happiness education quotes

90 Inspirational and Powerful Education Quotes

Education is perhaps one of the most important ingredients to a happy, successful, and constructive life. In fact, having access to a good education during childhood and your early adulthood can make a real difference in your later life. However, not all education systems are equally good. It is saddening to see how miserable and uninterested teachers (or even entirely corrupted systems) do nothing but close the minds of young children. No matter if you’re a teacher seeking to reignite your passion for teaching or a student struggling with subjects that are far from reality, quotes about education can help you to quickly re-inspire your passion for education. Therefore, you can find a collection of powerfully inspirational education quotes in the following. Enjoy these beautiful and magnificent quotes about education.

In the ideal case, education and educators inspire pupils and students to open and expand their minds. Even more importantly, a good education system skillfully prepares the young children for life. Yet, math, biology, and physics alone won’t prepare you for the challenges of life.

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Nelson Mandela

In many cases, however, education is far from what it should actually be. Instead, it is nothing but soul crushing to young spirits.

In the following, you can find our collection of education quotes.

Still, there are many exceptional teachers who wholeheartedly have the best interest of their pupils and students in mind. These are to teachers who encourage their students to think for themselves and to become independent and responsible individuals. Even more so, such teachers may even encourage you to pursue your dreams instead of telling you how unrealistic they are. In the ideal case, these are the exceptional individuals that convince you that you can accomplish all your dreams – if you are willing to do whatever it takes.

What is so amazingly powerful about education quotes is that they stem from the hands of some of the wisest and most brilliant individuals that have ever walked on earth. As such, the following quotes about education are packed with wife lessons and inspiring wisdom. Not only will such quotes make you think deeply about education but they will also motivate you to continue the process of learning something new each day.

Let’s have a look at these fantastic education quotes:

“I believe that education is all about being excited about something. Seeing passion and enthusiasm helps push an educational message.“ Steve Irwin

“Education is for improving the lives of others and for leaving your community and world better than you found it.“ Marian Wright Edelman

“Don’t let schooling interfere with your education.“ Mark Twain

“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.“ Benjamin Franklin

“Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.“ Maimonides

“Real education should consist of drawing the goodness and the best out of our own students. What better books can there be than the book of humanity.“ Cesar Chavez

“Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has learned in school.“ Albert Einstein

“Education’s purpose is to replace an empty mind with an open one.“ Malcolm Forbes

“Education must not simply teach work – it must teach Life.“ W. E. B. Du Bois

“Formal education will make you a living; self-education will make you a fortune.“ Jim Rohn

“It is impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows.” Epictetus

„Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.“ Malcolm X

“Poor is the pupil who does not surpass his master.“ Leonardo da Vinci

“Democracy cannot succeed unless those who express their choice are prepared to choose wisely. The real safeguard of democracy, therefore, is education.“ Franklin D. Roosevelt

“Intellectual growth should commence at birth and cease only at death.“ Albert Einstein

“You can teach a student a lesson for a day; but if you can teach him to learn by creating curiosity, he will continue the learning process as long as he lives.“ Clay P. Bedford

“To teach is to learn twice.“ Joseph Joubert

“Education is simply the soul of a society as it passes from one generation to another.“ G.K. Chesterton

“Education would be much more effective if its purpose was to ensure that by the time they leave school every boy and girl should know how much they do not know, and be imbued with a lifelong desire to know it.“ William Haley

“Many highly intelligent people are poor thinkers. Many people of average intelligence are skilled thinkers. The power of the car is separate from the way the car is driven.“ Edward De Bono

“No man who worships education has got the best out of education… Without a gentle contempt for education no man’s education is complete.“ G.K. Chesterton

“There is nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it’s going to be a butterfly.“ Buckminster Fuller

“A man’s mind, stretched by new ideas, may never return to its original dimensions.“ Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.

“Aim for success, not perfection. Never give up your right to be wrong, because then you will lose the ability to learn new things and move forward with your life. Remember that fear always lurks behind perfectionism.“ David M. Burns

“When a subject becomes totally obsolete we make it a required course.“ Peter Drucker

“Education is the best friend. An educated person is respected everywhere. Education beats the beauty and the youth.“ Chanakya

“You must get an education. You must go to school, and you must learn to protect yourself. And you must learn to protect yourself with the pen, and not the gun.“ Josephine Baker

“The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet.“ Aristotle

“Education without values, as useful as it is, seems rather to make man a more clever devil.“ C. S. Lewis

“Travel, in the younger sort, is a part of education; in the elder, a part of experience.“ Francis Bacon

“One thing that education can do is it can provide us with an opportunity to understand one another better, and so while I’ve spent a lot of my time in the world of politics, I’ve always felt that it is really not politics that will solve this for us.“ Condoleezza Rice

“A thorough knowledge of the Bible is worth more than a college education.“ Theodore Roosevelt

“No one should be denied the opportunity to get an education and increase their earning potential based solely on their inability to pay for a college education.“ Bobby Scott

“Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not: nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not: the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.“ Calvin Coolidge

“The best students come from homes where education is revered: where there are books, and children see their parents reading them.“ Leo Buscaglia

“Education begins the gentleman, but reading, good company and reflection must finish him.“ John Locke

“The goal of education is not to increase the amount of knowledge but to create the possibilities for a child to invent and discover, to create men who are capable of doing new things.“ Jean Piaget

“The great aim of education is not knowledge but action.“ Herbert Spencer

“What does education often do? It makes a straight-cut ditch of a free, meandering brook.“ Henry David Thoreau

“Do not train children to learning by force and harshness, but direct them to it by what amuses their minds, so that you may be better able to discover with accuracy the peculiar bent of the genius of each.“ Plato

“Education is a progressive discovery of our own ignorance.“ Will Durant

“He who opens a school door, closes a prison.“ Victor Hugo

“Much education today is monumentally ineffective. All too often we are giving young people cut flowers when we should be teaching them to grow their own plants.“ John W. Gardner

“Children have never been very good at listening to their elders, but they have never failed to imitate them.“ James Baldwin

“I’ve learned… that the best classroom in the world is at the feet of an elderly person.“ Andy Rooney

“The first problem for all of us, men and women, is not to learn, but to unlearn.“ Gloria Steinem

“A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.“ Henry B. Adams

“Why should society feel responsible only for the education of children, and not for the education of all adults of every age.“ Erich Fromm

“If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.“ Andy McIntyre

“Tell me and I’ll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I’ll understand.“ Chinese proverb

“People learn something every day, and a lot of times it’s that what they learned the day before was wrong.“ Bill Vaughan

“The beautiful thing about learning is that no one can take it away from you.“ B.B. King

“Men and women must be educated, to a great degree, by the opinions and manners of the society they live in.“ Mary Wollstonecraft

“The ability to recognize opportunities and move in new – and sometimes unexpected – directions will benefit you no matter your interests or aspirations. A liberal arts education is designed to equip students for just such flexibility and imagination.“ Drew Gilpin Faust

“Develop a passion for learning. If you do, you will never cease to grow.“ Anthony J. D’Angelo

“Education is all a matter of building bridges.“ Ralph Ellison

“Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.“ John Dewey

“The mere imparting of information is not education.“ Carter G. Woodson

“There is no end to education. It is not that you read a book, pass an examination, and finish with education. The whole of life, from the moment you are born to the moment you die, is a process of learning.“ Jiddu Krishnamurti

“Education is the key to success in life, and teachers make a lasting impact in the lives of their students.“ Solomon Ortiz

“Education is what survives when what has been learned has been forgotten.“ B. F. Skinner

“The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education.“ Martin Luther King, Jr.

“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.“ Aristotle

“It is, in fact, a part of the function of education to help us escape, not from our own time – for we are bound by that – but from the intellectual and emotional limitations of our time.“ T.S. Eliot

“Treat people as if they were what they ought to be, and you help them to become what they are capable of becoming.“ Goethe  

“Education makes a people easy to lead but difficult to drive: easy to govern, but impossible to enslave.“ Peter Brougham

“Nine tenths of education is encouragement.“ Anatole France

“The difference between school and life? In school, you’re taught a lesson and then given a test. In life, you’re given a test that teaches you a lesson.“ Tom Bodett

“Example is not the main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing.“ Albert Schweitzer

“You can’t legislate good will – that comes through education.“ Malcolm X

“The highest result of education is tolerance.“ Helen Keller

“The only person who is educated is the one who has learned how to learn… and change.“ Carl Rogers

“If a man empties his purse into his head, no man can take it away from him. An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.“ Ben Franklin

“The aim of education should be to teach us rather how to think, than what to think — rather to improve our minds, so as to enable us to think for ourselves, than to load the memory with thoughts of other men.“ Bill Beattie

“A child educated only at school is an uneducated child.“ George Santayana

“What sculpture is to a block of marble education is to the human soul.“ Joseph Addison

“It is only as we develop others that we permanently succeed.“ Harvey S. Firestone

“All I want is an education, and I am afraid of no one.“ Malala Yousafzai

“Change is the end result of all true learning.“ Leo Buscaglia

“The goal of education is the advancement of knowledge and the dissemination of truth.“ John F. Kennedy

“Knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every society, in every family.“ Kofi Annan

“Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom.“ George Washington Carver

“Education is an ornament in prosperity and a refuge in adversity.“ Aristotle

“It is a thousand times better to have common sense without education than to have education without common sense.“ Robert G. Ingersoll

“A well-educated mind will always have more questions than answers.“ Helen Keller

“If someone is going down the wrong road, he doesn’t need motivation to speed him up. What he needs is education to turn him around.“ Jim Rohn

“The only thing that interferes with my learning is my education.“ Albert Einstein

“The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows.“ Sydney J. Harris

“The modern world belongs to the half-educated, a rather difficult class because they do not realize how little they know.“ William R. Inge

“Your library is your paradise.“ Desiderius Erasmus

“For good nurture and education implant good constitutions.“ Plato

“The progress of the world depends almost entirely upon education.“ George Eastman

“You are always a student, never a master. You have to keep moving forward.“ Conrad Hall

I hope you enjoyed reading this collection of education quotes.

Stay victorious!

About Author

Steve is the founder of Planet of Success , the #1 choice when it comes to motivation, self-growth and empowerment. This world does not need followers. What it needs is people who stand in their own sovereignty. Join us in the quest to live life to the fullest!

Related Posts

104 rain quotes to make you dance in the rain, 112 bob ross quotes about life’s happy accidents, 100 legendary rapper quotes from hip-hop’s hall of fame.

Thanks for this collection, it’s pretty helpful.

Hi Steve, Education not only teaches what is in the books, it helps in evolving a person into a much wiser and better human being. Great Post! Thanks for posting!

most of the quotes are evergreen and will continue to inspire students and academicians

Thank you Steve very helpful. Candice

I think it can convince everyone of the importance of learning! I fully agree with the main idea that knowledge is power.

Enlightened wisdom expressed in few words to teach a life.

Leave A Reply Cancel Reply

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed .

106 Inspirational Education Quotes for Students & Teachers

These inspiring educational quotes will show students, teachers and parents the power of learning. Wether you’re looking to motivate kids or young adults in the classroom, or other teachers and colleagues, this is the wisdom they need to thrive and be their very best version of themselves.

Also make sure to see these inspirational quotes for kids (if you’re looking to inspire and motivate the next generation).

Education Quotes

“Study without desire spoils the memory, and it retains nothing that it takes in.” – Leonardo da Vinci

“The content of a book holds the power of education and it is with this power that we can shape our future and change lives.” – Malala Yousafzai

“The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled.” – Plutarch

You may also like: These Dr. Seuss quotes: https://brightdrops.com/dr-seuss-quotes

“Experience is not what happens to you; it’s what you do with what happens to you.” – Aldous Huxley

“Education without application is just entertainment.” – Tim Sanders

“Never let formal education get in the way of your learning.” – Mark Twain

Related: Walt Disney Quotes

“The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows.” – Sydney J. Harris

“A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The man who never reads lives only one.” – George R.R. Martin

“Who questions much, shall learn much, and retain much.” – Francis Bacon

“Education is the best friend. An educated person is respected everywhere. Education beats the beauty and the youth.” – Chanakya

“A good education is a foundation for a better future.” – Elizabeth Warren

“A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way.” – Mark Twain

“You learn something every day if you pay attention.” – Ray LeBlond

“School exams are memory tests, in the real world no one is going to stop you from referring to a book to solve a problem.” – Amit Kalantri

“Intelligence is the ability to adapt to change.” – Stephen Hawking

“You cannot open a book without learning something.” – Confucius

“Teachers open the door, but you must enter by yourself.” – Chinese Proverb

“The road to freedom –here and everywhere on earth-– begins in the classroom.” – Hubert Humphrey

“That is what learning is. You suddenly understand something you’ve understood all your life, but in a new way.” – Doris Lessing

“The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity.” – Dorothy Parker

“The whole world opened to me when I learned to read.” – Mary McLeod Bethune

“The task of the modern educator is not to cut down jungles, but to irrigate deserts.” – C. S. Lewis

“Education is a once in a lifetime opportunity to open children’s hearts and minds to the unbelievable wonder of the universe.” – Sir Anthony Seldon

“Anyone who has begun to think places some portion of the world in jeopardy.” – John Dewey

“All of the top achievers I know are life-long learners. Looking for new skills, insights, and ideas. If they’re not learning, they’re not growing and not moving toward excellence.” – Denis Waitley

“The real key to learning something quickly is to take a deliberate, intelligent approach to your learning.” – Lindsay Kolowich

“Wisdom is not a product of schooling but of the lifelong attempt to acquire it.” – Albert Einstein

“Education is helping the child realize his potentialities.” – Eric Fromm

“Education is the great engine to personal development.” – Nelson Mandela

“Education is one thing no one can take away from you.” – Elin Nordegren

“All of life is a constant education.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.” – Aristotle

“Education is the power to think clearly, the power to act well in the world’s work, and the power to appreciate life.” – Brigham Young

“Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely.” – Auguste Rodin

“The aim of education is the knowledge, not of facts, but of values.” – William Burroughs

“Intelligence plus character-that is the goal of true education.” – Martin Luther King Jr.

“Learning is a treasure that will follow its owner everywhere.” – Chinese Proverb

“You’ll never know everything about anything, especially something you love.” – Julia Child

“Education should not be reading about the past rather it should be about addressing the present.” – Rajesh Walecha

“Take what you learn and make a difference with it.” – Tony Robbins

“A human being is not attaining his full heights until he is educated.” – Horace Mann

“Learn as if you were not reaching your goal and as though you were scared of missing it.” – Confucius

“Life is an open book test. Learning how to learn is your most valuable skill in the online world.” – Marc Cuban

“Nine-tenths of education is encouragement.” – Anatole France

“Intelligence and education that hasn’t been tempered by human affection isn’t worth a damn.” – Daniel Keyes

“Education is a progressive discovery of our own ignorance.” – Will Durant

“Every student can learn, just not on the same day, or the same way.” – George Evans

“We learned about honesty and integrity – that the truth matters… that you don’t take shortcuts or play by your own set of rules… and success doesn’t count unless you earn it fair and square.” – Michelle Obama

“It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer.” – Albert Einstein

“If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.” – Andy McIntyre

“Education consists mainly of what we have unlearned.” – Mark Twain

“It’s what you learn after you know it all that counts.” – John Wooden

“Success is getting what you want. Happiness is wanting what you get.” – Dale Carnegie

“Education around entrepreneurship should start early, at secondary level, and be very robust by college level.” – Stephen A. Schwarzman

“I never teach my pupils, I only attempt to provide the conditions in which they can learn.” – Albert Einstein

“The goal of education is to enable individuals to continue their education.” – John Dewey

“Only the educated are free.” – Epictetus

“The difference between school and life? In school, you’re taught a lesson and then given a test. In life, you’re given a test that teaches you a lesson.” – Tom Bodett

“When you study great teachers… you will learn much more from their caring and hard work than from their style.” – William Glasser

“They cannot stop me. I will get my education if it is in the home, school, or any place.” – Malala Yousafzai

“The learned man knows that he is ignorant.” – Victor Hugo

“The first problem for all of us, men and women, is not to learn, but to unlearn.” – Gloria Steinem

“School is the path, not the point.” – Will Richardson

“I like a teacher who gives you something to take home to think about besides homework.” – Lily Tomlin

“We now accept the fact that learning is a lifelong process of keeping abreast of change. And the most pressing task is to teach people how to learn.” – Peter Drucker

“Education is the transmission of civilization.” – Will Durant

“Learn as much as you can while you are young, since life becomes too busy later” – Dana Stewart Scott

“Educating all of our children must be one of our most urgent priorities.” – Nelson Mandela

“All of us must cross the line between ignorance and insight many times before we truly understand.” – David Hawkins

“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose.” – Dr. Seuss

“Education is the ability to listen to almost anything without losing your temper or your self-confidence.” – Robert Frost

“Study hard what interests you the most in the most undisciplined, irreverent and original manner possible.” – Richard Feynman

“Learning is not the product of teaching. Learning is the product of the activity of learners.” – John Holt

“Time is the best teacher, but unfortunately, it kills all of its students.” – Robin Williams

“Education is not the filling of a pot but the lighting of a fire.” – W.B. Yeats

“If we want our children to value education, then we must show our appreciation for knowledge.” – Brad Sherman

“We all know that education, more than anything else, improves your chances of building better lives.” – Nelson Mandela

“I agree that a love of reading is a great gift for a parent to pass on to his or her child.” – Ann Brashares

“Formal education will make you a living; self-education will make you a fortune.” – Jim Rohn

“The great aim of education is not knowledge but action.” – Herbert Spencer

“The learning process continues until the day you die.” – Kirk Douglas

“The beautiful thing about learning is that no one can take it away from you.” – B.B.King

“I am always doing that which I can not do, in order that I may learn how to do it.” – Pablo Picasso

“Education is everything- education is your power, education is your way in life for whatever you want to do.” – Ciara

“It is impossible to begin to learn that which one thinks one already knows.” – Epictetus

“Do not read as children do to enjoy themselves, or, as the ambitious do to educate themselves. No, read to live.” – Gustave Flaubert

“No child in Africa, and in fact anywhere in the world, should be denied education.” – Nelson Mandela

“All the world is a laboratory to the inquiring mind.” – Martin Fisher

“Curiosity is the wick in the candle of learning.” – William Arthur Ward

“Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.” – John Dewey

“All things good to know are difficult to learn.” – Greek proverb

“Do not be embarrassed by your failures, learn from them and start again.” – Richard Branson

“Real learning comes about when the competitive spirit has ceased.” – Jiddu Krishnamurti

“There is no school equal to a decent home and no teacher equal to a virtuous parent.” – Mahatma Gandhi

“The aim of education should be to teach us rather how to think, than what to think — rather to improve our minds, so as to enable us to think for ourselves, than to load the memory with thoughts of other men.” – Bill Beattie

“To delight in literature is to desire to learn.” – Lailah Gifty Akita

“The man who reads nothing at all is better educated than the man who reads nothing but newspapers.” – Thomas Jefferson

“Life is a succession of lessons which must be lived to be understood.” – Helen Keller

“A teacher is one who makes himself progressively unnecessary.” – Thomas Carruthers

“The aim of education is the condition of suspended judgment on everything.” – George Santayana

“Let’s recommit to work towards our common goal: a nation where all of us are winners, all of us have shelter, food, and education.” – Nelson Mandela

“The ladder of success is best climbed by stepping on the rungs of opportunity.” – Ayn Rand

“No country can really develop unless its citizens are educated.” – Nelson Mandela

“I think you learn more if you’re laughing at the same time.” – Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows

“A man only learns in two ways, one by reading, and the other by association with smarter people.” – Will Rogers

“The only place success comes before work is in the dictionary.” – Vince Lombardi

More Good Quotes for Kids:

• 74 Famous Black History Month Quotes
• 13 Inspiring Shel Silverstein Quotes & Poems
• 37 Winnie the Pooh Quotes to Cherish

Submit a Comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

• Grades 6-12
• School Leaders

FREE Poetry Worksheet Bundle! Perfect for National Poetry Month.

