Hey there! Feeling a little low on courage today?
We’ve all been there. Whether you’re facing a big challenge, a tough decision, or just need a boost to get through the day, a little inspiration can go a long way.
That’s why we’ve gathered some of the best quotes about courage from a variety of thinkers, leaders, and doers.
These quotes remind us that courage isn’t about not being afraid—it’s about pushing forward despite our fears.
So, take a moment, read through these nuggets of wisdom, and let them light a spark in you to tackle whatever comes your way. Enjoy!
1. “Courage is found in unlikely places.” — J.R.R. Tolkien
J.R.R. Tolkien, renowned author of “The Lord of the Rings,” highlights that courage often emerges in the most unexpected situations.
2. “It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.” — E.E. Cummings
E.E. Cummings, an influential poet, stresses that personal growth and self-discovery require bravery.
3. “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.” — Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill, the British Prime Minister during WWII, underscores that perseverance and courage are crucial for enduring success and overcoming failure.
4. “Courage is grace under pressure.” — Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Hemingway, a Nobel Prize-winning author, defines courage as maintaining composure and grace in challenging situations.
5. “You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face.” — Eleanor Roosevelt
Eleanor Roosevelt, a former First Lady of the United States, believes facing fears head-on builds strength, courage, and confidence.
6. “Courage is being scared to death… and saddling up anyway.” — John Wayne
John Wayne, a legendary actor, suggests that true courage involves acting despite intense fear.
7. “Courage isn’t having the strength to go on; it is going on when you don’t have the strength.” — Napoleon Bonaparte
Napoleon Bonaparte, the famous French military leader, implies that courage is persisting even when one’s strength is depleted.
8. “The most courageous act is still to think for yourself. Aloud.” — Coco Chanel
Coco Chanel, a pioneering fashion designer, encourages independent thinking and voicing one’s own opinions as acts of bravery.
9. “He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life.” — Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali, the legendary boxer, asserts that taking risks is essential for achieving success in life.
10. “Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear.” — Ambrose Redmoon
Ambrose Redmoon, an author, explains that courage involves prioritizing important goals over the fear of pursuing them.
11. “Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear—not absence of fear.” — Mark Twain
Mark Twain, a celebrated writer, distinguishes courage as managing and overcoming fear rather than eliminating it.
12. “Have enough courage to trust love one more time and always one more time.” — Maya Angelou
Mark Twain, a celebrated writer, distinguishes courage as managing and overcoming fear rather than eliminating it.
13. “Courage is the first of human qualities because it is the quality which guarantees the others.” — Aristotle
Aristotle, the ancient Greek philosopher, argues that courage is foundational, enabling other virtues to be exercised.
14. “It takes courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become.” — Steve Jobs
Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple Inc., emphasizes that courage is needed to follow one’s heart and intuition towards true desires.
15. “Courage starts with showing up and letting ourselves be seen.” — Brené Brown
Brené Brown, a research professor and author, believes that the first step of courage is to be present and visible in our true selves.
16. “You cannot swim for new horizons until you have courage to lose sight of the shore.” — William Faulkner
William Faulkner, a Nobel Prize-winning author, implies that venturing into new opportunities requires the courage to leave the familiar behind.
17. “I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it.” — Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela, South Africa’s first black president and anti-apartheid revolutionary, teaches that true courage is overcoming fear.
18. “With enough courage, you can do without a reputation.” — Margaret Mitchell
Margaret Mitchell, author of “Gone with the Wind,” suggests that true courage makes one less reliant on others’ opinions.
19. “One man with courage makes a majority.” — Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson, the seventh President of the United States, highlights that a single courageous individual can influence and lead the majority.
20. “It takes courage to love, but pain through love is the purifying fire which those who love generously know.” — Eleanor Roosevelt
Eleanor Roosevelt, a prominent human rights activist, notes that loving deeply requires courage because it brings vulnerability and potential pain.
21. “Courage is the price that life exacts for granting peace.” — Amelia Earhart
Amelia Earhart, the pioneering aviator, states that courage is the cost of achieving inner peace and fulfilling one’s potential.
22. “Without courage, wisdom bears no fruit.” — Baltasar Gracián
Baltasar Gracián, a Spanish philosopher and writer, claims that wisdom without courage is unproductive.
23. “We must build dikes of courage to hold back the flood of fear.” — Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr., a civil rights leader, emphasizes the need for courage to confront and manage fear to build a just society.
24. “Courage is fear holding on a minute longer.” — George S. Patton
George S. Patton, a U.S. Army General, believes that courage means holding on and persevering even in the face of fear.
25. “Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, ‘I will try again tomorrow.'” — Mary Anne Radmacher
Mary Anne Radmacher, an author and artist, acknowledges that sometimes courage is quietly persistent, even in small acts of resolve.
26. “To see what is right and not do it is the want of courage.” — Confucius
Confucius, the Chinese philosopher, indicates that recognizing and acting on what is right requires courage.
27. “Courage is knowing what not to fear.” — Plato
Plato, the ancient Greek philosopher, suggests that understanding what to fear and what not to fear is a sign of courage.
28. “Courage is the power to let go of the familiar.” — Raymond Lindquist
Raymond Lindquist, a minister, conveys that real courage involves letting go of the familiar to embrace new challenges.
29. “Have the courage to act instead of react.” — Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr.
Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr., an American physician and poet, urges having the courage to take decisive action rather than merely reacting.
30. “Courage is fire, and bullying is smoke.” — Benjamin Disraeli
Benjamin Disraeli, a British statesman, and author, likens courage to fire, which consumes fear and bullying.
31. “The only courage that matters is the kind that gets you from one moment to the next.” — Mignon McLaughlin
Mignon McLaughlin, an American journalist and author, stresses that the essential form of courage is the ability to continue moving forward moment by moment.
32. “Courage means to keep working a relationship, to continue seeking solutions to difficult problems, and to stay focused during stressful periods.” — Denis Waitley
Denis Waitley, a motivational speaker and author, describes courage as essential for sustaining relationships and finding solutions during stressful times.
33. “Courage is being yourself every day in a world that tells you to be someone else.” — Unknown
Unknown, emphasizing the bravery required to maintain authenticity in a conformist world.
34. “The best way out is always through.” — Robert Frost
Robert Frost, an American poet, suggests that the only way to overcome challenges is to face them head-on.
35. “The opposite of courage in our society is not cowardice, it is conformity.” — Rollo May
Rollo May, an existential psychologist, contrasts courage with conformity, suggesting that true bravery lies in resisting societal pressures.
36. “Courage is like love; it must have hope for nourishment.” — Napoleon Bonaparte
Napoleon Bonaparte, the French military leader, states that courage and hope are mutually reinforcing, necessary for overcoming adversity.
37. “We could never learn to be brave and patient, if there were only joy in the world.” — Helen Keller
Helen Keller, an American author and activist, believes that courage and patience are forged through overcoming difficulties.
38. “Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the testing point.” — C.S. Lewis
C.S. Lewis, a British writer and theologian, asserts that courage is essential to all other virtues at the moment they are tested.
39. “Do the thing you fear and the death of fear is certain.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson
Ralph Waldo Emerson, an American philosopher, suggests that confronting fear directly is the best way to eliminate it.
40. “Real courage is when you know you’re licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what.” — Harper Lee
Hey fellow Linguaholics! It’s me, Marcel. I am the proud owner of linguaholic.com. Languages have always been my passion and I have studied Linguistics, Computational Linguistics and Sinology at the University of Zurich. It is my utmost pleasure to share with all of you guys what I know about languages and linguistics in general.