Motivational Quotes

Life

The cities of America are inexpressibly tedious. The Bostonians take their learning too sadly; culture with them is an accomplishment rather than an atmosphere; their Hub, as they call it, is the paradise of prigs. Chicago is a sort of monster-shop, full of bustles and bores. Political life at Washington is like political life in a suburban vestry. Baltimore is amusing for a week, but Philadelphia is dreadfully provincial; and though one can dine in New York one could not dwell there.

- Wilde, Oscar

Best Quotes about Life

We would like to live as we once lived, but history will not permit it.

Kennedy, John F.

If you're not in New York, you're camping out.

Dewey, Thomas E.

The interest in life does not lie in what people do, nor even in their relations to each other, but largely in the power to communicate with a third party, antagonistic, enigmatic, yet perhaps persuadable, which one may call life in general.

Woolf, Virginia

We only seem to learn from Life that Life doesn't matter so much as it seemed to do -- it's not so burningly important, after all, what happens. We crawl, like blinking sea-creatures, out of the Ocean onto a spur of rock, we creep over the promontory bewildered and dazzled and hurting ourselves, then we drop in the ocean on the other side: and the little transit doesn't matter so much.

Lawrence, D. H.

Life is real! Life is earnest! And death is not its goal. Dust thou art, to dust returneth, was not spoken of the soul.

Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth

We will neglect our cities to our peril, for in neglecting them we neglect the nation.

Kennedy, John F.

You're alive. Do something. The directive in life, the moral imperative was so uncomplicated. It could be expressed in single words, not complete sentences. It sounded like this: Look. Listen. Choose. Act.

Barbara Hall

The essential conditions of everything you do must be choice, love, passion.

Boulanger, Nadia

In the early days all I hoped was to make a living out of what I did best. But, since there's no real market for masturbation I had to fall back on my bass playing abilities.

Claypool, Les

10.

Remember, a dead fish can float downstream, but it takes a live one to swim upstream.

Fields, W. C.

11.

Every man's life is a fairy tale written by God's finger.

Anderson, Hans Christian

12.

The world has so many lessons to teach you. I consider the world, our earth, to be like a school, and our life, the classrooms. Sometimes on our planet life school, the lessons often come dressed up as detours and road blocks and sometimes as full blown crises. And the secret I've learned to getting ahead is being open to the lessons.

Oprah Winfrey

13.

We are born crying, live complaining, and die disappointed.

Fuller, Thomas

14.

People need to be made more aware of the need to work at learning how to live because life is so quick and sometimes it goes away too quickly

Warhol, Andy

15.

The major justification for a life is the happiness and reward it brings to other lives.

16.

Life is the only art that we are required to practice without preparation, and without being allowed the preliminary trials, the failures and botches, that are essential for training.

Mumford, Lewis

17.

Life is something that happens when you can't get to sleep.

Fran Lebowitz

18.

Life is a long lesson in humility.

James M. Barrie

19.

A great city, whose image dwells in the memory of man, is the type of some great idea. Rome represents conquest; Faith hovers over the towers of Jerusalem; and Athens embodies the pre-eminent quality of the antique world, Art.

Disraeli, Benjamin

20.

Life is painting a picture, not doing a sum.

Holmes Jr., Oliver Wendell

21.

Nobody gets to live life backward. Look ahead, that is where your future lies.

Landers, Ann

22.

It is not reason which is the guide of life, but custom.

Hume, David

23.

A large city cannot be experientially known; its life is too manifold for any individual to be able to participate in it.

Huxley, Aldous

24.

I'm impressed with the people from Chicago. Hollywood is hype, New York is talk, Chicago is work.

Douglas, Michael

25.

Life is always walking up to us and saying, 'Come on in, the living's fine,' and what do we do? Back off and take its picture.

Baker, Russell (Wayne)

26.

Everywhere one seeks to produce meaning, to make the world signify, to render it visible. We are not, however, in danger of lacking meaning; quite the contrary, we are gorged with meaning and it is killing us.

Baudrillard, Jean

27.

I believe that imagination is stronger than knowledge -- that myth is more potent than history. I believe that dreams are more powerful than facts -- That hope always triumphs over experience -- That laughter is the only cure for grief. And I believe that love is stronger than death.

Fulghum, Robert

28.

You live in a deranged age, more deranged that usual, because in spite of great scientific and technological advances, man has not the faintest idea of who he is or what he is doing.

Percy, Walker

29.

The four stages of life are infancy, childhood, adolescence, and obsolescence.

Linkletter, Art

30.

I can't be bitter. No one has a contract on life.

Heath, David M.

31.

We do not look in our great cities for our best morality.

Austen, Jane

32.

Be glad of life because it gives you a chance to love and to work and to play and to look up at stars.

Dyke, Henry Van

33.

Life has taught me that it is not for our faults that we are disliked and even hated, but for our qualities.

Berenson, Bernard

34.

This is what you shall do: love the earth and sun, and animals, despise riches, give alms to every one that asks, stand up for the stupid and crazy, devote your income and labor to others, hate tyrants, argue not concerning God, have patience and indulgence towards the people, take off your hat to nothing known or unknown, or to any man or number of men; go freely with the powerful uneducated persons, and with the young, and mothers, of families: read these leaves in the open air every season of every year of your life: re-examine all you have been told at school or church, or in any books, and dismiss whatever insults your soul.

Whitman, Walt

35.

Three keys to more abundant living: caring about others, daring for others, sharing with others.

Ward, William A.

36.

People should always have something which they prefer to life.

Seume, Johann G.

37.

Living is like working out a long addition sum, and if you make a mistake in the first two totals you will never find the right answer. It means involving oneself in a complicated chain of circumstances.

Pavese, Cesare

38.

Maxim for life: You get treated in life the way you teach people to treat you.

Dyer, Wayne

39.

The longer I live the more beautiful life becomes. If you foolishly ignore beauty, you will soon find yourself without it. Your life will be impoverished. But if you invest in beauty, it will remain with you all the days of your life.

Wright, Frank Lloyd

40.

Life is a rollercoaster. Try to eat a light lunch.

Schmaltz, David A.

41.

It's not how long life is but the quality of our life that is important.

Dawson, Roger

42.

Paris, a city of gaieties and pleasures, where four-fifths of the inhabitants die of grief. [About Paris]

Chamfort, Sebastien-Roch Nicolas De

43.

Darkness within darkness. The gateway to all understanding.

Lao-Tzu

44.

One recipe for a longer life; Never exceed the speed limit.

45.

There is no quiet place in the white man's cities. No place to hear the unfurling of leaves in spring, or the rustle of an insect's wings. But perhaps it is because I am a savage and do not understand. The clatter only seems to insult the ears.

Seattle, Chief

46.

Dance like no one is watching, Love like you'll never be hurt, Sing like no one is listening, Live like it's heaven on earth.

Purkey, William

47.

Life is as tedious as a twice-told tale vexing the dull ear of a drowsy man.

William Shakespeare

48.

City life is millions of people being lonesome together.

Thoreau, Henry David

49.

In the game of life it's a good idea to have a few early losses, which relieves you of the pressure of trying to maintain an undefeated season.