50 of the Best Quotes About Education

Learn as if you were to live forever.

Being an educator is not always the easiest job, but knowing you have made an impact on students’ lives can be so rewarding. Through all of the good times and bad, you continue to persevere and provide education to students of all backgrounds and abilities. We collected 50 of the best quotes about education to celebrate the best parts of teaching, learning, and the impact they have on the world.

Our Favorite Quotes About Education

“education is our passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs only to the people who prepare for it today.” — malcolm x.

“Education is one thing no one can take away from you.” — Elin Nordegren

“Education’s purpose is to replace an empty mind with an open one.” — Malcolm Forbes

“The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows.” — Sydney J. Harris

“Learning is not attained by chance, it must be sought for with ardor and attended to with diligence.” — Abigail Adams

“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” — Benjamin Franklin

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” — Nelson Mandela

“The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. … Intelligence plus character—that is the goal of true education.” — Martin Luther King Jr.

“A person who won’t read has no advantage over a person who can’t read.” — Mark Twain

“Education is not the filling of a pail but the lighting of a fire.” — Unknown

“Education is the key to unlock a golden door of freedom.” — George Washington Carver

“The great aim of education is not knowledge but action.” — Herbert Spencer

“The goal of education is the advancement of knowledge and the dissemination of truth.” — John F. Kennedy

“The great difficulty in education is to get experience out of ideas.” — George Santayana

“The roots of education … are bitter, but the fruit is sweet.” — Aristotle

“Education must not simply teach work, it must teach Life.” — W.E.B Du Bois

“Education then, beyond all other devices of human origin, is the great equalizer of the conditions of men, the balance-wheel of the social machinery.” — Horace Mann

“I believe that education is all about being excited about something. Seeing passion and enthusiasm helps push an educational message.” — Steve Irwin

“Everyone who remembers his own education remembers teachers, not methods and techniques. The teacher is the heart of the educational system.” — Sidney Hook

“All real education is the architecture of the soul.” — William Bennett

“Education is the key which will unlock the door of opportunity for you.” — Gordon B. Hinckley

“I did then what I knew how to do. Now that I know better, I do better.” — Maya Angelou

“Everyone you will ever meet knows something you don’t.” — Bill Nye

“The highest result of education is tolerance.” — Helen Keller

“Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.” — Aristotle

“To teach is to learn twice.” — Joseph Joubert

“The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled.” — Plutarch

“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.” — Benjamin Franklin

“Education breeds confidence. Confidence breeds hope. Hope breeds peace.” — Confucius

“The art of teaching is the art of assisting discovery.” — Mark Van Doren

“Children must be taught how to think, not what to think.” — Margaret Mead

“Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young.” — Henry Ford

“A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.” — Henry Brooks Adams

“They may forget what you said but they will never forget how you made them feel.” — Carl W. Buehner

“A good teacher must be able to put himself in the place of those who find learning hard.” — Eliphas Levi

“One child, one teacher, one book, and one pen can change the world.” — Malala Yousafzai

“Teachers are the one and only people who save nations.” — Mustafa Kemal Atatürk

“Self-education is, I firmly believe, the only kind of education there is.” — Isaac Asimov

“Real education must ultimately be limited to one who INSISTS on knowing, the rest is mere sheep-herding.” — Ezra Pound

“Education is for improving the lives of others and for leaving your community and world better than you found it.” — Marian Wright Edelman

“It is only the ignorant who despise education.” — Publilius Syrus

“A writer should get as much education as possible, but just going to school is not enough; if it were, all owners of doctorates would be inspired writers.” — Gwendolyn Brooks

“I do not want art for a few, any more than education for a few, or freedom for a few.” — William Morris

“Real education should educate us out of self into something far finer; into a selflessness which links us with all humanity.” — Nancy Astor

“It makes little difference how many university courses or degrees a person may own. If he cannot use words to move an idea from one point to another, his education is incomplete.” — Norman Cousins

“The child who desires education will be bettered by it; the child who dislikes it disgraced.” — John Ruskin

“Education is our only political safety. Outside of this ark all is deluge.” — Horace Mann

“Education is learning what you didn’t even know you didn’t know.” — Daniel J. Boorstin

“Instruction ends in the schoolroom, but education ends only with life. A child is given to the universe to be educated.” — Frederick William Robertson

“Education is a better safeguard of liberty than a standing army. If we retrench the wages of the schoolmaster, we must raise those of the recruiting sergeant.” — Edward Everett

Like these quotes about education? Check out these team-building quotes for classrooms and schools .

Come share your favorite motivational quotes about education in the we are teachers helpline group on facebook .

You Might Also Like

50 Inspirational Maria Montessori Quotes That Celebrate Education

"Education must begin at birth." Continue Reading

Copyright © 2023. All rights reserved. 5335 Gate Parkway, Jacksonville, FL 32256

wisdom quotes trending all quotes

100 Education Quotes That Will Inspire You To Keep Growing

By Maxime Lagacé

Maxime is the founder of WisdomQuotes. He has been collecting quotes since 2004. His goal? To help you develop a calm and peaceful mind. Learn more about him on his about page .

Education is vital.

You without education:

• More likely to become poor
• More likely to have diseases
• More likely to commit crimes

You with education:

• More likely to be happy
• More likely to make more money
• More likely to live longer

So, what’s the key to a better future?

Inspired by this, I have compiled 100 of the best education quotes I could find.

To inspire you and make you realize the value of proper education.

You’ll discover quotes by Einstein, Budha, Lao Tzu, and more.

Who questions much, shall learn much, and retain much. Francis Bacon

Life itself is your teacher, and you are in a state of constant learning. Bruce Lee

A dull mind gets bored easily. A curious mind expands forever. Maxime Lagacé

Play is the highest form of research. Albert Einstein ( This source says it’s probably not from Einstein)

A generation of auto-didacts, educated by the Internet and leveraged by technology, will eventually starve the industrial-education system. Naval Ravikant

A well-educated mind will always have more questions than answers. Helen Keller

Children must be taught how to think, not what to think. Margaret Mead

The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled. Plutarch

Teaching kids to count is fine, but teaching them what counts is best. Bob Talber

Kids don’t remember what you try to teach them. They remember what you are. Jim Henson

A room without books is like a body without a soul. Cicero

The person who asks questions is more helpful than the person who offers advice. James Clear

The highest result of education is tolerance. Helen Keller

Only the autodidacts are free. Nassim Nicholas Taleb

They know enough who know how to learn. Henry Adams

• 100 Teacher Quotes Every Teacher Will Relate To
• 100 Writing Quotes From The Best Writers In The World
• 100 Book Quotes Every Book Lovers Will Love

The Best Education Quotes

The more you make it easy for your kids, the more you remove the struggle necessary for learning. Maxime Lagacé

A mind is a terrible thing to waste. United Negro College Fund

Learning is like rowing upstream: not to advance is to drop back. Chinese proverb

The giving of love is an education in itself. Eleanor Roosevelt

Lasting novels don’t come from literature departments. Successful businesses don’t come from business schools. Scientific revolutions don’t come from research universities. Get your education, then get moving. Find the loners tinkering at the edge . Naval Ravikant

Podcasts are free. Twitter is free. Wikipedia is free. YouTube is free. We are living in a golden age of self-education. Brian Feroldi ( Source )

He who asks is a fool for five minutes, but he who does not ask remains a fool forever. Chinese proverb

Skepticism: the mark and even the pose of the educated mind. John Dewey

If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need. Cicero

Instruction does much, but encouragement everything. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Free education is abundant, all over the Internet. It’s the desire to learn that’s scarce. Naval Ravikant

People learn more on their own rather than being force fed. Socrates

Education would be much more effective if its purpose was to ensure that by the time they leave school every boy and girl should know how much they do not know, and be imbued with a lifelong desire to know it. William Haley

Learning is not compulsory… neither is survival. W. Edwards Deming

Education begins the gentleman, but reading , good company and reflection must finish him. John Locke

Don’t let your learning lead to knowledge. Let your learning lead to action. Jim Rohn

The best teachers are those who show you where to look but don’t tell you what to see. Alexandra K. Trenfor

Everyone you will ever meet knows something you don’t. Bill Nye (upworthy.com)

Part 2. Education Quotes That Are…

The most famous education quotes.

Go to table of contents

The learned man knows that he is ignorant. Victor Hugo

I am still learning. Michelangelo

Learning never exhausts the mind. Leonardo da Vinci

Education is what remains after one has forgotten everything he learned in school. Albert Einstein

I have never let my schooling interfere with my education. Mark Twain

You can never be overdressed or overeducated. Oscar Wilde

Minds are like parachutes, they only function when they are open. James Dewar

The beautiful thing about learning is nobody can take it away from you. B. B. King

The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page. Augustine of Hippo

I don’t think much of a man who is not wiser today than he was yesterday. Abraham Lincoln

My education was interrupted only by my schooling. Winston Churchill

The most useful piece of learning for the uses of life is to unlearn what is untrue. Antisthenes

As long as you live, keep learning how to live. Lucius Annaeus Seneca

Short Education Quotes

Nine tenths of education is encouragement. Anatole France

Responsibility educates. Wendell Phillips

A sign of good education: students don’t feel entitled. Maxime Lagacé

If you think education is expensive, try ignorance. Andy McIntyre

The world exists for the education of each man. Ralph Waldo Emerson

The authority of those who teach is often an obstacle to those who want to learn. Marcus Tullius Cicero

Even a fool learns something once it hits him. Homer

Much learning does not teach understanding. Heraclitus

Success is a poor teacher. Robert Kiyosaki

The foundation of every state is the education of its youth. Diogenes

There is no education like adversity. Benjamin Disraeli

Teachers open the door, but you must enter by yourself. Chinese proverb

When you learn, teach. When you get, give. Maya Angelou

Inspirational Education Quotes

If people did not do silly things, nothing intelligent would ever get done. Ludwig Wittgenstein

If you don’t go after what you want, you’ll never have it. If you don’t ask, the answer is always no. If you don’t step forward, you’re always in the same place. Nora Roberts

Always do your best. What you plant now, you will harvest later. Og Mandino

When anything can be learned online, the barrier to education is simply motivation, curiosity, and persistence. Anthony Pompliano ( Source )

With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts. Eleanor Roosevelt

The ideal school would teach health, wealth, and happiness . It‘d be free, self-paced, and available to all. It‘d show opposing ideas and students would self-verify truth. No grades, no tests, no diplomas – just learning. Actually, you’re already here. Careful who you follow. Naval Ravikant (Naval referred to the Internet and social medias like Twitter and LinkedIn)

Education is supposed to juice your curiosity, not diminish or sate it. Walter Isaacson

Every person with a smartphone and a pair of headphones has access to the kind of education that was once reserved for the sons of aristocracy. The Stoic Emperor

Every child deserves a champion: an adult who will never give up on them, who understands the power of connection and insists they become the best they can possibly be. Rita Pierson

They cannot stop me. I will get my education, if it is in the home, school, or anyplace. Malala Yousafzai

All who have meditated on the art of governing mankind have been convinced that the fate of empires depends on the education of youth. Aristotle

Apply yourself. Get all the education you can, but then, by God, do something. Don’t just stand there, make it happen. Lee Iacocca

Only education is capable of saving our societies from possible collapse, whether violent, or gradual. Jean Piaget

Funny And Surprising Education Sayings

You know how to tell if the teacher is hung over? Movie Day. Jay Mohr

You can learn many things from children. How much patience you have, for instance. Franklin P. Jones

Having a two-year-old is like having a blender that you don’t have the top for. Jerry Seinfeld

Any kid will run any errand for you if you ask at bedtime. Red Skelton

The human brain is special. It starts working as soon as you get up and it doesn’t stop until you get to school. Milton Berle 😂

Education: the path from cocky ignorance to miserable uncertainty. Mark Twain

When a teacher calls a boy by his entire name, it means trouble. Mark Twain

I was reading the dictionary. I thought it was a poem about everything. Steven Wright

Time is the best teacher, but unfortunately, it kills all of its students. Robin Williams

To add a library to a house is to give that house a soul. Marcus Tullius Cicero

Education Proverbs For Value-Packed Wisdom

When the student is ready, the master appears. Buddhist proverb

If a seed of a lettuce will not grow, we do not blame the lettuce. Instead, the fault lies with us for not having nourished the seed properly. Buddhist proverb

Knowledge is learning something new every day. Wisdom is letting go of something every day. Zen proverb

A single conversation with a wise man is better than 10 years of study. Chinese proverb

Learning is a treasure that will follow its owner everywhere. Chinese proverb

Tell me and I’ll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I’ll understand. Chinese proverb

Do not confine your children to your own learning, for they were born in another time. Chinese proverb

Wise men may not be learned; learned men may not be wise. Chinese proverb

A stumble may prevent a fall. English proverb

Despise school and remain a fool. German proverb

All things good to know are difficult to learn. Greek proverb

An apprentice near a temple will recite the scriptures untaught. Japanese proverb

Fall down seven times, stand up eight. Japanese proverb

Better than a thousand days of diligent study is one day with a great teacher. Japanese proverb

By learning you will teach; by teaching you will understand. Latin proverb

All the world is a laboratory to the inquiring mind. Martin H. Fischer

I am learning all the time. The tombstone will be my diploma. Eartha Kitt

Key Takeaways

• Want a great education? Never get bored asking questions.
• Want a great way to learn? Play! Don’t be so serious.
• Want to go far in life? Be an autodidact. You can learn anything on the Internet.
• Remember: answers are good, but questions are better.
• To know is good. To know what’s worth knowing is better.

Further Readings

• Topic: Education
• 100 Learning Quotes To Inspire You To Learn (Forever)
• 100 Knowledge Quotes That Will Change Your Perspective
• 65 Growth Mindset Quotes (To Improve Your Life)
• 75 Understanding Quotes To Bring Clarity Into Your Life
• 145 Thinking Quotes To Make You More Thoughtful
• 77 Intelligence Quotes (From The Best Minds Ever)
• 89 Ana Lorena Fabrega Quotes On School, Kids, Education
• How To Learn Faster – 30 Simple Hacks (Based On Science)

Hope you enjoyed these beautiful education quotes. If you did, please share them with a friend today!

What’s your favorite education quote? And remember: words can transform your life, if you find the right ones.

Table Of Contents

Part 1 Top 15 Images Best Quotes

Part 2 Education Quotes That ARE Famous Short Inspirational Funny Proverbs

Part 3 Conclusion

Was this helpful?

"Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom." -Aristotle

Copyright © 2004-2024

90+ Best Academics Quotes To Inspire And Motivate Students

Famous Academics Quotes About Education And Wisdom

Inspirational quotes for students.

Education is the main building block of a happy, fruitful, and productive life.

Nelson Mandela famously said that, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”. This famous quote about education has inspire many, as do many other great education quotes and academics quotes.

A well-rounded schooling framework prepares children for the future. However, math, science, and geography alone won't set you up for real life. Teachers also encourage their students to have an independent mind and to become free thinkers. One way to encourage this way of thinking is by sharing academics quotes with children and young people.

Mahatma Gandhi's famous line advises us to, "Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."

We believe this is the best motto in education, as not only does it stress the importance of learning, it also shows the need to enjoy yourself along the way. You will find this quote and all the rest of the best education quotes in this article!

If you like these academics quotes, you can also find end of school year quotes and homeschool quotes to share with your family here.

A well-rounded education during adolescence and young adulthood can have a genuine impact on your later life. Schooling, teacher, authors and academics, all help to open and grow children's minds.

A student's love for reading different books can enhance their skills and provide knowledge will last for a lifetime.

So why not introduce young people to these academics quotes to keep them thinking and learning? Quotes about education by authors and academics motivate students to learn new things each day.

Such self-education enhances our intelligence and improves our sense of self. This collection of academics quotes is full of wisdom and power, it includes inspirational quotes by teachers and authors, educational quotes, motivational quotes for students, quotes about education, famous quotes about learning, quotes of inspiration for students and quotes to motivate students.

So expand their horizons now, by reading these academics quotes to inspire students and motivation quotes for students.

If you learn one thing from these academics quotes, we hope it is about the value of education. No one will benefit from these academics quotes more than young people will, enjoy!

1. "An investment in knowledge pays the best interest."

–  Benjamin Franklin.

2.  "What we learn with pleasure we never forget."

– Alfred Mercier.

3. "Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today."

– Malcolm X.

4.  "The difference between school and life? In school, you’re taught a lesson and then given a test. In life, you’re given a test that teaches you a lesson."

– Tom Bodett.

5. "Let the improvement of yourself keep you so busy that you have no time to criticize others."

― Roy T. Bennett.

6. "I began to realize how important it was to be an enthusiast in life. He taught me that if you are interested in something, no matter what it is, go at it full speed ahead. Embrace it with both arms, hug it, love it, and above all become passionate about it."

– Roald Dahl.

7. "Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world. "

– Nelson Mandela.

