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Mottos that are sure to lift your spirits and keep you positive! favorite_border Last updated:2026/2/2
Mottos that are sure to lift your spirits and keep you positive! 10 years as a kindergarten teacher / elementary school teacher / junior and senior high school teacher / childminder kepiko Graduated from Kunitachi College of Music, Faculty of Music (now: Department of Music Culture and Education, Early Childhood Music Education major). In elementary school, my homeroom teacher was Jun Kusaba, a game researcher. After graduating from university, I worked as a kindergarten teacher for 10 years and as an after-school childcare instructor for 7 years, then took a position as a music teacher at an international school in Singapore. In addition to music education, I engaged in activities that introduced Japanese culture, traditional games, and recreational activities, working with many children. Later, through freelance writing, planning, and editing at Shogakukan, I met many delightful adults and experienced the joy of communicating and sharing. Drawing on the perspective cultivated in the field of education and my experience as an editor, I provide practical information with an emphasis on both input and output, mainly in areas related to music and children. My hobbies include instruments, singing, handicrafts, toys, drawing, traditional games, the outdoors, and books. My special skill is spinning-top tricks.
When you’re feeling down or things aren’t going well, sometimes the motto you’ve written in your personal journal can save you.
What kind of motto do you live by?
In this article, we’ll introduce positive mottos that will shine a bright light on you.
We’ve picked quotes from great figures and celebrities, as well as lines from manga, taken from a variety of contexts.
When you need just a little more strength to keep going, or when you’ve hit rock bottom and can’t pull yourself up, please remember the words we share here.
Table of Contents Mottos that are sure to lift your spirits and keep you positive! Other people’s rulers and your own ruler each have different measurements, don’t they? Mitsuo Aida Achieve great things by accumulating small efforts. Ninomiya Sontoku Keep your eyes on the stars and your feet on the ground. Theodore Roosevelt As long as you keep striving without ever losing sight of a good purpose, you will surely be saved in the end. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe If you believe in yourself, there are no limits. Cristiano Ronaldo In the midst of difficulty lies opportunity. Albert Einstein To challenge yourself is to grow. LeBron James Where there’s a will, there’s a way. Abraham Lincoln You only realize your own strength once you’ve overcome your anxieties and concerns. Serena Williams Write it as failure, read it as growth. Katsuya Nomura Don’t rush. But don’t give up. Shigeta Saitō To conquer oneself is the greatest victory. Plato Today is the first day of the rest of your life. Charles Dederich Honesty is always the best policy. George Washington No success for those without dreams. Yoshida Shōin Nothing is impossible. Muhammad Ali It doesn’t matter how slowly you go, as long as you do not stop. Confucius Do not fear taking on challenges; fear not challenging yourself. Michael Jordan It is not power or intelligence, but steady effort that is the key to unlocking one’s abilities. Winston Churchill There is no piece that cannot move forward. Makoto Nakahara If you’re afraid of criticism, you can’t change anything. Sanae Takaichi You can’t change other people or the past, but you can change yourself and the future. Eric Berne Blue sky beyond the clouds If you give up, the game is over right there. Mitsuyoshi Anzai, Slam Dunk If you can dream it, you can do it. Walt Disney Fall down seven times, get up eight. Single-minded focus spanning a vast distance indomitable; unyielding steady progress day by day; making rapid strides Single-minded pursuit of truth I want to turn both the reality of the good and the reality of the bad into nourishment for what comes next. Naoko Takahashi Forge ahead with courage Indomitable; unyielding (literally: ‘unbent by a hundred setbacks’) Mind over matter (literally: Strong will can even penetrate rocks) It’s never too late to become the person you wanted to be. George Eliot Beneath mud and earth lies solid rock; above clouds and mist shines the sun. At the height of discontent, there is still fortune, nor is hope absent. Kanzo Uchimura It’s okay. Let’s rebuild again. Akio Tadano To live is not to breathe; it is to act. Jean-Jacques Rousseau To succeed, always try as if this is your last chance. Phil Knight There’s no need to look back. There are countless paths ahead of you. Lu Xun If you don’t give up on yourself, there is no such thing as losing in life. Shigeta Saitō Good fortune comes to a house with laughter. Keep working hard until it pays off. Lionel Messi There’s no way other people can do it but you can’t. Doraemon 'Doraemon' The only people who never make mistakes are those who do nothing. Theodore Roosevelt People stumble their way toward success. Mary Kay Ash No matter how dark it is, the stars are shining. Ralph Waldo Emerson Life doesn’t end when you lose. It ends when you quit. Richard Nixon Whether you’re turning twenty or thirty, it is never too late to start something. Kawato Koichi “ROOKEYS” If you want to do it, you should give it a try. Ichiro Opportunities to take on challenges are equal for everyone. Steve Jobs Beyond the clouds, the sky is always blue. Louisa May Alcott The goddess of fate favors those who act boldly. Niccolò Machiavelli Even if you’re knocked down 99 times, all you need is to stand up the 100th time. Vincent van Gogh If you want to see a rainbow, you have to put up with a little rain. Dolly Parton I don’t dislike headwinds—in fact, I’m grateful for them. Without headwinds, you can’t move on to the next step in anything. Ichiro