Recommended as life tips! A collection of short, memorable quotes from great figures
Many people who have achieved great things throughout human history have left behind quotes that symbolize their legacy.
These words often capture their guiding principles or philosophies, and many can serve as hints for living well even in the modern day.
Here, we present a selection of short yet profound quotations left by great figures.
Whether you have dreams and goals, or are troubled or uncertain about something, you’re sure to find words that fit your situation.
Please use them as a reference.
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Recommended as life tips! A collection of short, memorable quotes from great figures (31–40)
What I’m doing is by no means something big, but it is something necessary.Che Guevara
This is one of the famous quotes left by Che Guevara, a revolutionary from Argentina.
Do you have any goals right now? Whether it’s work, your future, hobbies, or dreams, there are many challenges on the way to achieving big goals.
By overcoming those small challenges and accumulating experience, you move closer to your goal.
The road to achieving your goal can be long, and at times you may feel like your spirit is breaking.
However, those daily challenges are also necessary to reach your goal.
When you feel lost or come to a halt, try to remember these words.
Find a way. If there isn’t one, make one.Hannibal Barca
Hannibal Barca, renowned as Carthage’s great general who defeated the Roman army at the Battle of Cannae.
This famous quote is undeniably the powerful words of a true commander.
In 221 BCE, at the young age of twenty-six, he became the army’s commander and achieved numerous victories.
Perhaps this was because, as the quote suggests, he constantly sought ways to win, and if none could be found, he would create them himself.
His lofty ambition and unwavering resolve elevated him to a great general and made him a figure remembered and spoken of to this day.
Your happiness in life depends on the quality of your thoughts.Marcus Aurelius Antoninus
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, one of the Five Good Emperors and the 16th Roman emperor.
He is also known for leaving behind his work Meditations, and can be regarded as a model of a philosopher-king who preferred learning over war.
He was also a thinker within Stoic philosophy.
The happiness of life changes according to the quality of one’s own thoughts.
Controlling the mind and emotions through thought also affects how we ultimately interpret things.
In other words, a single way of thinking can make you happy—or unhappy.
People deserve praise or blame solely based on whether they have the perseverance to see things through.Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci, a master artist of the Renaissance known for The Last Supper and the Mona Lisa.
From this quote he left behind, we can sense the importance of perseverance.
The ability to carry through without abandoning what you have decided to do is essential for success.
By continuing to make efforts without giving up until the end, people earn praise and etch their names into history.
Leonardo da Vinci is known as a remarkably versatile figure, even called a “universal genius.” Perhaps it was precisely because he possessed this power of perseverance.
Unless the whole world becomes happy, individual happiness is impossible.Kenji Miyazawa
These are words by Kenji Miyazawa, the poet and writer of children’s stories famous for the poem “Be Not Defeated by the Rain.” Kenji Miyazawa is also known for works such as Night on the Galactic Railroad, The Restaurant of Many Orders, and Matasaburo of the Wind.
All humans live by supporting one another.
Even if we feel as though we live on our own, it’s hard to completely separate ourselves from others.
In other words, unless those around us are happy and the entire world becomes happy, our own happiness cannot truly exist.
Not only do we want our own happiness, but we also want the people around us and people across the world to be happy—these are words to keep close to heart.
Worrying is a waste of time. Worry gets in the way when I try to solve problems.
This is a famous quote that conveys Donald Trump’s drive to take action, emphasizing that it’s more important to act first than to spend time on needless worries.
It also expresses his own stance of constantly working toward solving problems, saying that for someone like him, worrying is a waste of time.
While worry can serve as preparation, there’s also a chance the feared problem won’t happen at all—so taking action should come first.
It’s a message that encourages those who hesitate to act, urging them to focus on action over worry in order to achieve greater results.
Even if you compare yourself to others and find yourself inferior, it is by no means something to be ashamed of. However, if you compare yourself to who you were last year and find that you are worse this year, that is truly something to be ashamed of.Konosuke Matsushita
Konosuke Matsushita, one of Japan’s leading entrepreneurs known as the “God of Management,” is famous for building Panasonic Holdings in a single lifetime and serves as a role model for many business leaders.
This quote teaches us about the right way to grow.
When there’s someone who shares the same goal, we tend to compare ourselves with them.
However, the focus should not be on rivals but on ourselves.
Even if you outperform others, if you are inferior to who you were last year, it cannot be called growth.
Hope is the faith that leads us to success.Madame Curie
In Japan, she’s more affectionately known as “Madame Curie” than by her given name, Marie Curie.
Is that the same phenomenon as how “Madame Dewi” rolls off the tongue more easily than Ratna Sari Dewi Sukarno? Despite being a top-tier scientist who won the Nobel Prize in Physics and in Chemistry, she once said something that feels surprisingly liberal-arts-ish: People sometimes criticize “what-if” talk like, “If my grades improve,” or “If my salary goes up,” but perhaps it’s by stacking up those everyday hopes and wishes that we grow.
Highly recommended for anyone who feels stuck.
Don’t hesitate to be happy.John Lennon
John Lennon, who founded the Beatles and, after their breakup, worked with Yoko Ono, left many memorable quotes beyond his musical career.
These words stem from Lennon’s music and life philosophy, conveying a profound message about pursuing happiness without hesitation.
Rather than trying to meet the expectations of others, it may be more important to honestly accept what you feel and what you want.
Prioritizing your own happiness might, in the end, lead to the happiness of those around you.
Life is about just this one day—today.Dale Carnegie
I think people live as if tomorrow will naturally come.
We casually say things like “See you tomorrow” or “Maybe next time,” without consciously thinking about the grand idea of the future, simply assuming that tomorrow will arrive.
That’s only natural, but when I encountered his words, I felt that what we should truly cherish is not that future, but “today.” Life isn’t the future that’s yet to come; it’s the present—today—that is life itself.
This quote is by Dale Carnegie.
He was an American educator and author, known for developing various trainings on interpersonal skills.
How did his words make you feel?