8. " Learning is not the product of teaching. Learning is the product of the activity of learners."

- John Holt.

9. "Learning is not attained by chance, it must be sought for with ardor and attended to with diligence."

- Abigail Adams .

10. "They know enough who know how to learn."

- Henry Adams.

11. "Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."

– Mahatma Gandhi.

12. "The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows."

– Sydney J. Harris.

13. "An investment in knowledge pays the best interest."  

– Benjamin Franklin.

14. "Learning without thought is a labor lost, thought without learning is perilous."

- Confucius.

15.  "All things good to know are difficult to learn."

-Greek Proverb.

16.  Beware of the man who works hard to learn something, learns it, and finds himself no wiser than before.

- Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.

17." Liberal education is at the heart of civil society, and at the heart of a liberal education is the act of teaching."

- A. Bartlett Giamatti.

18. "Much education today is monumentally ineffective. All too often we are giving young people cut flowers when we should be teaching them to grow their own plants."

- John W. Gardner.

19. "Good teaching is more a giving of right questions than a giving of right answers."

- Josef Albers.

20. "Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn."

- Benjamin Franklin.

21."If the child is not learning the way you are teaching, then you must teach in the way the child learns."

- Rita Dunn.

22."Who questions much, shall learn much, and retain much."

- Francis Bacon.

23." A dull mind gets bored easily. A curious mind expands forever."

-Maxime Lagace.

24." Children must be taught how to think, not what to think."

- Margaret Mead.

25. "Kids don’t remember what you try to teach them. They remember what you are."

- Jim Henson.

26. "The highest result of education is tolerance."

- Helen Keller.

27. "The more you make it easy for your kids, the more you remove the struggle necessary for learning."

- Maxime Lagace.

28.  "Free education is abundant, all over the Internet. It’s the desire to learn that’s scarce."

- Naval Ravikant.

29. "Don’t let your learning lead to knowledge. Let your learning lead to action."

- Jim Rohn.

30."Learning never exhausts the mind."

-Leonardo da Vinci.

31. "The beautiful thing about learning is nobody can take it away from you."

- B. B. King.

32. "Always do your best. What you plant now, you will harvest later."

- Og Mandino.

33. "Education: the path from cocky ignorance to miserable uncertainty."

- Mark Twain .

34. "A change is brought about because ordinary people do extraordinary things."

- Barack Obama.

35. "The man who reads nothing at all is better educated than the man who reads nothing but newspapers."

- Thomas Jefferson.

36. "The more I want to get something done, the less I call it work."

- Aristotle.

37. "A learned man has always riches in himself."

- Phaedrus.

38."Educate the children and it won’t be necessary to punish the men."

- Pythagoras.

39. "The authority of those who teach is often an obstacle to those who want to learn."

- Marcus Tullius Cicero.

40. "Do not train a child to learn by force or harshness; but direct them to it by what amuses their minds, so that you may be better able to discover with accuracy the peculiar bent of the genius of each."

41. "Spoon feeding, in the long run, teaches us nothing but the shape of the spoon."

― E.M. Forster.

42. “Successful and unsuccessful people do not vary greatly in their abilities. They vary in their desires to reach their potential.”

– John Maxwell.

43. "You are always a student, never a master. You have to keep moving forward."

- Conrad Hall.

44. "The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet."

45. "I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious."

- Albert Einstein .

46. "The foundation of every state is the education of its youth."

- Diogenes.

47. "Education... has produced a vast population able to read but unable to distinguish what is worth reading."

- G. M. Trevelyan.

48. "The most influential of all educational factors is the conversation in a child's home."

- William Temple.

49. "Some people will never learn anything, for this reason, because they understand everything too soon."

- Alexander Pope.

50. "Observation more than books and experience more than persons, are the prime educators."

- Amos Bronson Alcott.

Academics quotes don't just need to come from academics and authors, itn fact the power, joy and wisdom of learning is available to all.

From education quotes from Arthur Ashe (the first African American male tennis player to win the US Open), to academics quotes from Victor Hugo (the famous French poet, novelist and dramatist of the Romantic movement) and Will Durant (the American author), many different people have inspired generations of children to reach their full potential.

Other famous figures who have provided words of wisdom and ways to get young people engaged with learning include Leo Buscaglia, Jim Rohn, Michel Legrand, Alexandra K Trenfor and Carl Rogers.

These motivational speakers and authors have provided many kind words and academics quotes to motivate children and adults alike through the learning process (be it at school or obtaining a degree at college).

A motivation quote for students is helpful in motivating them in many ways, and these academics quotes about education will truly show the power of education.

If you are looking for the perfect quote to motivate students, why not take your pick from the great collection of academics quotes that are listed below?

If you share one of these academics quotes every day with children you are schooling, you are bound to create a sense of achievement and pride in their minds.

51. "The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be ignited."

– Plutarch.

52. "Procrastination makes easy things hard and hard things harder."

— Mason Cooley.

53. "Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated."

— R Collier.

54. "Today a reader. Tomorrow a leader."

– Unknown*.

55. "If you think education is expensive, try ignorance."

— Andy McIntyre.

56. "Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great."

- Mark Twain.

57. "Don't let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do."

- John R. Woode.

58. "Remember that failure is an event, not a person."

- Zig Ziglar.

59. "Why should society feel responsible only for the education of children, and not for the education of all adults of every age."

- Erich Fromm.

60. "The aim of education should be to teach us rather how to think, than what to think — rather to improve our minds, so as to enable us to think for ourselves, than to load the memory with thoughts of other men."

- Bill Beattie.

61. "Treat people as if they were what they ought to be, and you help them to become what they are capable of becoming."

62. "Any book that helps a child to form a habit of reading, to make reading one of his deep and continuing needs, is good for him."

- Maya Angelou.

63. "There is nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it's going to be a butterfly."

- Buckminster Fuller.

64. "Work hard, have fun, make history."

- Jeff Bezos.

65. "I know the price of success: dedication, hard work, and an unremitting devotion to the things you want to see happen."

- Frank Lloyd Wright.

66. "Success isn’t always about greatness. It’s about consistency. Consistent hard work leads to success. Greatness will come."

- Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson.

67.  "However difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at. "

– Stephen Hawking.

68. "Belief in yourself, take on your challenges, dig deep within yourself to conquer fears. Never let anyone bring you down. You got to keep going."

– Chantal Sutherland.

69. "I believe that God has put gifts and talents and ability on the inside of every one of us. When you develop that and you believe in yourself and you believe that you’re a person of influence and a person of purpose, I believe you can rise up out of any situation."

– Joel Osteen.

70. "Many who are self-taught far excel the doctors, masters, and bachelors of the most renowned universities."

– Ludwig Von Mises.

71. "Be like a duck, paddling, and working hard in the water, but what everyone sees is a smiling, calm face."

– Manoj Arora.

72. "If you wait for the mango fruits to fall, you’d be wasting your time while others are learning how to climb the tree."

– Michael Bassey Johnson.

73. "Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up."

— Thomas Edison.

74. "There are two kinds of people in this world: those who want to get things done and those who don’t want to make mistakes."

75. "Don’t say you don’t have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein."

– H. Jackson Brown Jr.

76.  "I do not know anyone who has got to the top without hard work. That is the recipe. It will not always get you to the top, but it should get you pretty near."

– Margaret Thatcher.

77. “The ideal school would teach health, wealth, and happiness. It‘d be free, self-paced, and available to all. It‘d show opposing ideas and students would self-verify truth. No grades, no tests, no diplomas – just learning. Actually, you’re already here. Careful who you follow.”

78. "Success is no accident. It is hard work, perseverance, learning, studying, sacrifice and most of all, love of what you are doing or learning to do."

79.  "Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time."

– Thomas A. Edison.

80. "Entrepreneurs are great at dealing with uncertainty and also very good at minimizing risk. That’s the classic entrepreneur."

– Mohnish Pabrai.

81. "Develop an ‘attitude of gratitude’. Say thank you to everyone you meet for everything they do for you."

– Brian Tracy.

82. "For every reason, it’s not possible, there are hundreds of people who have faced the same circumstances and succeeded."  

– Jack Canfield.

83. "People who succeed have momentum. The more they succeed, the more they want to succeed, and the more they find a way to succeed. Similarly, when someone is failing, the tendency is to get on a downward spiral that can even become a self-fulfilling prophecy."

—Tony Robbins.

84. "You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something–your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life."

—Steve Jobs.

85. "The reason most people never reach their goals is that they don’t define them, or ever seriously consider them as believable or achievable. Winners can tell you where they are going, what they plan to do along the way, and who will be sharing the adventure with them."

— Denis Waitley.

86. "I don’t want to get to the end of my life and find that I lived just the length of it. I want to have lived the width of it as well."

— Diane Ackerman.

87. "A man can be as great as he wants to be. If you believe in yourself and have the courage, the determination, the dedication, the competitive drive and if you are willing to sacrifice the little things in life and pay the price for the things that are worthwhile, it can be done."

— Vince Lombardi.

88. "Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no help at all."

— Dale Carnegie.

89. “Aim for success, not perfection. Never give up your right to be wrong, because then you will lose the ability to learn new things and move forward with your life. Remember that fear always lurks behind perfectionism.”

- David M. Burns.

90. “The secret of getting ahead is getting started. The secret of getting started is breaking your complex overwhelming tasks into small manageable tasks, and then starting on the first one.”

91. “We can easily manage if we will only take, each day, the burden appointed to it. But the load will be too heavy for us if we carry yesterday’s burden over again today, and then add the burden of the morrow before we are required to bear it.”

- John Newton.

92. “To accuse others for one’s own misfortunes is a sign of want of education. To accuse oneself shows that one’s education has begun. To accuse neither oneself nor others shows that one’s education is complete.”

- Epictetus.

93. “The most beautiful things in the creating of the child are his 'mistakes'. The more a child’s work is full of these individual mistakes the more wonderful it is. And the more a teacher removes them from the child’s work the duller, more desolate and impersonal it becomes.”

- Franz Cizek.

94. “The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education.”

- Martin Luther King Jr.

Here at Kidadl , we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly quotes for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our collection of education quotes and academics quotes then why not take a look at these [ special education quotes ], or middle school quotes for more great education quotes?

*Do you know where this quote originated? Please email us to let us know at [email protected]

We Want Your Photos!

More for you, 32 thought-provoking please quotes, 53 interesting feedback quotes.

Bachelor of Arts and Law specializing in Political Science and Intellectual Property Rights

Anusuya Mukherjee Bachelor of Arts and Law specializing in Political Science and Intellectual Property Rights

With a wealth of international experience spanning Europe, Africa, North America, and the Middle East, Anusuya brings a unique perspective to her work as a Content Assistant and Content Updating Coordinator. She holds a law degree from India and has practiced law in India and Kuwait. Anusuya is a fan of rap music and enjoys a good cup of coffee in her free time. Currently, she is working on her novel, "Mr. Ivory Merchant".

1) Kidadl is independent and to make our service free to you the reader we are supported by advertising. We hope you love our recommendations for products and services! What we suggest is selected independently by the Kidadl team. If you purchase using the Buy Now button we may earn a small commission. This does not influence our choices. Prices are correct and items are available at the time the article was published but we cannot guarantee that on the time of reading. Please note that Kidadl is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon. We also link to other websites, but are not responsible for their content.

2) At Kidadl, we strive to recommend the very best activities and events. We will always aim to give you accurate information at the date of publication - however, information does change, so it’s important you do your own research, double-check and make the decision that is right for your family. We recognise that not all activities and ideas are appropriate for all children and families or in all circumstances. Our recommended activities are based on age but these are a guide. We recommend that these ideas are used as inspiration, that ideas are undertaken with appropriate adult supervision, and that each adult uses their own discretion and knowledge of their children to consider the safety and suitability. Kidadl cannot accept liability for the execution of these ideas, and parental supervision is advised at all times, as safety is paramount. Anyone using the information provided by Kidadl does so at their own risk and we can not accept liability if things go wrong.

3) Because we are an educational resource, we have quotes and facts about a range of historical and modern figures. We do not endorse the actions of or rhetoric of all the people included in these collections, but we think they are important for growing minds to learn about under the guidance of parents or guardians.

google form TBD

83 Short Inspirational Quotes for Students

There might be affiliate links on this page, which means we get a small commission of anything you buy. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Please do your own research before making any online purchase.

Are you a student looking for some short, inspirational quotes to help you strive harder?

As a student, you surely have felt pressured in one way or another. There is always that relative who asks when you will graduate, or a family friend who tells you that he was once an outstanding student.

It can feel like a burden when you feel expectations from everyone around you. It is as if you can’t even think about taking a break and resting for a while. Failure is not an option.

As a student, it’s important to understand that what you are feeling right now is just a part of the process. Failures, pressures, challenges—these are all things you need to go through in order to achieve success .

In this post, we’ve compiled 83 inspirational quotes about life and struggles for students. This list of motivational quotes will enable you to study well, strive hard, and be a better version of you.

We have broken these quotes into three categories: college, high school, and elementary. Whether you are a kid trying to understand the world, a teenager confused about what to do next, or a young adult looking for your purpose, these words of encouragement can help you find the answer.

First up, let’s start with young kids who are yet to explore life!

Table of Contents

Inspirational Quotes for Kids and Elementary Students

• “Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don’t really matter.” – Francis Chan
• “There is no elevator to success. You have to take the stairs.” – Zig Ziglar
• “Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.” – Malcolm X
• “Indeed, the challenge of the new millennium is surely to find ways to achieve international – or better, intercommunity – cooperation wherein human diversity is acknowledged and the rights of all are respected.” – The Dalai Lama
• “There is always time to make right what is wrong.” – Susan Griffin
• “The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary.” – Vidal Sassoon
• “Once you learn to read, you will be forever free.” – Frederick Douglass
• “I have found that among its other benefits, giving liberates the soul of the giver.” – Maya Angelou
• “You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” – C.S. Lewis
• “Small acts, when multiplied by millions of people, can transform the world.” – Howard Zinn
• “If we are peaceful, if we are happy, we can blossom like a flower, and everyone in our family, our entire society, will benefit from peace.” – Archbishop Desmond Tutu
• “If you have no confidence in self, you are twice defeated in the race of life.” – Marcus Garvey
• “The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little extra.” – Jimmy Johnson

• “Nothing can dim the light which shines from within.” – Maya Angelou
• “You receive from the world what you give to the world.” – Oprah Winfrey
• “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.” – Les Brown
• “In a gentle way, you can shake the world.” – Mahatma Gandhi
• “People may look different or be dressed differently or may have a different education or position. But they are all the same. They are all people to be loved. They are all hungry for love.” – Mother Teresa
• “Little minds are tamed and subdued by misfortune; but great minds rise above it.” – Washington Irving
• “Everybody can be great because everybody can serve.” – Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
• “All progress takes place outside of your comfort zone.” – Michael John Bobak

Being a kid is arguably one of the best parts of life. Everything seems to be so interesting—even learning and studying. Nothing seems to be wrong, and all you have to do is enjoy life at its fullest.

But as you grow older, you learn that life can be tough sometimes. Problems present themselves, and bad experiences arise on occasion. When that time comes, you need to be brave. And while you are at it, make sure that you get the most out of the experience.

This brings us to our next set of quotes…short yet inspiring quotes for high school students. If you feel like things are not falling into their respective places, keep the faith. You are on your way to success.

Motivational Quotes for High School Students

• “If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude. Don’t complain.” – Maya Angelou
• “Excellence is not a skill. It is an attitude.” – Ralph Marston
• “Good things come to people who wait, but better things come to those who go out and get them.” – Unknown
• “Your time is limited, don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma, which is living the result of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinion drowned your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition, they somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” – Steve Jobs
• “Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.” – Jim Ryun
• “Education means emancipation. It means light and liberty. It means the uplifting of the soul of man into the glorious light of truth, the light by which men can only be made free.” – Frederick Douglass
• “What makes greatness is starting something that lives after you.” – Ralph Sockman
• “You’re braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.” – Christopher Robin

• “If you don’t go after what you want, you’ll never have it. If you don’t ask, the answer is always no. If you don’t step forward, you’re always in the same place.” – Nora Roberts
• “So many of our dreams at first seem impossible, then they seem improbable, and then, when we summon the will, they soon become inevitable.” – Christopher Reeve
• “Everyone wants a voice in human freedom. There’s a fire burning inside of all of us.” – Lech Walesa
• “When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us.” – Alexander Graham Bell
• “Believe in yourself and all that you are. Know that there is something inside you that is greater than any obstacle.” – Christian D. Larson
• “If you join a fight for social justice you may win or lose, but just by being part of the struggle, you win, and your life will be better for it.” – Howard Zinn
• “The new definition of freedom today is self-determination.” – John Hope Bryant
• “The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existence. One cannot help but be in awe when he contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality. It is enough if one tries merely to comprehend a little of this mystery each day. Never lose a holy curiosity. … Don’t stop to marvel.” – Albert Einstein

The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existence. One cannot help but be in awe when he contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality. It is enough if one tries merely to comprehend a little of this mystery each day. Never lose a holy curiosity. … Don’t stop to marvel.” – Albert Einstein

• “Accept and acknowledge your own brilliance. Stop waiting for others to tell you how great you are! Believe it for yourself and about yourself.” – Iyanla Vanzant
• “If there is something you care about, make a commitment to do something now- starting with today. And choose to live a meaningful and purpose-driven life where you care about people and issues that are much greater than yourself.” – Evangeline Mitchell
• “I wish you power that equals your intelligence and your strength. I wish you success that equals your talent and determination. And I wish you faith.” – Betty Shabazz
• “You lose nothing when fighting for a cause… In my mind the losers are those who don’t have a cause they care about.” – Muhammad Ali
• “Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.” – Mark Twain

If childhood is life’s most fun period, the teenage years are probably the most exciting. You get to explore things that you were not allowed to discover when you were younger, and you are exposed to new experiences.

But with that freedom also comes more responsibility. Life becomes bigger, but also more work. Fortunately, every little thing that comes your way is all part of the process. Keep believing in yourself . That way, when you are through your teenage years, you will be equipped to face young adulthood with fervor and valor.

Our last set of quotes include wonderful words of encouragement for college students—those who are ready to take on life’s bigger challenges. It is not easy to step into the first stages of adulthood, but there is no need to worry—you are bound for greatness.