If you ever hear a voice within you say, ‘You can’t paint,’ then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced. Vincent van Gogh Failure is the mother of success. Love the life you live. Live the life you love. Bob Marley Not everyone who puts in effort will be rewarded. However, everyone who succeeds has, without exception, worked hard! Genji Kamogawa, “Hajime no Ippo” Birds fly because they believe they can. Vergilius I’d rather fail at something I love than succeed at something I hate. George Burns For a human, their life is a work of art. Ryotaro Shiba All phenomena are reflections of the mind. Kazuo Inamori A crisis is an opportunity. Dripping water wears away stone. Go your own way and let people say whatever they want. Dante Alighieri I never lose. I either win or learn. Nelson Mandela It is not the strong who win; it is those who win who are strong. Franz Beckenbauer What matters is not the length of life, but the depth of life. Ralph Waldo Emerson Do not make light of even a moment of time. Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever. Mahatma Gandhi These positive mottos (1–10) are sure to lift your spirits and help you stay positive! Other people’s rulers and your own ruler each have different measurements, don’t they?NEW! Mitsuo Aida This is a famous quote about values by Mitsuo Aida, a poet born in the Taisho era.
We want to avoid worrying about others’ opinions so much that we can’t be ourselves, or feeling angry and thinking, “Why won’t they even do this for me?” When you recall these words at such times, you realize that each person’s values are different, and that you shouldn’t be overly discouraged by others’ evaluations, nor should you judge others solely by your own values.
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Achieve great things by accumulating small efforts. Ninomiya Sontoku This well-known saying—that small efforts each day lead to great results—is a quote by Ninomiya Sontoku.
Statues of Ninomiya Kinjiro, depicting him in his youth, used to be installed at elementary schools across Japan, so many people may feel familiar with him.
Success and results don’t come all at once, and even those considered geniuses are often steadily making tireless efforts behind the scenes.
If you keep these words in mind and move forward step by step, you too may achieve significant growth.
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Keep your eyes on the stars and your feet on the ground. Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th President of the United States.
Perhaps because he was also known as a writer, his famous sayings carry real weight.
Among them, this particular quote of his seems to resonate across nations and races.
It can be taken to mean: pursue your ideals, but don’t let your feelings be swept away by them—keep your feet on the ground and move forward step by step.
It’s something to keep in mind no matter what you’re doing, and it might even be worth reminding yourself of this quote several times a day.
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As long as you keep striving without ever losing sight of a good purpose, you will surely be saved in the end. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Goethe—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe—left us forward-looking, future‑oriented sayings.
His words appear at crucial moments, in school textbooks and at life’s turning points, to encourage us.
And these words are no exception.
Whether at school or at work, it’s the same: set a goal, work hard, and keep moving forward.
Surely Goethe, too, had times when things were far from smooth sailing.
Of course, effort is painful; looked at another way, that pain is proof that you’re giving it your all.
I believe Goethe will continue to watch over you with many memorable quotes in the days ahead.
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If you believe in yourself, there are no limits. Cristiano Ronaldo Cristiano Ronaldo has set numerous scoring records and won many titles on the world’s biggest stage.
Through strict self-discipline and relentless effort, he has always continued to believe in his own potential.
The moment you decide something is impossible for you, your learning and growth come to a halt.
Limits are not imposed by others; they are born from your own assumptions.
By believing in yourself and continuing to work hard, you can get closer to results beyond what you imagined.
This passionate quote highlights the importance of confidence that springs from within.
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In the midst of difficulty lies opportunity. Albert Einstein Albert Einstein is famously remembered for that cute photo of him sticking out his tongue.
This quote of his seems to showcase his greatness as a scientist.
Ordinary people tend to give up when they encounter difficulties.
He, however, says that within them lies opportunity.
It’s a quote you’ll want to remember when you face challenges and need the courage to take them on.
That said, it’s also important to discern whether a difficulty is truly solvable.
You could say that discernment itself is one kind of opportunity, too.
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To challenge yourself is to grow. LeBron James These are the words of LeBron James, one of the greatest all-around players in NBA history who has won multiple championships and MVP awards.
Having competed at the highest level for many years, he has continually set new challenges for himself.
In studying as well, facing unknown fields or difficult tasks can be unsettling, but that first step is the beginning of growth.
If you avoid challenges, nothing will change.
An attitude of tackling things without fear of failure greatly expands your knowledge and thinking skills.
It’s a quote that encourages growth, teaching us that by taking action, we can surely move forward.
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