are, be a good one."
6. This long yet powerful advice from Steve Jobs:
"Here's to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes, the ones who see things differently. They're not fond of rules, and they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify, or vilify them. About the only thing you can't do is ignore them because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do."
7. These words of wisdom from Louisa May Alcott, for those not-so-great days:
"I am not afraid of storms for I am learning how to sail my ship."
8. Ralph Waldo Emerson's advice to be true to yourself:
"To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment."
9. This advice from Eleanor Roosevelt:
"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams."
10. This truism from Henry Ford:
"Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again. This time more intelligently."
11. These words of encouragement from J.K. Rowling:
"It is impossible to live without failing at something unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all — in which case, you have failed by default."
12. This rhyming motivator from Dr. Seuss:
"And will you succeed? Yes you will indeed! (98 and 3/4 percent guaranteed.)
13. This badass motto from Pablo Picasso:
"Learn the rules like a pro so you can break them like an artist."
14. This definition of success from Maya Angelou:
"Success is liking yourself liking what you do, and liking how you do it."
15. These brilliant words from C.S. Lewis:
"No man who bothers with originality will ever be original whereas if you simply try to tell the truth you will become original without ever having noticed."
16. This mantra from Nelson Mandela that'll get you through finals week:
"It always seems impossible until it's done."
17. This quote from Fred Rogers that's so important to keep in mind:
"If only you could sense how important you are to the lives of those you meet; how important you can be to people you never even dream of. There is something of yourself that you leave at every meeting with another person."
18. These awe-inspiring words from St. Catherine of Sienna:
"Be who you were created to be, and you will set the world on fire."
19. This motivational quote from Amy Poehler:
"Great people do things before they're ready. They do things before they know they can do it. Doing what you're afraid of, getting out of your comfort zone, taking risks like that--that is what life is. You might find out something about yourself that's really special. If you're not good, who cares? You tried something. Now you know something about yourself."
20. This brilliant quote from Roald Dahl:
"And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you. Because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don't believe in magic will never find it."
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