Inspirational Quotes for Students in College

• “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” – Mohandas Gandhi
• “It is not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves.” – Edmund Hillary
• “Don’t let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.” – John Wooden
• “We owe it to ourselves and to the next generation to conserve the environment so that we can bequeath our children a sustainable world that benefits all.” – Dr. Wangari Maathai
• “While one may encounter many defeats, one must not be defeated.” – Maya Angelou
• “Striving for success without hard work is like trying to harvest where you haven’t planted.” – David Bly
• “Strive for progress, not perfection.” – Unknown
• “We were not born with the unhealthy habits we carry. We had to learn them. So we can unlearn them, and help others do the same.” – Riane Eisler
• “Be ashamed to die until you have won some victory for humanity.” – Horace Mann
• “Successful and unsuccessful people do not vary greatly in their abilities. They vary in their desires to reach their potential.” – John Maxwell
• “There are no shortcuts to any place worth going.” – Beverly Sills
• “Don’t say you don’t have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michaelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein.” – Jackson Brown Jr.
• “Failure is the opportunity to begin again more intelligently.” – Henry Ford

• “Nobody can give you freedom. Nobody can give you equality or justice or anything. If you’re a man, you take it.” – Malcolm X
• “There are those who work all day, those who dream all day, and those who spend an hour dreaming before setting to work to fulfill those dreams. Go into the third category because there’s virtually no competition.” – Steven J. Ross
• “Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.” – Thomas A. Edison
• “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.
• “You’ve got to get up every morning with determination if you’re going to go to bed with satisfaction.” – George Lorimer
• “Procrastination is the thief of time.” – Edward Young
• “There is no secret to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure.” – General Colin Powell
• “Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day-in, and day-out.” – Robert Collier
• “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” – Dr. Seuss
• “Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.” – John F. Kennedy
• “Wisdom comes not from age, but from imagination and learning.” – Anton Chekhov
• “Success is not final; failure is not fatal. It is the courage to continue that counts.” – Winston Churchill

Success is not final; failure is not fatal. It is the courage to continue that counts.” – Winston Churchill

• “Develop success from failures. Discouragement and failure are two of the surest stepping stones to success.” – Dale Carnegie
• “Goal setting is the secret to a compelling future.” – Tony Robbins
• “The most difficult thing is the decision to act; the rest is merely tenacity.” – Amelia Earhart
• “The elevator to success is out of order. You’ll have to use the stairs, one step at a time.” – Joe Girard
• “The beautiful thing about learning is that nobody can take it away from you.” – B.B. King
• “You can’t have a better tomorrow if you’re still thinking about yesterday.” – Charles F. Kettering
• “Ninety-nine percent of the failures come from people who have the habit of making excuses.” – George Washington Carver
• “Optimism is a happiness magnet. If you stay positive, good things and good people will be drawn to you.” – Mary Lou Retton
• “I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been given a no. Only to find that a better, brighter, bigger yes was right around the corner.” – Arlan Hamilton
• “We need to accept that we won’t always make the right decisions, that we’ll screw up royally sometimes – understanding that failure is not the opposite of success, it’s part of success.” – Ariana Huffington

We need to accept that we won’t always make the right decisions, that we’ll screw up royally sometimes – understanding that failure is not the opposite of success, it’s part of success.” – Ariana Huffington

• “Be patient with yourself. Self-growth is tender; it’s holy ground. There’s no greater investment.” – Stephen Covey
• “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.” – Thomas Edison
• “Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young.” – Henry Ford
• “Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.” – Mahatma Gandhi
• “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” – Eleanor Roosevelt
• “If you are working on something that you really care about, you don’t have to be pushed. The vision pulls you.” – Steve Jobs

Final Words

Student life is never easy—the education process takes a lot of time and effort. You need to learn how to persevere and manage your time wisely in order to succeed.

Even when things are going tough, you have to keep believing in yourself. Don’t lose faith t hat you can achieve your dreams and become the best that you can be.

We hope that the quotes we shared above were able to motivate and inspire you to study even harder. We know that you are already doing your best, but when difficult moments come and you feel like you are about to give up, just remember why you started in the first place.

Did any of the quotes resonate with you? We’d like to know which one! Feel free to share your thoughts through the comment field below.

If you happen to love any of the images featured in this article, a share through your favorite social media account is greatly appreciated!

There is no shortcut to success, so keep trying and keep believing. Always aim to be the best version of you!

And if you want more inspirational quotes, be sure to check out these blog posts:

• 35 Inspirational Have a Great Day Quotes and Sayings
• 73 Inspirational You Are Amazing Quotes
• 71 Quotes About Loving Yourself First

Finally, if you want to use these quotes to make a lasting change to your life, then check out and recite these 57 affirmations for success .

35+ Quotes About Education

Whether formal or informal, education is something that can transform the minds of a generation or society. Here are 35+ inspiring education quotes and quotes about education.

Subscribe to our Youtube channel!

35+ Quotes About Education | Education Quotes

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” – Nelson Mandela

“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.” – Aristotle

“Education is for improving the lives of others and for leaving your community and world better than you found it.” – Marian Wright Edelman

“Nine tenths of education is encouragement.” – Anatole France

“If someone is going down the wrong road, he doesn’t need motivation to speed him up. What he needs is education to turn him around.” – Jim Rohn

“Education is the ability to listen to almost anything without losing your temper or your self-confidence.” – Robert Frost

“Learning starts with failure; the first failure is the beginning of education.” – John Hersey

“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” – Benjamin Franklin

“The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows.” – Sydney J. Harris

“Education would be much more effective if its purpose was to ensure that by the time they leave school every boy and girl should know how much they do not know, and be imbued with a lifelong desire to know it.” – William Haley

“Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.” – Aristotle

“If you are planning for a year, sow rice; if you are planning for a decade, plant trees; if you are planning for a lifetime, educate people.” – Chinese Proverb

Products We Recommend:

• Weighted Blanket
• Happy Light
• Natural Calm

Inspirational Education Quotes

“Formal education will make you a living; self-education will make you a fortune.” – Jim Rohn

“Education is simply the soul of a society as it passes from one generation to another.” – G.K. Chesterton

“Education is the ability to meet life’s situations.” – Dr. John G. Hibben

“To me education is a leading out of what is already there in the pupil’s soul.” – Muriel Spark

“They cannot stop me. I will get my education, if it is in the home, school, or anyplace.” – Malala Yousafzai

“Knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every society, in every family.” – Kofi Annan

“Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.” – W.B. Yeats

“Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.” – Malcolm X

“It is in fact a part of the function of education to help us escape, not from our own time – for we are bound by that – but from the intellectual and emotional limitations of our time.” – T.S. Eliot

“I have never let my schooling interfere with my education.” – Mark Twain

“Education is a better safeguard of liberty than a standing army.” – Edward Everett

“Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.” – John Dewey

“Tell me and I’ll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I’ll understand.” – Chinese proverb

More Inspirational Quote Posts:

• Good Morning Quotes
• Sunshine Quotes
• Short Quotes About Life
• Quotes About Life Lessons
• Quotes About Hope

More Quotes on Education

“Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has learned in school.” – Albert Einstein

“The aim of education should be to teach us rather how to think, than what to think — rather to improve our minds, so as to enable us to think for ourselves, than to load the memory with thoughts of other men.” – Bill Beattie

“The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet.” – Aristotle

“Intelligence plus character-that is the goal of true education.” – Martin Luther King Jr.

“A well-educated mind will always have more questions than answers.” – Helen Keller

“It is a thousand times better to have common sense without education than to have education without common sense.” – Robert G. Ingersoll

“I believe that education is all about being excited about something. Seeing passion and enthusiasm helps push an educational message.” – Steve Irwin

“Upon the subject of education … I can only say that I view it as the most important subject which we as a people may be engaged in.” – Abraham Lincoln

“It is as impossible to withhold education from the receptive mind as it is impossible to force it upon the unreasoning.” – Agnes Repplierg

“Education cost money, but then so does ignorance.” – Claus Moser

P.S. Get free downloads, checklists, inspirational emails & more when you sign up for our Free Resource Library!

I hope you enjoyed these education quotes and quotes about education!

40 Inspirational Quotes for Students to Motivate and Encourage Success

" rel="bookmark" title=" ">.

Table of contents

As a student, it can be challenging to stay motivated and focused on your goals. Whether you’re facing a tough assignment or struggling to keep up with your coursework, it’s easy to get discouraged and lose sight of your ambitions. That’s where inspiring quotes come in – they can offer a much-needed boost of motivation and encouragement to keep you on track.

In this article, we’ve compiled a list of 40 inspirational quotes for students that will help them stay motivated, focused, and inspired on their academic journey . From famous leaders and writers to successful entrepreneurs and thinkers, these quotes offer wisdom, guidance, and inspiration to help you achieve your goals.

The Power of Motivation: Why Inspiring Quotes Matter

As a student, it’s easy to get caught up in the daily grind of assignments, exams, and deadlines. It can be overwhelming, and sometimes, it’s hard to stay motivated. Inspiring quotes can provide a much-needed boost of motivation when we feel like giving up. They can remind us of the big picture, and encourage us to keep pushing forward. Inspiring quotes can also help us gain a new perspective on a difficult situation or challenge. They can provide us with inspiration, guidance, and wisdom that can help us make better decisions and improve our overall performance. Ultimately, inspiring quotes can be a powerful tool to help students overcome obstacles, stay focused, and achieve success both in and out of the classroom. So, the next time you need a little extra motivation, try turning to some inspiring quotes to give you the push you need to keep going.

6 Benefits of Using Inspirational Quotes in Education

Motivation and engagement.

Inspirational quotes have the power to motivate and engage students in their learning journey. They can spark interest, curiosity, and a desire to achieve their goals.

Emotional Support

Inspirational quotes provide emotional support to students, especially during challenging times. They can uplift spirits, provide comfort, and remind students that they are not alone in their struggles.

Increased Self-Confidence

Reading and reflecting on inspirational quotes can boost students’ self-confidence. By instilling a sense of belief in their abilities, quotes can empower students to take on new challenges and overcome self-doubt.

Enhancing Creativity

Quotes that inspire creativity can unlock students’ imagination and innovative thinking. They encourage students to think outside the box, explore new ideas, and express themselves creatively.

Creating a Positive Learning Environment

Incorporating inspirational quotes in the classroom creates a positive learning environment. They create a sense of inspiration, encouragement, and support, fostering a classroom culture that values growth, learning, and success.

Strengthening Teacher-Student Relationships

Sharing inspirational quotes with students can strengthen the bond between teachers and students. It shows that teachers care about their students’ well-being and success, fostering a sense of trust and connection.

Quotes on Perseverance and Determination

When the going gets tough, it’s important to stay determined and persevere. These quotes will remind you of the power of perseverance and the importance of staying committed to your goals.

• “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.” – Winston Churchill
• “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” – Thomas Edison
• “Believe you can and you’re halfway there.” – Theodore Roosevelt
• “Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.” – Albert Schweitzer
• “The only way to do great work is to love what you do.” – Steve Jobs
• “Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after the other.” – Walter Elliot
• “The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a person’s determination.” – Tommy Lasorda
• “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.” – Thomas Edison
• “The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt
• “Strength doesn’t come from what you can do. It comes from overcoming the things you once thought you couldn’t.” – Rikki Rogers

Quotes on the Importance of Education

Education is a powerful tool that can open doors to new opportunities and experiences. These quotes remind us of the importance of learning, growing, and expanding our knowledge.

• “Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.” – Malcolm X
• “The beautiful thing about learning is that no one can take it away from you.” – B.B. King
• “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” – Dr. Seuss
• “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” – Benjamin Franklin
• “Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.” – John Dewey
• “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” – Nelson Mandela
• “The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
• “Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel.” – Socrates
• “The aim of education is the knowledge, not of facts, but of values.” – William S. Burroughs
• “Education is the movement from darkness to light.” – Allan Bloom

Quotes on Learning and Growth

Learning is a lifelong process that requires dedication, curiosity, and an open mind. These quotes remind us of the importance of embracing new experiences and constantly seeking to grow and improve.

• “The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.” – Nelson Mandela
• “The only source of knowledge is experience.” – Albert Einstein
• “The mind is everything. What you think you become.” – Buddha
• “Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.” – W.B
• “The expert in anything was once a beginner.” – Helen Hayes
• “The biggest adventure you can ever take is to live the life of your dreams.” – Oprah Winfrey
• “If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things.” – Albert Einstein
• “Change is the end result of all true learning.” – Leo Buscaglia
• “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” – African Proverb

Quotes on Success and Achievement

Success is the ultimate goal for many students, but it can be difficult to achieve without hard work, determination, and perseverance. These quotes offer wisdom and guidance on how to achieve success in all aspects of life.

• “Success is not how high you have climbed, but how you make a positive difference to the world.” – Roy T. Bennett
• “Success is not measured by what you accomplish, but by the opposition you have encountered, and the courage with which you have maintained the struggle against overwhelming odds.” – Orison Swett Marden
• “Believe in yourself and all that you are. Know that there is something inside you that is greater than any obstacle.” – Christian D. Larson
• “Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.” – Winston Churchill
• “The road to success is always under construction.” – Lily Tomlin
• “Success is not about being the best. It’s about always getting better.” – Behdad Sami
• “The most important thing is not to be afraid to take a chance. Remember, the greatest failure is to not try. Once you find something you love to do, be the best at doing it.” – Debbi Fields

Final Thoughts

In conclusion, inspiration and motivation are key ingredients for success, and quotes can provide a valuable source of both for students on their academic journey. Whether you’re looking for guidance on perseverance and determination, reminders of the importance of education, encouragement for learning and growth, or wisdom on achieving success, there is sure to be a quote on this list that resonates with you. So, the next time you’re feeling discouraged or overwhelmed, turn to these 40 inspiring quotes for students to motivate and encourage success. Maybe it’s a good idea to add these quotes to your video for students using Ssemble !

Q: How can quotes help students stay motivated? A: Quotes can provide a source of inspiration and encouragement to help students stay focused on their academic goals. When facing challenges or obstacles, a well-timed quote can help uplift and motivate students to keep pushing forward.

Q: Are there any specific quotes that are particularly helpful for students? A: There are many quotes that can be helpful for students, but it really depends on the individual and their particular circumstances. Some students may find quotes on perseverance and determination to be particularly helpful, while others may be inspired by quotes on the importance of education or success.

Q: How can students incorporate quotes into their daily routine? A: There are many ways to incorporate quotes into a daily routine. Some students may choose to write quotes on sticky notes and post them around their workspace, while others may prefer to keep a quote journal or set daily reminders on their phones with their favorite quotes.

Q: Where can students find inspirational quotes? A: Students can find inspirational quotes in various sources such as books, websites, social media platforms, and even from influential figures in history. They can explore quote collections, follow motivational accounts, or create their own collection of quotes that resonate with them personally.

Q: How can teachers incorporate inspirational quotes in the classroom? A: Teachers can incorporate inspirational quotes in the classroom in several ways. They can display quotes on bulletin boards or posters, include them in presentations, or start class discussions based on a selected quote. Additionally, teachers can assign writing exercises or reflection activities centered around inspirational quotes to promote critical thinking and self-expression.

View all posts

Keep Learning

education Quotes

Recommended quote pages

• entertainment
• epistemology
• subject matter
• differences between men and women
• women's rights
• communication
• Sherlock Holmes
• Stanley Yelnats
• experiences
• independence
• self-reliance
• importance of learning
• distractions
• looking for jobs
• getting ill
• every day life
• Paul Coates
• Cheryl Waters
• distinction of social class
• Gabriel Oak
• Sergeant Francis Troy
• philosophies
• freedom of speech
• civil service
• personal responsibility
• allegory of the cave
• Plato's cave
• family relationships
• core values
• intelligence
• helping others
• personal finance
• financial struggles
• formal education
• way of life
• how to make a living
• how to live
• understanding
• relationships
• citizenship
• development
• Miss Crocker
• educational opportunities
• Johnny Nolan
• opportunity
• information
• deeper meanings
• inspiration
• progressing
• being self-taught
• Lost Generation
• self-motivation
• Marietta Greer
• observations
• Miss Trunchbull
• Ethan Lawson Wate
• Lena Duchannes
• love for learning
• opportunities
• Christianity
• Corporal Whitcomb
• Colonel Korn
• life experience
• Amory Blaine
• performance
• criminal justice
• indifference
• irresponsibility
• Grant Wiggins
• disinterested
• problematize
• critical thinking
• teaching methods
• Fred Weasley
• John Keating
• Harry Wormwood
• extraordinary
• benefits of an education
• useless education
• college degrees
• global warming
• association
• Dr. Brodsky
• power of reason
• control of emotions
• gender inequality
• expectations
• universities
• self-conscious
• critical judgement
• intolerance
• lack of education
• frustration
• suspensions
• real writers
• Edward Tudor
• inferiority
• Cullen Post
• taking advantage
• giving your all
• Ellen Rosen
• poor families
• local children
• Help Center
• Gift a Book Club
• Beautiful Collections
• Schedule Demo

Book Platform

• Find a Book
• Motivate Reading
• Community Editors

Authors & Illustrators

• Get Your Book Reviewed
• Submit Original Work

Follow Bookroo

Home › Happiness Quotes

Happiness Quotes

Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links. See our disclosure for more info.

We all want to be happy, right? These happiness quotes are the place to start your pursuit.

After all, life is better when we’re happy and feel positive .

So to help you on your journey, enjoy these feel-good quotes about happiness and being happy to help you find joy and satisfaction in life.

Page Contents

Top 10 Happiness Quotes

Happiness is largely a choice, not a right or entitlement. David C. Hill

Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions. Dalai Lama

Happiness is not the absence of problems, it’s the ability to deal with them. Steve Maraboli

A great obstacle to happiness is to expect too much happiness. Bernard de Fontenelle

The secret of happiness is freedom, the secret of freedom is courage. Carrie Jones

It is not how much we have, but how much we enjoy, that makes happiness. Charles Spurgeon

Happiness lies in the joy of achievement and the thrill of creative effort. Franklin D. Roosevelt

Quotes about Happiness

Ask any number of people and each one will likely define happiness differently. Do you have your definition or are you still looking for one?

These quotes about happiness explore what it means, how to find it, and what to do if you have it.

