Thought-Provoking Quotes as a Brief Guideline for Life
Thought-provoking quotes are powerful expressions of wisdom that resonate with people from all walks of life. They offer inspiration, guidance, motivation, comfort, and knowledge in a simple, memorable, and straightforward way. This is essentially how Blinkist works as well!
In this article, we wish to share some thought-provoking quotes that can be of help in guiding you at different stages of your life.
20 Thought-Provoking Quotes From Great Books and Great Minds
All throughout history, authors, philosophers, psychologists, activists, political leaders and business moguls, have said or written some things that stuck. Some of these pearls of wisdom have been passed down from generation to generation and continue to inspire people. Here are a few that resonate with us.
“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself”
“The secret of getting ahead is getting started.”
“The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.”
“The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”
Long Walk to Freedom
- 24 min reading time
- audio version available
“The best way to predict your future is to create it.”
“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.”
“The more you know, the more you realize you know nothing.”
“We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorns have roses.”
“It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.”
“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.”
“The only person you should try to be better than is the person you were yesterday.”
“In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: it goes on.”
“The first step toward success is taken when you refuse to be a captive of the environment in which you first find yourself.”
“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”
“Success is walking from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.”
“Your time is limited, don’t waste it living someone else’s life.”
“The best investment you can make is in yourself.”
“You don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great.”
“The best leaders are those most interested in surrounding themselves with assistants and associates smarter than they are.”
5 Levels of Leadership
- 15 min reading time
- audio version available
10 Insightful Quotes About Power
If you’re a leader or aspire to get into a leadership position, you should check out the Blinkist reading list of leadership and management books. They will equip you with all the knowledge you need to manage power. So will these quotes:
“Power is not about being in control. It’s about making a difference”
“Power is given only to those who dare to lower themselves and pick it up. Only one thing matters, one thing; to be able to dare!”
“All things are subject to interpretation whichever interpretation prevails at a given time is a function of power and not truth.”
“Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”
“The only way to predict the future is to have the power to shape the future.”
“Power is always dangerous. Power attracts the worst and corrupts the best.”
“You only have power over people so long as you don’t take everything away from them. But when you’ve robbed a man of everything, he’s no longer in your power; he’s free again.”
“Power is action; the electoral principle is discussion. No political action is possible when discussion is permanently established.”
“The power of imagination makes us infinite.”
“Mastering others is strength. Mastering yourself is true power.”
To understand more about how power works, why don’t you check out 48 Laws of Power on Blinkist.
10 Inspirational Positive Energy Quotes
Soak up the positive vibes of these eminently though-provoking quotes and let them brighten up your whole day.
“If you realized how powerful your thoughts are, you would never think of a negative thought.”
“Treat people as if they were what they ought to be and you help them to become what they are capable of being.”
“Keep your face always toward the sunshine – and shadows will fall behind you.”
“Once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, you’ll start having positive results.”
“We try our best to spread positive energy. Some reciprocate and some don’t. It is better to stay away from people who cannot reciprocate our vibe.”
“The energy of the mind is the essence of life.”
“Be a positive energy trampoline – absorb what you need and rebound more back.”
“Positive thoughts, words, and actions create positive feelings. Positive feelings generate positive energy.”
“If you are depressed you are living in the past. If you are anxious you’re living in the future. But if you are at peace, you are living in the present.”
“Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes, your smile can be the source of your joy.”
Life Lesson Quotes
Anyone, who has ever gone through a hard time or faced a crisis of any sort, will find at least one or two thought-provoking quotes in this collection.
“Many of us go down a sad path when we let our egos make us suffer.”
“Every defeat, every heartbreak, every loss, contains its own seed, its own lesson on how to improve your performance the next time.”
“One man’s fault is another man’s lesson.”
“But war is also an incredible teacher – a brutal instructor. We learned lessons in war, written in blood, about sorrow, loss, and pain.”
The Dichotomy of Leadership
- 18 min reading time
- audio version available
“As life’s lessons are learned, spiritual truth emerges.”
“Think of each failure, each heartache, and each loss in your life as a lesson in courage and resilience.”
“Life’s lessons take a lifetime to learn, that’s just how it is in life’s classroom. But as we learn, we teach others. We are all teachers in the school of life.”
“Every relationship offers one of two things: a lesson or a blessing. In many instances, the lesson is the ultimate blessing.”
“It’s not the mistake that matters, it’s how you interpret the lesson.”
“No matter how diligent you are about teaching your children right from wrong, the truth is that the majority of the lessons they learn from you will be the ones you teach without meaning to.”
Find Your Own Favorite Quotes by Browsing Blinkist Content
If you cultivate a reading habit, you will soon find any number of thought-provoking quotes to guide you through life. On Blinkist, you will find incredible riches of knowledge at your fingertips – a huge collection of over 5,000 books, which have conveniently been broken down into short podcasts and book summaries, using only their key ideas. Browse 27 diverse categories of non-fiction books that will help you understand powerful ideas in 15 minutes.