Happiness is not an ideal of reason, but of imagination. Immanuel Kant

Happiness is not being pained in body or troubled in mind. Thomas Jefferson

Happiness is the interval between periods of unhappiness. Don Marquis

The secret of happiness is to find a congenial monotony. V.S. Pritchett

To be without some of the things you want is an indispensable part of happiness. Bertrand Russell

Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love , grace, and gratitude. Denis Waitley

The happiness of life is made up of the little charities of a kiss or smile, a kind look, a heartfelt compliment. Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Happiness consists more in conveniences of pleasure that occur everyday than in great pieces of good fortune that happen but seldom. Benjamin Franklin

There can be no happiness if the things we believe in are different from the things we do. Freya Stark

Happiness is always a by-product. It is probably a matter of temperament, and for anything I know it may be glandular. But it is not something that can be demanded from life, and if you are not happy you had better stop worrying about it and see what treasures you can pluck from your own brand of unhappiness. Robertson Davies

There is no happiness like that of being loved by your fellow creatures, and feeling that your presence is an addition to their comfort. Charlotte Bronte

Happiness is your dentist telling you it won’t hurt and then having him catch his hand in the drill. Johnny Carson

Happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family in another city. George Burns

Happiness and sadness run parallel to each other. When one takes a rest, the other one tends to take up the slack. Hazelmarie Elliott

If you want happiness for an hour, take a nap. If you want happiness for a day, go fishing. If you want happiness for a year, inherit a fortune. If you want happiness for a lifetime, help someone else. Chinese Proverb

Happiness is the resultant of the relative strengths of positive and negative feelings rather than an absolute amount of one or the other. Norman Bradburn

Happiness is being content with what you have, living in freedom and liberty, having a good family life and good friends. Divyanka Tripathi

You cannot protect yourself from sadness without protecting yourself from happiness. Jonathan Safran Foer

Happiness is a matter of one’s most ordinary and everyday mode of consciousness being busy and lively and unconcerned with self. Iris Murdoch

Happiness is holding someone in your arms and knowing you hold the whole world. Orhan Pamuk

The greatest happiness you can have is knowing that you do not necessarily require happiness. William Saroyan

The happiness which is lacking makes one think even the happiness one has unbearable. Joseph Roux

The fact is always obvious much too late, but the most singular difference between happiness and joy is that happiness is a solid and joy a liquid. J.D. Salinger

Happiness is like a butterfly which, when pursued, is always beyond our grasp, but, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you. Nathaniel Hawthorne

Happiness is an accident of nature, a beautiful and flawless aberration. Pat Conroy

In order to have great happiness you have to have great pain and unhappiness – otherwise how would you know when you’re happy? Leslie Caron

Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony. Mahatma Gandhi

Happiness always looks small while you hold it in your hands, but let it go, and you learn at once how big and precious it is. Maxim Gorky

Happiness is a well-balanced combination of love, labour, and luck . Mary Wilson Little

Happiness is a dry martini and a good woman. Or a bad woman. George Burns

Short Happiness Quotes

Happiness is a place between too much and too little. Finnnish Proverb

Happiness is a form of courage. Holbrook Jackson

No medicine cures what happiness cannot. Gabriel García Márquez

Happiness is itself a kind of gratitude . William James

Happiness is a thing to be practiced, like the violin. John Lubbock

Success is getting what you want, happiness is wanting what you get. W.P. Kinsella, Shoeless Joe

Every gift from a friend is a wish for your happiness. Richard Bach

Learn to let go. That is the key to happiness. Buddha

All happiness depends on courage and work. Honoré de Balzac

Happiness held is the seed; Happiness shared is the flower. John Harrigan

There is no cosmetic for beauty like happiness. Lady Blessington

Happiness is distraction from the human tragedy. J.M. Reinoso

Happiness makes up in height for what it lacks in length. Robert Frost

The Pursuit of Happiness

Now and then it’s good to pause in our pursuit of happiness and just be happy. Guillaume Apollinaire

The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance, the wise grows it under his feet. James Oppenheim

The world is full of people looking for spectacular happiness while they snub contentment. Doug Larson

There is no way to happiness — happiness is the way. Thich Nhat Hanh

Happiness is where we find it, but very rarely where we seek it. J. Petit Senn

As people spin faster and faster in the pursuit of merely personal happiness, they become exhausted in the futile effort of chasing themselves. Andrew Delbanco

Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. Albert Schweitzer

Happiness in this world, when it comes, comes incidentally. Make it the object of pursuit, and it leads us a wild-goose chase, and is never attained. Nathaniel Hawthorne

Happiness grows at our own firesides, and is not to be picked in strangers’ gardens. Douglas Jerrold

There is only one way to happiness and that is to cease worrying about things which are beyond the power of our will. Epictetus

Happiness is not something you postpone for the future; it is something you design for the present. Jim Rohn

Happiness is always the serendipitous result of looking for something else. Dr. Idel Dreimer

Happiness is excitement that has found a settling down place. But there is always a little corner that keeps flapping around. E.L. Konigsburg

Love is that condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own. Robert A. Heinlein

The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts. The secret ingredients to true happiness? Decisive optimism and personal responsibility. Amy Leigh Mercree

People should find happiness in the little things, like family. Amanda Bynes

A really great talent finds its happiness in execution. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

The Constitution only guarantees the American people the right to pursue happiness. You have to catch it yourself. Unknown, Commonly Attributed to Benjamin Franklin

The search for happiness is one of the chief sources of unhappiness. Eric Hoffer

We have no more right to consume happiness without producing it than to consume wealth without producing it. George Bernard Shaw

Happiness is the meaning and the purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence. Aristotle

My family didn’t have a lot of money, and I’m grateful for that. Money is the longest route to happiness. Evangeline Lilly

Happiness is a by-product of an effort to make someone else happy. Gretta Brooker Palmer

True Happiness

True happiness is to enjoy the present, without anxious dependence upon the future. Lucius Annaeus Seneca

The greatest happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved; loved for ourselves, or rather, loved in spite of ourselves. Victor Hugo

There is only one happiness in this life, to love and be loved. George Sand

All happiness or unhappiness solely depends upon the quality of the object to which we are attached by love. Baruch Spinoza

Those who can laugh without cause have either found the true meaning of happiness or have gone stark raving mad. Norm Papernick

Real happiness is cheap enough, yet how dearly we pay for its counterfeit. Hosea Ballou

It’s the moments that I stopped just to be, rather than do, that have given me true happiness. Richard Branson

To enjoy good health, to bring true happiness to one’s family, to bring peace to all, one must first discipline and control one’s own mind. Buddha

The only way to find true happiness is to risk being completely cut open. Chuck Palahniuk

The essence of philosophy is that a man should so live that his happiness shall depend as little as possible on external things. Epictetus

We tend to forget that happiness doesn’t come as a result of getting something we don’t have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have. Frederick Keonig

In my life I’ve learned that true happiness comes from giving. Helping others along the way makes you evaluate who you are. I think that love is what we’re all searching for. I haven’t come across anyone who didn’t become a better person through love. Marla Gibbs

True happiness is not attained through self-gratification, but through fidelity to a worthy purpose. Helen Keller

So we shall let the reader answer this question for himself: who is the happier man, he who has braved the storm of life and lived or he who has stayed securely on shore and merely existed? Hunter S. Thompson

The true secret of happiness lies in the taking a genuine interest in all the details of daily life. William Morris

Real happiness is not of temporary enjoyment, but is so interwoven with the future that it blesses for ever. James Lendall Basford

Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes true happiness. It is not attained through self-gratification but through fidelity to a worthy purpose. Helen Keller

Happiness is the default state. It’s what’s there when you remove the sense that something is missing in life. Naval Ravikant

Three grand essentials to happiness in this life are something to do, something to love, and something to hope for. Joseph Addison

Happiness is a constant work-in-progress, because solving problems is a constant work-in-progress – the solutions to today’s problems will lay the foundation for tomorrow’s problems, and so on. True happiness occurs only when you find the problems you enjoy having and enjoy solving. Mark Manson

Happy Quotes

We hear and use the word “happy” a lot, but being happy is more than just a wish or greeting. Happy is a state of mind that we can choose and cultivate.

More important, we can share happy words and thoughts with others once we have it ourselves. These quotes about being happy will help you do just that! So be happy and see how good it feels when those around you are happier too.

Ask yourself whether you are happy and you cease to be so. John Stuart Mill

Let us be grateful to people who make us happy, they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom. Marcel Proust

One joy scatters a hundred griefs. Chinese Proverb

Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word happy would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness . It is far better to take things as they come along with patience and equanimity. Carl Jung

It’s been my experience that you can nearly always enjoy things if you make up your mind firmly that you will. L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables

A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery while on a detour. Unknown

Joy is a net of love by which you can catch souls. Mother Teresa

Can anything be so elegant as to have few wants, and to serve them one’s self? Ralph Waldo Emerson

It’s a helluva start, being able to recognize what makes you happy. Lucille Ball

Folks are usually about as happy as they make their minds up to be. Abraham Lincoln

We are no longer happy so soon as we wish to be happier. Walter Savage Landor

It isn’t what you have or who you are or where you are or what you are doing that makes you happy or unhappy. It is what you think about it. Dale Carnegie

I do not exist to impress the world. I exist to live my life in a way that will make me happy. Richard Bach

The only way to avoid being miserable is not to have enough leisure to wonder whether you are happy or not. George Bernard Shaw

Give a man health and a course to steer, and he’ll never stop to trouble about whether he’s happy or not. George Bernard Shaw

Happy girls are the prettiest. Audrey Hepburn

When you’re happy you find pure joy in your life. There are no regrets in this state of happiness – and that’s a goal worth striving for in all areas of your life. Suze Orman

If you observe a really happy man you will find him building a boat, writing a symphony, educating his son, growing double dahlias in his garden, or looking for dinosaur eggs in the Gobi desert. He will not be searching for happiness as if it were a collar button that has rolled under the radiator. He will not be striving for it as a goal in itself. He will have become aware that he is happy in the course of living life twenty-four crowded hours of the day. W. Beran Wolfe

Quotes about Being Happy

The habit of being happy enables one to be freed, or largely freed, from the domination of outward conditions. Robert Louis Stevenson

I think the key to life is just being a happy person, and happiness will bring you success. Diego Val

Most people would rather be certain they’re miserable, than risk being happy. Robert Anthony

There is some kind of a sweet innocence in being human—in not having to be just happy or just sad—in the nature of being able to be both broken and whole, at the same time. C. JoyBell C.

Happiness is an attitude of mind, born of the simple determination to be happy under all outward circumstances  J. Donald Walters

We all live with the objective of being happy; our lives are all different and yet the same. Anne Frank

People are unhappy when they get something too easily. You have to sweat – that’s the only moral they know. Dany Laferrière

You don’t develop courage by being happy in your relationships everyday. You develop it by surviving difficult times and challenging adversity. Epicurus

I must learn to be content with being happier than I deserve. Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice

Who is the happiest of men? He who values the merits of others, and in their pleasure takes joy, even as though it were his own. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

There are two ways of being happy: We must either diminish our wants or augment our means – either may do – the result is the same and it is for each man to decide for himself and to do that which happens to be easier. Benjamin Franklin

There are two things to aim at in life: first, to get what you want; and after that, to enjoy it. Only the wisest of mankind achieve the second. Logan Pearsall Smith

Too often in life, something happens and we blame other people for us not being happy or satisfied or fulfilled. So the point is, we all have choices, and we make the choice to accept people or situations or to not accept situations. Tom Brady

For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness. Ralph Waldo Emerson

Unquestionably, it is possible to do without happiness; it is done involuntarily by nineteen-twentieths of mankind. John Stuart Mill

Happiness is the experience of loving life. Being happy is being in love with that momentary experience. And love is looking at someone or even something and seeing the absolute best in him/her or it. Love is happiness with what you see. So love and happiness really are the same thing… just expressed differently. Robert McPhillips

Be Happy Quotes

Be happy with what you have and are, be generous with both, and you won’t have to hunt for happiness. William E. Gladstone

You can’t be happy unless you’re unhappy sometimes. Lauren Oliver

Nobody really cares if you’re miserable, so you might as well be happy. Cynthia Nelms

Learn to enjoy every minute of your life. Be happy now. Don’t wait for something outside of yourself to make you happy in the future. Earl Nightingale

Don’t waste your time in anger, regrets, worries, and grudges. Life is too short to be unhappy. Roy T. Bennett

Judge nothing, you will be happy. Forgive everything, you will be happier. Love everything, you will be happiest. Sri Chinmoy

You do the right thing even if it makes you feel bad. The purpose of life is not to be happy but to be worthy of happiness. Tracy Kidder

Research has shown that the best way to be happy is to make each day happy. Deepak Chopra

Learn how to be happy with what you have while you pursue all that you want. Jim Rohn

If you want to be happy, set a goal that commands your thoughts, liberates your energy, and inspires your hopes. Andrew Carnegie

How simple it is to see that we can only be happy now, and there will never be a time when it is not now. Gerald Jampolsky

If you look to others for fulfillment, you will never be fulfilled. If your happiness depends on money, you will never be happy with yourself. Be content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the world belongs to you. Lao Tzu

Most of us believe in trying to make other people happy only if they can be happy in ways which we approve. Robert S. Lynd

If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion. Dalai Lama

To be happy, you must fancy that everything you have is a gift, and you the chosen, though you worked your tail off for every bit of it. Robert Brault

We cannot be happy if we expect to live all the time at the highest peak of intensity. Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance and order and rhythm and harmony. Thomas Merton

Learn to value yourself, which means: fight for your happiness. Ayn Rand

If only we’d stop trying to be happy we could have a pretty good time. Edith Wharton

You will never be happy if you continue to search for what happiness consists of. You will never live if you are looking for the meaning of life. Albert Camus

Be happy with what you have. Be excited about what you want. Alan Cohen

Indeed, man wishes to be happy even when he so lives as to make happiness impossible. St. Augustine

Be happy for this moment. This moment is your life. Omar Khayyam

If you want happiness for an hour – take a nap. If you want happiness for a day – go fishing. If you want happiness for a month – get married. If you want happiness for a year – inherit a fortune. If you want happiness for a lifetime – help someone else. Chinese Proverb

Feeling Happy Quotes

He who lives in harmony with himself lives in harmony with the universe. Marcus Aurelius

Cheerfulness is what greases the axles of the world. Don’t go through life creaking. H.W. Byles

Many things can make you miserable for weeks; few can bring you a whole day of happiness. Mignon McLaughlin

Sanity and happiness are an impossible combination. Mark Twain

Our capacity to draw happiness from aesthetic objects or material goods in fact seems critically dependent on our first satisfying a more important range of emotional or psychological needs, among them the need for understanding, for love, expression and respect. Alain De Botton

On the whole, the happiest people seem to be those who have no particular cause for being happy except that they are so. William R. Inge

No one is in control of your happiness but you; therefore, you have the power to change anything about yourself or your life that you want to change. Barbara DeAngelis

If there were in the world today any large number of people who desired their own happiness more than they desired the unhappiness of others, we could have a paradise in a few years. Bertrand Russell

Man is fond of counting his troubles, but he does not count his joys. If he counted them up as he ought to, he would see that every lot has enough happiness provided for it. Fyodor Dostoevsky

When neither their property nor their honor is touched, the majority of men live content. Niccolo Machiavelli

Plenty of people miss their share of happiness, not because they never found it, but because they didn’t stop to enjoy it. William Feather

The best way to cheer yourself up is to try to cheer somebody else up. Mark Twain

I have only two kinds of days: happy and hysterically happy. Allen J. Lefferdink

Just as a cautious businessman avoids investing all his capital in one concern, so wisdom would probably admonish us also not to anticipate all our happiness from one quarter alone. Sigmund Freud

On a deeper level you are already complete. When you realize that, there is a playful, joyous energy behind what you do. Eckhart Tolle

There is only one cause of unhappiness: the false beliefs you have in your head, beliefs so widespread, so commonly held, that it never occurs to you to question them. Anthony de Mello

The secret of happiness is not in doing what one likes, but in liking what one does. James M. Barrie

If you spend your whole life waiting for the storm, you’ll never enjoy the sunshine. Morris West

We hope these happiness quotes lifted your mood and brightened your day. Share them with your friends to keep the good vibes spreading and choose to be happier today.

Being happy makes life better and more enjoyable, even when we have to make changes along the way.

If you still need a boost to be happier, check out 30 things you need to let go of to find happiness and start taking steps toward a happier life.

Quincy Seale

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

50 Happiness is a Choice Quotes: Embracing Joy on Your Own Terms

Hey there, happiness seeker! You wake up in the morning, the sun peeking through your curtains, and a smile stretches across your face as you take a deep breath. Why? Because you've made a conscious choice to be happy. Welcome to the fascinating world of happiness, where the power to transform your life lies within your own hands. In this blog article, we're going to dive into a treasure trove of 50 happiness is a choice quotes that will inspire you, uplift your spirits, and remind you that true joy is a decision you can make every day.

Now, let me share a story that will make you believe in the magic of choosing happiness. It's about a friend of mine named Sarah. Sarah had been through some tough times, facing setbacks and challenges that would have made most people feel defeated. But instead of wallowing in despair, Sarah made a radical decision—to choose happiness, no matter what. She plastered her walls with inspiring quotes, carried a pocket-sized happiness journal, and surrounded herself with positive, supportive people. As days turned into weeks and weeks into months, Sarah's life began to change. She radiated joy, attracted new opportunities, and inspired everyone around her. Her story taught me that happiness is not a mere coincidence or a lucky break—it's a conscious choice we can all make, regardless of our circumstances.

Happiness is not something ready-made. It comes from your own actions.” – Dalai Lama

“the greatest happiness you can have is knowing that you do not necessarily require happiness.” – william saroyan, “the only person you should try to be better than is the person you were yesterday.” – anonymous, “your happiness is determined by the attitude you choose.” – roy t. bennett, “happiness is a choice that requires effort at times.” – aeschylus, “the key to being happy is knowing you have the power to choose what to accept and what to let go.” – dodinsky, “happiness is not a destination, it's a way of life.” – anonymous, “choose to be happy, because it is good for your health.” – voltaire, “happiness is not something that happens to you, it's something you create.” – anonymous, “the secret to happiness is freedom, and the secret to freedom is courage.” – thucydides, “happiness is a choice, not a result. nothing will make you happy until you choose to be happy.” – ralph marston, “the only limits to your happiness are the ones you set for yourself.” – jonathan lockwood huie, “the greatest happiness comes from making others happy.” – anonymous, “happiness is a direction, not a place.” – sydney j. harris, “you can't control everything that happens to you, but you can control how you react to it.” – unknown, “choose to be optimistic. it feels better.” – dalai lama, “happiness is not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort.” – franklin d. roosevelt, “happiness is a state of mind. it's just according to the way you look at things.” – walt disney, “the most important thing is to enjoy your life, to be happy—it's all that matters.” – audrey hepburn, “happiness is not the absence of problems, but the ability to deal with them.” – steve maraboli, “happiness is not a goal; it's a by-product of a life well-lived.” – eleanor roosevelt, “the only way to find true happiness is to risk being completely cut open.” – chuck palahniuk, “happiness is letting go of what you think your life is supposed to look like and celebrating it for everything that it is.” – mandy hale, “the happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts.” – marcus aurelius, “happiness is not about getting what you want all the time. it's about loving what you have and being grateful for it.” – anonymous, “you don't need a reason to be happy. just be.” – unknown, “happiness is the art of never holding in your mind the memory of any unpleasant thing that has passed.” – unknown, “the more you feed your mind with positive thoughts, the more you can attract great things into your life.” – roy t. bennett, “the only way to do great work is to love what you do.” – steve jobs, “happiness is a choice. you can choose to be happy. there's going to be stress in life, but it's your choice whether you let it affect you or not.” – valerie bertinelli, “your mind is a powerful thing. when you fill it with positive thoughts, your life will start to change.” – unknown, “happiness is not the absence of pain, but the ability to face and overcome it.” – unknown, “happiness is not something you postpone for the future; it is something you design for the present.” – jim rohn, “don't wait for someone to bring you flowers. plant your own garden and decorate your own soul.” – luther burbank, “the more you love your decisions, the less you need others to love them.” – unknown, “happiness is not found in things; it's found in the moments and memories we create.” – unknown, “the happiest people don't have the best of everything, they just make the best of everything they have.” – unknown, “if you want to be happy, set a goal that commands your thoughts, liberates your energy, and inspires your hopes.” – andrew carnegie, “happiness is not achieved by the conscious pursuit of happiness; it is generally the by-product of other activities.” – aldous huxley, “happiness is a state of mind. it's just according to the way you look at things.” – anonymous, “happiness is the experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude.” – denis waitley, “happiness is not something you find; it's something you create.” – unknown, “the happiest people are those who give, not those who get.” – unknown, “the secret of happiness is not in doing what one likes, but in liking what one does.” – james m. barrie, “the greatest happiness is to know the source of unhappiness.” – fyodor dostoevsky, “happiness is not a possession to be prized; it is a quality of thought, a state of mind.” – daphne du maurier, “happiness is a choice, not an outcome. it's about how you live your life, not what happens to you.” – unknown, “happiness is not in things; it is in you.” – richard wagner, “happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.” – mahatma gandhi, “choose to be happy, because happiness is contagious.” – unknown.

As we come to the end of our journey through these 50 happiness is a choice quotes, one thing becomes abundantly clear: happiness is a decision we have the power to make. Each quote serves as a gentle reminder that our mindset, attitude, and actions play a vital role in shaping our happiness. It's not about waiting for the perfect circumstances or relying on external factors to bring joy into our lives. Instead, it's about embracing the present, choosing gratitude, cultivating positive thoughts, and spreading happiness to those around us.

So, my fellow happiness seeker, let's take these quotes to heart and remember that happiness is not just a destination but a way of life. Let's embrace joy on our own terms and empower ourselves with the understanding that we have the power to choose happiness every single day. Here's to a life filled with happiness, love, and the unwavering belief that we are the architects of our own well-being.

Embracing Faith: 50 Inspiring Christian Quotes on Courage

Unleashing the powerhouse of motivation: 50 inspirational arnold schwarzenegger quotes for success, leave a comment cancel reply.

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Happiness And Education Quotes & Sayings

education, community-building and change

Happiness and education – theory, practice and possibility

Happiness and education – theory, practice and possibility. What makes us flourish – and what does not? We explore the theory, practice and possibilities of putting happiness at the centre of education and helping.

Contents : introduction – why all the interest in happiness? · what is happiness? · what makes us happy and unhappy? · the loss of happiness in market economies · education for happiness · happiness in education · conclusion · further reading and bibliography · links · how to cite this article

Create all the happiness you are able to create: remove all the misery you are able to remove. Every day will allow you to add something to the pleasure of others, or to diminish something of their pains. And for every grain of enjoyment you sow in the bosom of another, you shall find harvest in your own bosom; while every sorry which you pluck out from the thoughts and feelings of a fellow creature shall be replaced by beautiful peace and joy in the sanctuary of your soul.

Jeremy Bentham in a birthday letter to a friend’s young daughter, quoted in Layard 2005: 235-6)

Economic growth has been a central policy objective of most governments over the last fifty or so years. Part of their overt rationale has been that by increasing national and individual incomes, people have more choice and the ability to pursue that choice. However, as an increasing number of commentators have identified, the relationship between growing economic prosperity and both individual happiness and social well-being that may have existed in ‘developed countries’ appears to have broken down (see, for example, Frey, and Stutzer 2002). Shah and Marks (2004: 4) comment, ‘whilst economic output has almost doubled in the UK in the last 30 years, life satisfaction has remained resolutely flat… Meanwhile depression has risen significantly over the last 50 years in developed countries’. They go on to argue that many people are languishing rather than flourishing i.e. living happy and fulfilling lives.

For people to lead truly flourishing lives they need to feel they are personally satisfied and developing, as well as functioning positively in regard to society. Unfortunately too many people are instead languishing – living unhappy, unfulfilled lives as well as lacking social and community engagement. Estimates from the US suggest that less than 20 per cent of the population are flourishing and over 25 per cent are languishing, with the rest being somewhere in between. (Shah and Marks 2004: 5 – using material from Singer and Ryff 2001)

All this poses a particular challenge to educators for as Nel Noddings (2003: 1) has commented, ‘Happiness and education are, properly, intimately connected. Happiness should be an aim of education, and a good education should contribute significantly to personal and collective happiness’. Sadly, much schooling and non-formal education has become increasingly directed towards economic end. The result has been both a narrowing of educational experiences within schooling, and state-sponsored informal education and lifelong learning, and now, it seems, a sharply decreased ability to add to people’s well-being. If those concerned with the ‘new science’ of happiness are to be believed, much educational policy is profoundly misguided.

What is happiness?

Many contemporary explorations of happiness in everyday life are based upon a subjective reading of well-being. Investigators ask people about their current feelings, whether they are hopeful about the future etc. and from this establish some measure of happiness in a particular time and place. This sort of approach is based on the belief that there is such a thing as ‘feeling good’ and ‘feeling bad’ – and that people can identify and talk about it. Richard Layard (2005: 12-3) provides us with such a starting point:

[B]y happiness I mean feeling good – enjoying life and wanting the feeling to be maintained. By unhappiness I mean feeling bad and wishing things were different. There are countless sources of happiness and countless sources of pain and misery. But all our experience has in it a dimension that corresponds to how good or bad we feel. In fact most people find it easy to say how good they are feeling, and in social surveys such questions get very high response rates… The scarcity of ‘Don’t knows’ shows that people do know how they feel, and recognize the validity of the question…. [M]ost of us take a longish view. We accept the ups and downs and care mainly about our average happiness over a longish period of time.

As Nel Noddings (2003: 22) has written, ‘It seems obvious that a judgement of happiness is best made by the person who claims or disavows happiness’. However, it is also possible that there are objective features of happiness. It can be argued that happiness is an objective dimension of human experience – and that it can be measured (Layard 2005: 224). Indeed, it has been increasingly possible to marshal a range of scientific evidence to support this view. Developments in brain and gene research, and more broadly in psychology and biology, have allowed us to talk with more certainty in this area (see (Lykken 1999 and Martin 2005). We know, for example, that:

• Genetically, we have a predisposition to a certain level of happiness. It could account for around 50 per cent of the variations we find in people’s current happiness. The key here, of course, lies in the interaction between our genetic predispositions and other factors such as our upbringing (Shah and Marks 2004: 5).
• Life circumstances such as our income, possessions, and relationships as well as things like the nature of our neighbourhood and jobs play a part. However, it may only account for 10 per cent of the variation in our happiness ( op. cit. ).
• Intentional activities – pursuits that we actively engage in such as socializing, doing meaningful work, reflecting upon and savouring life, and exercising – may account for 40 per cent of the variation in our happiness (ibid .: 6).

How we feel as we live our lives fluctuates – but the argument here is that there is a broad movement that arises from the interaction of our genetic predispositions with our life circumstances and the extent to which we engage in intentional activities that facilitate flourishing. The problem in terms of the pursuit of happiness is that we have only limited control over both subjective and objective factors. ‘We do not choose the conditions into which we are born, and all sorts of contingencies plague human life’ (Noddings 2003: 25). Furthermore, there is a limit to which we may ‘act on’ our genetic inheritance.

There is also a normative dimension to happiness. To appreciate this dimension, and to understand it in relation to education in the Western world, it is necessary to return to Aristotle . He and other classical thinkers like Plato and Socrates looked to claim happiness from contingency. That is, ‘they wanted to define happiness in a way that makes it independent of health, wealth, and the ups and downs of everyday life’ (Noddings 2003: 9). Happiness for them was something that referred to the whole life or the trajectory of a life. It was not episodic. Central to Aristotle’s efforts is the question ‘What is the good life for wo/man?’ This human good or eudaimonia is sometimes translated as human flourishing or well-being, but is commonly called happiness.

Like later commentators Aristotle sought to identify the key elements of happiness. In his writings it is possible to discern two radically different conceptions. The first, ‘comprehensive’ view focused around eudaimonia and allowed for some contingencies. He recognized that wealth, health and friendship were significant but argued that the exercise of reason was ‘the major component of happiness’ (Noddings 2003: 10). His second, ‘intellectualist’ view was built around the notion that ‘theoretical or contemplative thought is happiness’ ( op. cit. ). Contemplation involves mulling over facts and ideas that the person already possesses. This is how one writer describes it:

The Aristotelian contemplator is a man who has already acquired knowledge; and what he is contemplating is precisely this knowledge already present in his mind… the contemplator is engaged in the orderly inspection of truths which he already possesses; his task consists in bringing forward from the recesses of his mind, and arranging them fittingly in the full light of consciousness. (Barnes 1976: 38)

This, in Aristotle’s ‘intellectualist’ view, was the highest form of human activity. It was the ultimate intellectual virtue: a life of unbroken contemplation being something divine. This hierarchy of human activities placing the intellectual above practical reasoning contributed to separation of theory and practice. It has had a lasting impact upon education contributing to the view that some subjects are more valuable and carry a higher status than others.

Such a view of happiness – where there were higher and lower pleasures – retained its significance and was to gain great currency in the nineteenth century. Here the efforts of John Stuart Mill were particularly noteworthy. Mill argued that happiness (meaning pleasure or the absence of pain) was the ultimate purpose or end of human life. But this was not an individualized phenomenon. Instead, Mill looked to the greatest happiness of the greatest number of individuals (known as the ‘greatest happiness principle’). Actions could then be judged as right ‘in proportion as they tend to promote happiness, wrong as they tend to produce the reverse of happiness’ (Mill 1863; 1998). Pleasures of the intellect (knowing and imagining) and pleasures associated with virtue or moral sentiments were seen by Mill as standing above other pleasures – mere sensation. ‘Human beings have faculties more elevated than the animal appetites’, he commented , ‘and when once made conscious of them, do not regard anything as happiness which does not include their gratification’. Mills concluded that:

it is quite compatible with the principle of utility to recognize the fact that some kinds of pleasure are more desirable and more valuable than others. It would be absurd that while, in estimating all other things, quality is considered as well as quantity, the estimation of pleasures should be supposed to depend on quantity alone. (Mill 1863, Chapter 2)

Richard Layard (2005: 22) has commented that Mill’s intuition in this was right – but that his formulation was wrong. ‘People who achieve a sense of meaning in their lives are happier than those who live from one pleasure to another’ ( op. cit. ). However, it is questionable that some forms of happiness are intrinsically better than others ( ibid. : 23).

What makes us happy?

When researchers talk to people about what makes them happy, and what causes them pain, a fairly consistent set of answers emerge. For example, Robert E. Lane’s influential study (2000) showed strong links between subjective feelings of well-being and companionship (by which Lane meant family solidarity and friendship). We gain happiness through our relationships with other people. He argued, ‘it is their affection or dislike, their good or bad opinion of us, their acceptance or rejection that most influences our moods ( ibid : 6). To all this we can add what we know of the significance of relationship in the early years of human life – particularly in the home. Lane found that once people rise above the poverty level happiness tends to lie in the quality of friendships and of family life. Increased income and the possession of more and more material goods have little impact on feelings of well-being.

Other writers have used a range of published research and have come to broadly the same conclusions. According to Richard Layard (2005: 62-3), for example, when we look at studies seven factors stand out. However, many of these are linked to the quality of our relationships.

Exhibit 1: Layard’s ‘big seven’ ____________________________________________________________

Richard Layard (2005) argued that seven factors are central to happiness. Furthermore, he used research such as the US General Social Survey to establish (for the US at least) five in some sort of order of importance. Two further factors were seen as central, but could not be ranked due to lack of survey evidence.

• Family relationships . In just about every study, family relationships and our close private life are ‘more important than any other single factor affecting our happiness’ ( ibid : 63).
• Financial situation . As we have already seen our individual financial position is of significance – especially when we are on the margins of poverty – but beyond that it is a poor second to the quality of close and family relationships as a significant source of longish term happiness.
• Work . There is considerable evidence that we need to feel we are contributing to the wider society. Layard comments, ‘[W]ork provides not only income but also an extra meaning to life’. He continues ‘That is why unemployment is such a disaster: it reduces income but it also reduces happiness directly by destroying the self-respect and social relationships created by work’ (2005: 67). However, it is also that the work is fulfilling (and here one of the most significant features is the degree of control people have over what they do) ( ibid . 64). This is a theme that Richard Sennett has explored in The Corrosion of Character (2000).
• Community and friends . As we have already seen writers like Lane have placed a strong emphasis upon companionship. However, it is also clear that the quality of the communities in which we participate has a strong influence upon how we feel. If we do not live and operate in communities and groups where there is a sense of trust and belonging then there is a raft of evidence that shows the impact upon our ability to be happy. In recent years issues around this have been most strongly articulated in debates around social capital (see, in particular Robert Putnam ).
• Health . In studies people frequently cite health as an important contributor to happiness – and for some reason. While we may be able to adapt to many things that happen to us physically, but they take an emotional toll. When it comes to chronic pain and mental illness adaptation is more difficult and there should be a priority placed upon controlling suffering (Layard 2005: 69).
• Personal freedom . Happiness also depends upon the quality of the political, economic, legal and social systems in which we operate. There is some evidence that people living in stable and peaceful societies in which they have a voice and an ability to follow their interests (where it does not harm others), and in which institutions are accountable will be happier. (Lane 2000; Layard 2005: 69-70).
• Personal values . People’s happiness depends on their ‘ inner selves ‘ and philosophies of life. ‘People are happier if they are able to appreciate what they have, whatever it is; if they do not always compare themselves with others; and if they school their own moods’ (Layard 2005: 72). While we may want to question an emphasis on ‘schooling moods’ and its behaviourist overtones, and to balance it with a concern with biography and the unconscious, the direction of Layard’s argument is surely right. As Parker Palmer has put it, it is difficult to see how people can come to know others, or the world, if they do not know themselves. And, in turn, it is difficult to overcome ‘the pain of disconnection’ if we do not attend to matters of the spirit.

____________________________________________________________

One of the interesting things about lists such as these are the factors that are omitted. Five features that we might expect on such a list, but that appear to have little impact on happiness are, according to Layard:

• age . Such research as we have shows that average happiness is remarkably stable over the lifespan.
• gender . Surveys show that men and women are roughly equally happy in nearly every country researched.
• looks. Such research as we have seems to show that how we look makes little difference.
• IQ . In self-rated studies IQ is said to be only weakly correlated with happiness in terms of subjective feelings of happiness.
• education . Education appears to have only a small direct impact on happiness, though it does raise happiness indirectly through its impact on people’s ability to earn, for example. (Layard 2005: 62)

The focus in many societies on the acquisition of things – be they material goods, qualifications or good looks – seems woefully misplaced in the light of this. Most people recognize that the quality of family and home life (whatever form it takes), friendship and the ability to contribute to society are what count, yet many are still wedded to consumption. Why is this?

The loss of happiness in market economies

Many consistently choose higher income over companionship. People are not, it seems, very good judges ‘of how, even within the private spheres of their own lives, to increase, let along maximize, their happiness’ (Lane 2000: 9). The reasons for such poor choice lie, in part, in the ‘economistic’ cultures and ideologies that dominate western societies. As Erich Fromm put it some time ago:

Modern capitalism needs men who co-operate smoothly and in large numbers; who want to consume more and more; and whose tastes are standardized and can be easily influenced and anticipated…. What is the outcome? Modern man is alienated from himself, from his fellow men, and from nature. He has been transformed into a commodity, experiences his life forces as an investment which must bring him the maximum profit obtainable under existing market conditions. (1995: 67, but first published in 1957)

More recently Jean Baudrillard has argued that many now live in societies dominated by the object and spectacle. People with wealth ‘are no longer surrounded by other human beings, as they have been in the past, but by objects ‘, Baudrillard wrote. ‘Their daily exchange is no longer with their fellows, but rather, statistically as a function of some ascending curve, with the acquisition and manipulation of goods and messages’ (Baudrillard 2001: 32). Once this happens we can never be satisfied and will always be frustrated. Further, according to Baudrillard, given the power of advertising and the dynamics of consumption, resistance is difficult if not impossible (see Norris 2004 ). Whether or not things are so bleak is a matter for significant debate and the sense we make of three interlinked dynamics that appear to contribute to distorted decision making. These are the models of selfhood we employ; the way in which we make comparisons with others and with our own previous experiences; and the privatizing impact of social and technological change.

Individualism

To understand why resistance is difficult and why people do not, thus, choose paths that lead to their own well-being, Lane argues, we have to go back to the highly individualistic nature of selfhood that is common in those societies. In ‘premodern’ or more traditional societies greater weight was and is put on the whole and the transcendent. Indeed, it is very difficult for people to know who they are and what they are to do without these. It is through membership of social groups that individuals identify themselves and are identified by others. With the break-up of such an order in many western countries came ‘possessive individualism’ (Macpherson 1962: 270). This involved the idea that we naturally ‘own’ our own person and capacities, and owe nothing to society for them. The result is a much greater emphasis on the pursuit of individual rather than group goals, and a more instrumental view of relationships. The latter are approached more in terms of profit and loss – what they might yield to the individual – rather than as part of living. Furthermore, a key dimension here is the extent to which such individualization is linked to a fear of meaninglessness which in turn derives according to the influential arguments of Paul Tillich (1952) and others as deriving from a lack of connection to God. Whether resistance is possible, and whether it is possible to achieve greater happiness, thus, is dependent to some extent on our ability to come to a different appreciation of who we are – and to place ourselves in the world. The fact that significant numbers of people are able to do this provides us with some grounds for hope .

Social comparison and habituation

As well as the looking to the particular notions of selfhood in use we also need to attend to the significance of comparison – especially around income and wealth. We look at what others have, and what we have got used to. The first is governed by social comparison. As Layard (2005: 42 and 43-48) has put it, people care greatly about relative income. Indeed, it appears from various studies that rises in other people’s income but not our own is felt deeply. It is also clear that many people would be prepared to take a significant fall in living standards if they could move up the ladder when compared with others ( op. cit. ).

This basic psychological mechanism reduces the power of economic growth to increase happiness. It also leads to distorted incentives. For if I work harder and raise my income, I make other people less happy. But when I decide how much to work, I do not take this ‘pollution’ into account. So I will tend to work more than is socially efficient – and so will everyone else. (Layard 2005: 47)

There are differences in the way that work and other aspects of life are balanced between different societies (the so called ‘work-life balance). There is evidence that various cultural factors (in part linked to the notion of selfhood we employ) moderate the drive to work ever-longer hours. Some research also shows that countries will have a higher level of average happiness the more equally its income is distributed (once the famous economists caveat is employed) – all else being equal ( ibid. : 52).

This mechanism also sheds an interesting light on something that many commentators take for granted: that it is conformity that drives consumerism. What this basic phenomenon appears to demonstrate is that consumerism (an obsession with acquiring more and more goods and services) is ‘a product of consumers trying to outdo one another’ (Heath and Potter 205: 106). Ironically, the very attempt to avoid branding (and to be different) can fuel consumer spending and competition.

When we turn to habituation – or what we have got used to – we encounter the problem of adaptation. Put simply, once we have a certain experience, for example, having and being able to use washer-dryer or a dvd recorder, we need to have more of it to sustain our happiness. This is how Layard (2005: 48), again, puts it: ‘You are in fact on a kind of treadmill, a “hedonic” treadmill, where you have to keep running in order that your happiness stands still’.

Privatized leisure time

As well as looking to issues around individualism and the comparisons we make, it is also worth noting the privatizing impact of technological and social change upon the ways in which we live our lives, and to look at the way that these impact upon our capacity to foster companionship and friendship. Perhaps the most sustained and interesting treatment of such questions in recent years has been in the context of social capital . Here the work of Robert Putnam in Bowling Alone (2000) has been especially influential. He was able to demonstrate, for the United States at least, that there had been a significant decline in political and civic engagement; the scale and depth of informal social ties; and in tolerance and trust. Putnam was able to demonstrate that some favourite candidates for blame around this decline could not be regarded as significant. Residential mobility had actually been going down for half of the century. Time pressure, especially on two-career families, could only be a marginal candidate. Some familiar themes remained though:

• Changes in family structure (i.e. with more and more people living alone), are a possible dynamic as conventional avenues to civic involvement are not well-designed for single and childless people.
• Suburban sprawl has fractured the spatial integrity of people’s lives. They travel much further to work, shop and enjoy leisure opportunities. As a result there is less time available (and less inclination) to become involved in groups and informal social ties.
• Electronic entertainment, especially television, has profoundly privatized leisure time. The time we spend watching television is a direct drain upon involvement in groups and social capital building activities.

Taken together these elements are a powerful force. Declining involvement in associations and organizations that promote alternative paradigms of what might make for happiness (especially involvement in many religious groups and in social movements concerned with justice and social solidarity) has had a significant impact.

The stress on possessive individualism, the tendency to compare; and the impact of privatized leisure time have all taken their toll. The idea that happiness might reside in companionship, worthwhile activity, in our having some sense of our place in the world and the like is half recognized by many of us. When asked most of us can say what makes for happiness, but we fail to follow what we know when it comes to making decisions. The fact that we have some sense of what might make for human flourishing does provide us with some possibility for change. As Gramsci has persuasively argued hegemony is never complete and this means that there are always tensions and gaps that can be opened up. In this there is clearly a role for educators.

Education for happiness

One of the striking features of political life and discussions around educational reform is the almost complete absence of any sensible conversation around well-being and what might make people happy. Instead much debate is formulated in terms of how education might contribute to economic growth (which, as we have already seen, often has a negative impact on human flourishing) and upon accreditation and achievement within the narrow boundaries of national curricula and the like. Attention is given to what is taught and how. In one of a number of memorable passages in The Courage to Teach, Parker J. Palmer dissects a fundamental problem with much of the discussion around educational reform:

The question we most commonly ask is the “what” question – what subjects shall we teach? When the conversation goes a bit deeper, we ask the “how” question – what methods and techniques are required to teach well? Occasionally, when it goes deeper still, we ask the “why” question – for what purposes and to what ends do we teach? But seldom, if ever, do we ask the “who” question – who is the self that teaches? How does the quality of my selfhood form – or deform – the way I relate to my students, my subject, my colleagues, my world? How can educational institutions sustain and deepen the selfhood from which good teaching comes? (Parker J. Palmer 1998: 4)

We cannot hope to reform education, he argues, if we fail to cherish and challenge ‘the human heart that is the source of good teaching’ (Parker Palmer 1998: 3). Nor will much be achieved if do not engage with the question of aims.

As Nel Noddings (2003: 74) has commented, until recently ‘aims-talk figured prominently in educational theory’, and most educational systems had some sort of statement of aims. Today much discussion in market democracies is dominated by a concern with standards – and ‘the reasons given for this emphasis is almost always economic’ ( ibid .: 84). If we believe that people should have the chance to live happy and fulfilling lives then this will simply not do. We both need to rescue aims-talk – and to infuse it with a concern for flourishing.

Placing happiness at the centre of debates around aims does not mean a lack of attention to vocational and to the economic – as John Dewey was so careful to point out. But it does mean putting them in their place alongside other facets of life. As John White (1982) has helpfully shown when we place well-being, happiness at the core of educational effort then three tasks come to the fore. First, individuals have to understand in general terms what their well-being consists in. They have to see themselves as animals with an array of desires, ‘and to appreciate the way in which these desires may take different forms owing to cultural influences and new desires of all kinds be built out of them’ (White, 1982: 58). This process is both expansionary (it opens up doors) and restrictive (i.e. choices have to be made).

Second, the educational task must include the development of competencies in relation to the attainment of such basic human goods. This involves the development of skills in relationships, in obtaining the means of subsistence, in work and so on. Nel Noddings (2003) has explored a number of possible areas with regard to educating for ‘private life’ (making a home, loving places and nature, parenting, character and spirituality, and interpersonal growth) and around educating for ‘public life’ (preparing for work, educating for community, democracy and service).

Third, and crucially, the possession of general understandings and skills is not enough – educators also have a fundamental role in shaping dispositions. In other words, if people are to flourish and be happy they need to gain various dispositions or virtues which enable them to fit all this together into a coherent whole.

Just how educators start to do this within narrow, prescriptive and economistic education systems is a matter of some interest to many at the moment. For individuals it does entail having the ‘courage to teach’ rather than merely parrot the requirements of national and state curricula – and finding the resources to do this is a struggle. This is especially so where teachers have been trained and socialized as unquestioning ‘deliverers’ rather than educators. However, the example of the significant number who dare to question and to subvert narrow schooling does provide something of a beacon. It is also clear that little can be achieved without educators joining together to develop different understandings, organize and campaign.

Happiness in education

We can now turn to Parker J. Palmer’s ‘who?’ question. Education aimed at happiness cannot be achieved by simply teaching about happiness. We come to flourish in important ways through experiencing flourishing. This means cultivating spaces for learning where people can be happy. It also requires the involvement of educators who are happy in what they are doing and are seeking to live life as well as they can (see Palmer 1998). As Nel Noddings has again written with regard to the education of children:

The best homes and schools are happy places. The adults in these happy places recognize that one aim of education (and of life itself) is happiness. They also recognize that happiness serves as both means and end. Happy children, growing in their understanding of what happiness is, will seize their educational opportunities with delight, and they will contribute to the happiness of others. Clearly, if children are to be happy in schools, their teachers should also be happy. Too often we forget this obvious connection. Finally, basically happy people who retain an uneasy social conscience will contribute to a happier world. (Noddings 2003: 261)

One of the clearest explorations of the what is entailed in creating space of this kind has been given by Parker J. Palmer . In To Know As We Are Known , he argues that a learning space has three essential dimensions: openness, boundaries and an air of hospitality (1983; 1993: 71-75). In the first the educator and participants work to clear away the clutter – whether that is meaningless words, pressure to get on with the daily round, obstructive feelings, whatever. However, ‘the openness of a space is created by the firmness of its boundaries ‘ ( ibid. : 72). It has to be a structure for learning, not ‘an invitation to confusion and chaos’. ( op. cit. ). Learning can be painful, its processes and outcomes off-putting. For this reason, and much in the same way that Ivan Illich championed conviviality, Parker J. Palmer has looked, helpfully, to hospitality. ‘Hospitality means receiving each other, our struggles, our newborn ideas, with openness and care’. He continues, ‘the classroom where truth is central will be a place where every stranger and every strange utterance is met with welcome’ (Palmer 1983; 1993: 74) (for a discussion of Palmer’s view of spaces for learning see P arker J. Palmer: community, knowing and spirituality in education ).

In this piece we have seen just how societies that focus on economic growth run the risk of significantly depressing the happiness of many of their members (as well as people in other societies). We have also seen that there is strong evidence to the effect that certain areas of human experience encourage happiness and well being. These include the quality of relationships in the home and with friends, the ability to contribute to economic and social life, and a strong philosophy of life. We have also seen there is a very strong case for putting happiness at the centre of educational endeavour.

If educators are to take happiness, human flourishing, seriously then there need to be some fundamental changes in the way we understand, approach and organize education.

First, a concern for happiness in education entails looking beyond the classroom and immediate teaching context. If formal educational institutions are to have a care for the whole person then a range of other opportunities and experiences must be offer. This includes a extra-curricular activity and the opportunity to become involved in associational life .

Second, it involves engaging with informal education , community learning and more dialogical forms of educating.

Third, it entails jettisoning large areas of national and state curricula (if not the state or national curriculum itself) and seeking out approaches and subjects that do not alienate.

Fourth, happiness in education requires the possibility of easy access to counselling and pastoral provision so that those who are troubled have a means to come an understanding of themselves and their situation.

The list goes on … and its scope and scale is an indicator of the difficulties involved in re-orienting educational systems. Perhaps Jean Baudrillard was right when he spoke of the difficulties of resisting dominant cultures – but people’s happiness seems too important for us not to try.

Further reading and bibliography

Lane, R. E. (2000) The Loss of Happiness in Market Economies , New Haven: Yale University Press. 465 + x pages. Important study demonstrating declining happiness in market economies, and the significance of companionship as a contributor to well-being.

Layard, R. (2005) Happiness. Lessons from a new science, London: Allen Lane. 310 +ix pages. Highly recommended and readable exploration of the nature of happiness and what makes us happy (and unhappy) and in the process undermines the supposed link between wealth and happiness. Explores what can be done.

Noddings, N. (2003) Happiness and Education , New York: Cambridge University Press. 320 pages. The book explores what we might teach if we were to take happiness seriously as a goal of education. It looks at education for private and public life.

Palmer, P. J. (1998) The Courage to Teach. Exploring the inner landscape of a teacher’s life , San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Based on the premise that good teaching cannot be reduced to technique, but comes from the identity and integrity of the teacher, this book explores a number of themes central to informal education and to teaching generally.

Putnam, R. D. (2000) Bowling Alone. The collapse and revival of American community , New York: Simon and Schuster. 541 pages. Brilliant analysis and setting out of evidence concerning the decline and possible reconstruction of civil life in the United States.

Aristotle The Nicomachean Ethics , London: Penguin. (The most recent edition is 1976 – with an introduction by Barnes).

Aristotle The Politics (A treatise on government) , London: Penguin.

Barnes, J. (1976) ‘Introduction’ to Aristotle The Nicomachean Ethics (‘Ethics’), Harmondsworth: Penguin.

Barnes, J. (1982) Aristotle , Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Baudrillard, J. (2001) ‘The Consumers Society’, in Jean Baudrillard: Selected Writings , edited by Mark Poster. Stanford: Stanford University Press.

Bentham, J. (1988) Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation , London; Prometheus Books.

Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1990) Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience , New York: Harper and Row.

Frey, B. S. and Stutzer, A. (2002) Happiness and Economics: How the economy and institutions affect human well-being, Princeton NJ.: Princeton University Press.

Halpin, D. (2003a) Hope and Education: The Role of the Utopian Imagination , London, Routledge-Falmer.

Halpin, D. (2003b) ‘Hope, utopianism and educational renewal’, The encyclopedia of pedagogy and informal education , www.infed.org/biblio/hope.htm .

Heath, J. and Potter, A. (2005) The Rebel Sell. How counterculture became consumer culture , London: Capstone.

Lykken, D (1999) Happiness: the nature and nurture of joy and contentment , New York: St Martin’s Press.

Martin, P. (2005) Making Happy People. The nature of happiness and its origins in childhood , London: Fourth Estate.

Mill, J. S. (1998) Utilitarianism (ed. R. Crisp), Oxford: Oxford University Press. First published in 1863. Chapter 2 of Utilitarianism – ‘What utilitarianism is’ can be found at: http://www.utilitarianism.com/mill2.htm .

Norris, T. (2004) ‘Hannah Arendt and Jean Baudrillard: pedagogy in the consumer society, The encyclopedia of pedagogy and informal education , www.infed.org/ biblio/pedagogy_consumer_society.htm .

Palmer, P. J. (1983, 1993) To Know as We are Known. Education as a spiritual journey , San Francisco: HarperSan Francisco.

Shah, H. and Marks, N. (2004) A well-being manifesto for a flourishing society , London: New Economics Foundation. http://www.neweconomics.org/gen/z_sys_publicationdetail.aspx?pid=193 . Accessed March 25, 2005.

Sennett, R. (2000) The Corrosion of Character. Personal consequences of work in the new capitalism New York: W. W. Norton.

Singer, B and Ryff, C (eds) (2001) New Horizons in Health: An Integrative Approach , Washington: National Academies Press.

Tillich, P. (1952) The Courage to Be , New Have CT.: Yale University Press.

White, J. (1982) The Aims of Education Restated. London, Routledge and Kegan Paul.

The Bentham quote at the start of the piece is taken from Layard (2005) page 111.

Ricard Layard’s LSE page has links to the Lionel Robbins Memorial Lectures he did on happiness in 2002/3, and the annexe to his book Happiness.

Nel Noddings, caring and education . An exploration of her seminal contribution.

New Economics Foundation : well-being programme with various articles and studies.

How to cite this article : Smith, M. K. (2005, 2013). ‘Happiness and education – theory, practice and possibility’, The encyclopedia of pedagogy and informal education. [ https://infed.org/mobi/happiness-and-education-theory-practice-and-possibility/ . Retrieved: insert date ].

Acknowledgement:  The picture is from heal your mind 2012 and is credited to festivalopenmind. It is reproduced here under a Creative Commons CC-BY-NC 2 licence and was sourced from Flickr.

© Mark K. Smith 2005, 2013

Last Updated on October 10, 2019 by infed.org

• New Terms of Use
• New Privacy Policy
• Your Privacy Choices
• Closed Caption Policy
• Accessibility Statement

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. ©2024 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Market data provided by Factset . Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions . Legal Statement . Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper .

Gen Z happiness is most driven by one surprising thing, Gallup poll finds

It's not money or promotions that interest teens and young adults, research finds.

American happiness has been in gradual decline: Arthur C. Brooks

‘Build the Life You Want’ author Arthur C. Brooks discusses how to craft an enriching and fulfilling daily life on ‘Special Report.’

A new Gallup poll has revealed a primary source of happiness among the Gen Z cohort.

The survey, which included 2,271 young adults in the U.S. between ages 12 and 26, found that their most influential driver of happiness is a sense of purpose at school and at work. 

At least 60% of all Gen Zers who are happy feel that they do something interesting every day and are motivated to attend work or school.

PLUNGING OPTIMISM AMONG YOUTH LOWERS GLOBAL HAPPINESS RANKINGS FOR US AND WESTERN EUROPE

Among the happy respondents, 64% feel that their work and school tasks are important — but Gen Zers who are not happy are about half as likely to feel that way.

Fox News Digital spoke with Gallup senior education researcher Zach Hrynowski, the Washington, D.C.-based author of the study, about the findings. 

A new Gallup poll revealed that Gen Z's main driver of happiness is finding a sense of purpose at school and at work. (iStock)

"The challenge that we see from the research is that about 40% to 50% of Gen Zers say they don't feel like what they do every day is interesting," he said.

GEN Z CALLS OUT BABY BOOMERS FOR ‘ANNOYING’ WORKPLACE HABITS: SURVEY

"They don't feel like it's important. They're not motivated to do it, and they're not getting enough time to sleep and relax."

As Gallup’s research on newer generations progresses, Hrynowski revealed that there’s been a "shift" in the workplace away from more "traditional measures of success."

A majority (64%) of happy respondents feel that their work and school tasks are important, Gallup reported in a new survey. (iStock)

Factors that are more important to older generations, such as earning more money and getting promotions, have become less important to Gen Z and millennials, he noted.

"The most important factor in the workplace for millennials and Gen Z is that feeling of purpose," said Hrynowski. 

"Are you making a difference in the world? Do you feel like what you're doing is important? Do you have opportunities to learn and grow every day?"

GRANDPARENTS MAY HAVE SIGNIFICANT IMPACT ON A MOM'S MENTAL HEALTH, STUDY FINDS

These results are a "really good indicator" that finding purpose "isn’t just important in the workplace," Hrynowski suggested.

"Whether you enjoy what you're doing [at work or school] is indicative of whether you enjoy most of what you're doing every day," he said. 

"This is a next step in a trend that we've seen emerging in our other research with Gen Z."

There's "not a lot of survey research" on 12- to 17-year-old Gen Zers and what's important to them, the researcher said. (iStock)

Other drivers of happiness

In addition to a sense of purpose at work and school, Gen Z happiness is linked to how secure and rested they feel in their personal lives, the poll found.

Other key drivers of happiness include the ability to fulfill basic needs, such as having enough time to sleep and relax during the week.

ADHD IN MALES VERSUS FEMALES: WHAT YOU MUST KNOW ABOUT THE DIFFERENCES IN SYMPTOMS AND TREATMENTS

Social pressures also have a direct correlation on happiness, as Gen Zers who spend a lot of time comparing themselves to others are less likely to report feeling happy and twice as likely to experience anxiety . 

The research found that happy Gen Zers are at least twice as likely to say they feel loved, supported and connected to others.

Social pressures have a direct correlation on happiness, as Gen Zers who spend a lot of time comparing themselves to others are less likely to report feeling happy, the Gallup poll found. (iStock)

Around 73% of Gen Zers would consider themselves at least somewhat happy overall, but that share decreases as they enter adulthood.

Among 12- to 14-year-olds, 80% consider themselves "happy to some degree," while 68% of 24- to 26-year-olds feel the same.

‘PANDEMIC SKIP,’ A COVID MENTAL HEALTH PHENOMENON, COULD DELAY MAJOR MILESTONES, EXPERTS SAY

"That, to me, suggests we're not doing a great job of setting Gen Z up to step out into the world, into their adult lives — and to be in a place that makes them feel like what they're doing as adults is really purposeful," Hrynowski said.

Adult Gen Zers who have any level of post-secondary education, are married or have children are "markedly happier" than their peers, according to Gallup.

Adult Gen Zers who have any level of post-secondary education, are married or have children are "markedly happier" than their peers. (iStock)

In the LGBTQ community, however, Gen Z adults are 16% less likely to say they are happy than their heterosexual counterparts. 

Gallup research suggests that one in five members of Gen Z identify as LGBTQ.

Surveying LGBTQ Gen Zers is on Gallup’s radar as something it's hoping to "be able to dig into a little bit more in future surveys," Hrynowski noted.

'Do something about it'

Gallup launched this research in partnership with Arthur Brooks and the Walton Family Foundation. The latter is an organization that works to improve education, protect rivers and oceans and the communities they support, and invest in their home region of Northwest Arkansas and the Arkansas-Mississippi Delta.

"Expanding meaningful and engaging learning experiences, including career pathways, can lead to more fulfilled and motivated young people."

Romy Drucker, education program director at the Walton Family Foundation in New York, reacted to the study findings in a press release, noting that Gen Zers are "telling us their happiness is directly linked to feeling a sense of purpose at school and work."

She said, "Expanding meaningful and engaging learning experiences, including career pathways, can lead to more fulfilled and motivated young people."

A Gallup researcher (not pictured) said he hopes the new report will garner attention from people who have "good insight" into making changes for Gen Z. (iStock)

Dr. Brooks, a Harvard University professor and social scientist, also commented on how to incorporate these findings to make meaningful change.

"Generation Z — the future of our country — has witnessed significant declines in happiness, and we must learn why," he said. 

PSYCHIATRIST SHARES 4 WAYS TO SUPPORT YOUR CHILD THROUGH LIFE'S UPS AND DOWNS ON WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY

"By partnering in this landmark study of adolescents and young adults, researchers, policymakers and parents will better understand what is happening and the changes we need to make."

In reaction to the survey, educational psychologist and parenting expert Dr. Michele Borba told Fox News Digital that finding a purpose can become "your reason to get up in the morning."

One educational psychologist encouraged parents of teens to help their kids "identify something that really matters to them — and then do something about it." (iStock)

"It offers a sense of direction, shapes your goals and is a central motivating aim of your life," said Borba, who is based in Palm Springs, California.

"And it helps teens see themselves as people who can make a difference, because they are connecting to something bigger than themselves."

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR LIFESTYLE NEWSLETTER

Borba advised parents that helping their teens find a purpose can be "the magic pixie dust that helps improve their well-being and find meaning in life."  

She told Fox News Digital, "Individuals who have a strong sense of purpose and meaning in life tend to have better mental health and overall well-being."

"Our problem: We don’t realize the value of developing purpose in our children’s lives — and we’re still caught in a GPA, test-frenzy culture where we fixate on a linear path to success," she said.

"Generation Z — the future of our country — has witnessed significant declines in happiness, and we must learn why."

The psychologist stressed that each child must find his or her own purpose based on what matters most to that individual — and it's the adult's job to pay attention.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

"Help [kids] identify something that really matters to them — and then do something about it," she suggested.

"And when they put their plan into action and see the results, their confidence grows, and optimism grows — all the seeds of resilience that help them face challenges and thrive in a more adverse, uncertain world."

For more Lifestyle articles, visit foxnews.com.com/lifestyle

Angelica Stabile is a lifestyle writer for Fox News Digital.

Fun stories about food, relationships, the great outdoors and more.

You've successfully subscribed to this newsletter!

• Bihar Board

SRM University

Ap inter results.

• AP Board Results 2024
• UP Board Result 2024
• CBSE Board Result 2024
• MP Board Result 2024
• Rajasthan Board Result 2024
• Karnataka Board Result
• Shiv Khera Special
• Education News
• Web Stories
• Current Affairs
• नए भारत का नया उत्तर प्रदेश
• School & Boards
• College Admission
• Govt Jobs Alert & Prep
• GK & Aptitude
• general knowledge

Happy Navratri 2024: 65+ Wishes, Messages and Quotes to Share With Your Friends and Family Members on Chaitra Navratri

Happy navratri 2024: let's double the joy of celebration this navratri with messages and wishes full of positivity and happiness.   .

Navratri 2024: Wishes & Messages

• On the occasion of Navratri, I wish that Maa Durga take away all your problems and shower you with her choicest blessings for a wonderful year ahead. Happy Navratri!
• The time has come to welcome the nine Shaktis into our lives and seek their blessings for a happy and prosperous life. Blessings for Navratri!
• Let us bow our heads and offer prayers to nine Goddesses who promise to protect and bless us. Wishing you and your family a Happy Navratri.
• As the divine goddess blesses us with her presence, may your life be filled with peace and positivity. Happy Navratri 2024!
• On this auspicious occasion of Navratri, may all your wishes come true, and may you find success in everything you do.
• Every day the sun rises to give us a message that darkness will always be beaten by light. Let us follow the same natural rule. Happy Navratri!
• It’s a great time to thank Maa Durga for blessing me. May maa help us to overcome every challenge in our life. Happy Navratri!
• Enjoying this special occasion with the family is the most amazing thing to do. May the Goddess strengthen our family bonding and keeps us happy.

• I wish you the best of the Navratri celebrations, full of high spirits, lots of Garba and beautiful music. May you have the most memorable Navratri celebrations this year.
• May this festival fill your life with new joys that surround you and your loved ones with positive vibes, now and forever!
• Sending my warmest wishes to you and your family on the occasion of Durga Ashtami. May the divine blessings of Maa Durga always be with you. Happy Navratri!
• May you enjoy the occasion of Navratri with your family and friends, along with the colours of devotion, dance and festivities. A very Happy Navratri to you!
• Wishing a very Happy Navratri to you. May the days and nights of Navratri be full of celebrations, happiness and vibrancy for you!
• Durga who stands for both creation and destruction symbolises that destruction signals new beginnings. I wish Maa Durga give us the power to fight against evil and protect all wherever they go. Wish you all Happy Navratri!
• May goddess Durga empowers you with the light of knowledge and truth. Happy Navratri to you and your family.

Happy Navratri 2024: WhatsApp & Facebook Status

• May the high spirits of the auspicious occasion of Navratri fill your life with the hope and courage you deserve. Wishing you a cheerful and blessed Navratri!
• May your home be blessed with the lotus feet of Maa Durga, which bring into your life eternal happiness and smiles. Happy Chaitra Navratri!
• On the occasion of Navratri, I wish that all your sorrows come to an end and that this festive occasion brings along new hope for you!
• Wishing you nine nights of devotion and happiness. May Maa shower her blessings on you. Wish you a Navratri full of happiness and positivity!
• May the great goddess Maa Durga provide you with the strength, wisdom, and courage to overcome all obstacles in life. Happy Navratri!

• May the nine forms of Goddess Durga empower you with love, wisdom, and strength. Happy Chaitra Navratri!
• May Navratri 2024 bless you with an abundance of health, wealth and prosperity. Best wishes for you and your family!
• All that you need will be delivered to you this Navratri. Happy Navratri 2023!
• On this auspicious occasion of Navratri, may Maa Durga bless you and your loved ones!
• May Maa Durga shower her choicest blessings upon you and your family. Happy Chaitra Navratri 2023!

Chaitra Navratri 2024: SMS

• May the goddess bless your days with light and Navratri's joy shines bright.
• Dance to the beats of joy and glee, Navratri blessings for you and me.
• As the dandiya swirls in delight, may your Navratri be ever bright.
• With each chant and every prayer, Navratri's magic fills the air.
• Wishing you joy that knows no end, Navratri blessings to send.

• Let the rhythms of Navratri's song, fill your heart and carry you along.
• With colours bright and spirits high, Navratri's blessings reach the sky.
• May Maa Durga's grace be your guide, through Navratri's joyous tide.
• In the dance of life, may you find, Navratri's blessings intertwined.
• With each day that passes by, Navratri's joy multiplies.

Happy Navratri 2024: Instagram Captions

• Embrace the divine energy of Chaitra Navratri!
• Nine days of devotion, nine forms of grace!
• Wishing you blessings and joy this Chaitra Navratri!
• Celebrate the triumph of good over evil!
• Dive into the colours of spirituality this Navratri!

• May the goddess shower her blessings upon you!
• Seeking the divine in the nine nights of Navratri!
• Cherishing the traditions of Chaitra Navratri!
• Let's welcome the new year with reverence and joy!
• Radiating positivity and blessings this Navratri!

Navratri 2024: Famous Quotes

• “I have called on the Goddess and found her within myself.”- Marion Zimmer Bradley
• “Being brave enough to just be unapologetic for who you are, that's a goddess.”- Banks
• “For me the goddess is the female of God, She is powerful if different.”- Tina Turner
• “Devi-Mahatmayam has special meaning for spirituality, With illumination, wisdom, strength - to freedom finally!”-Munindra Misra
• “Darkness gives her permission, and protector gives the tears. Beauty provides the conch, while mother provides the spear Knowledge gives the moon, and head gives the bracelet Widow provides the creator, while swan provides the snake Music gives the sight, and the bloom gives mirror. Or the blood of the queen will fall. To make her lose a hand.”- Sapan Saxena

• “That the goddess comes to town with her children, leaving her reluctant-householder husband behind on Mount Kailash, makes Pujo a singular celebration of family values and domesticity, unlike the Kill Bill independence of Kali.”-Indrajit Hazra
• “Navratri is a time of self-referral & returning to the source. During this time of transformation, nature gets rejuvenated; life emerges afresh.”- SriSri
• “The source of the universe is as diverse as its manifestation. Navratri is a celebration of this diversity in all its glory, a celebration of our source & our goal.”- SriSri
• "Dear Durga, give as much power you have to all girls to protect themselves from the invisible rakshasas on earth." - Keerthi Chinta
• "The world that worships Mother Mary and the goddess Durga has also experienced such heinous crimes against her daughters. -  Debajani Mohanty
• "Devi-Mahatmayam has a special meaning for spirituality, With illumination, wisdom, and strength - to freedom finally!" - Munindra Misra
• "That the goddess comes to town with her children, leaving her reluctant-householder husband behind on Mount Kailash, makes Pujo a singular celebration of family values and domesticity, unlike the Kill Bill independence of Kali.” - Indrajit Hazra
• Navratri represents how negativity can be conquered by the inherent positive qualities in an individual so that one emerges as a Divine being.”- SriSri
• “Let us celebrate Navratri and seek the divine blessing, courage and strength we need in life, May the blessings of Maa sweep us to the land of eternal happiness, let’s make this Durga Puja a memorable one." - Santosh Kumar
• “May the joy of this festival brighten your life and annihilate all the ills in this world. May Maa Durga’s nine avatars bestow their blessings on your family and friends, and may the auspicious energy of this festival bring you health and happiness throughout your life. Allow divine power to give you the strength and power you need to overcome all of life’s challenges. I wish you and your family a Happy Navratri.”-Shree Shambav
• "She the refuge, peaceful and merciful undoubtedly, She pervades overall, is universal form certainly, Her lotus feet worshipped by the universe – all Glory, On your appeal “Protect me Durga” saves entirely." - Munindra Misra, Chants of Hindu Gods and Goddesses in English Rhyme

Get here current GK and GK quiz questions in English and Hindi for India , World, Sports and Competitive exam preparation. Download the Jagran Josh Current Affairs App .

• IPL Schedule 2024
• Surya Grahan 2024
• Eid 2024 Chand Raat
• Eid 2024 Date in India
• IPL 2024 Points Table
• Navratri Colours 2024
• Eid Mubarak Wishes
• Happy Navratri
• 2nd PUC Result 2024
• Important Days

Latest Education News

Who Won Yesterday IPL Match: RR vs GT, Match 24, Check All Details and Latest Points Table

IPL Orange Cap 2024: दिलचस्प हो गयी है ऑरेंज कैप की रेस, ये युवा बल्लेबाज रेस में है शामिल

Purple Cap in IPL 2024: इन पांच गेंदबाजों में है पर्पल कैप की रेस, कौन निकलेगा सबसे आगे?

IPL Points Table 2024: आईपीएल 2024 अपडेटेड पॉइंट टेबल यहां देखें, राजस्थान को मिली पहली हार

IPL 2024: मयंक यादव ने फेंकी इस स्पीड से गेंद, तोड़ा अपना ही रिकॉर्ड

IPL 2024 Live Streaming: मोबाइल या टीवी कहां और कैसे देखें आईपीएल का LIVE टेलीकास्ट?

Eid al fitr 2024: भारत सहित सऊदी, यूएई और ईरान जैसे देशों में कब दिखेगा चांद, नोट करें टाइम

Lok Sabha Election 2024 के पहले फेज के 10 सबसे अमीर उम्मीदवारों की लिस्ट यहां देखें

IPL 2024 Captains List: किन टीमों को मिले नए कप्तान, सभी टीमों के कप्तानों की लिस्ट देखें यहां  

LIVE | UP Board Result 2024: क्या रामनवमी से पहले या बाद में आएगा यूपी बोर्ड 10वीं, 12वीं रिजल्ट, देखें Latest Updates

Gauhati University Result OUT on guportal.in, Download UG and PG Semester GU Result PDF

AIIMS NORCET 6 Admit Card 2024: Download Link to be Released at aiimsexams.ac.in

APPSC Group 2 Result 2024 Declared at psc.ap.gov.in: Download PDF Here

APPSC Group 2 Prelims Result OUT, Download Merit List PDF

APPSC Group 2 Result 2024 OUT: Download Prelims Merit List

Optical Illusion: Find the hidden gift box in the picture in 7 seconds!

Tamil Nadu School Holiday List 2024, Download PDF Here

[Updated] Haryana School Holiday List 2024, Download PDF Here

CBSE Class 9 Social Science Revision Notes 2024-25, Download Chapter-wise PDF Here

India- Size and Location Class 9 Notes: CBSE 9th Geography Chapter 1, Download PDF Here

Eid Mubarak 2024: 75+ Happy Eid-ul-Fitr Messages, Greetings, Wishes and Quotes for a Joyous Eid

Eid Mubarak 2024: Messages for Eid-ul-Fitr

Eid mubarak 2024: greetings for eid - ul - fitr, eid mubarak 2024: wishes for eid - ul - fitr, eid mubarak 2024: quotes for eid - ul - fitr.

By Nicholas Kristof

Opinion Columnist

With little notice, the United States may be crossing a historic milestone in family structure, one that may shape our health, wealth and happiness.

Historically, most American adults were married — more than two-thirds as recently as 1970. But the married share has crept downward , and today only about half of adults are married. Depending on the data source, we may already have entered an epoch in which a majority are not married.

“Our civilization is in the midst of an epochal shift, a shift away from marriage,” Brad Wilcox, a sociologist who directs the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia, writes in his new book, “ Get Married .” “In place of marriage, many Americans are remaining single or simply living together without wedding rings. And to be clear, it’s more of the former than the latter.”

Wilcox believes that perhaps a third of today’s young Americans will never marry. As a long-married romantic myself, I find that troubling, but it’s not just soggy sentimentality. Survey data indicates that married couples on average report more happiness, build more wealth, live longer and raise more successful children than single parents or cohabiting couples, though there are plenty of exceptions.

“Fixing what ails America starts with renewing marriage and family life, especially in poor and working-class communities where the fabric of family life is weakest,” Wilcox argues.

He’s up against a counter view that one should dodge family responsibilities, relish freedom and play hard. Many boys and men flock to the online rantings of Andrew Tate , the misogynistic influencer facing human trafficking charges, who has argued, “There is zero advantage to marriage in the Western world for a man.”

Some women have likewise celebrated freeing themselves from an institution that often shackled them to cooking, laundry and second-class status at a cost to their careers. As women have enjoyed more economic opportunities, they’re less often forced to marry some oaf who gets violent after a few drinks — and, anyway, what self-respecting woman with independent means would want to marry, say, a fan of Andrew Tate?

Yet even as marriage has receded, the evidence has grown that while it isn’t for everyone, in many cases it can improve our lives more than we may appreciate.

“Marriage predicts happiness better than education, work and money,” Wilcox writes. For example, survey data indicates that getting a college degree increases the odds of describing oneself as “very happy” by 64 percent. Earning a solid income lifts the odds by 88 percent. Being “very satisfied” with one’s job raises them by 145 percent. And marriage increases the odds of being very happy by 151 percent — while a “very happy” marriage boosts the odds by 545 percent.

I’ve long been interested in family structure for two reasons. First, I believe the left made a historic mistake by demonizing the Moynihan Report, which 59 years ago this month warned about the consequences of family breakdown. Daniel Patrick Moynihan was prescient, for we now know that households headed by single mothers are five times as likely to live in poverty as those with married couples.

Second, loneliness and social isolation are growing problems. One poignant example: Perhaps 100,000 or more dead bodies in America go unclaimed each year, often because there are no loved ones to say farewell. It’s a topic explored in another recent book, “The Unclaimed,” by sociologists Pamela Prickett and Stefan Timmermans.

Marriage doesn’t solve loneliness and social isolation, but it helps. And there is good news on the family front: The divorce rate has dropped to a 50-year low , and the share of children raised in an intact family with married parents has increased slightly in recent years. Today about 51 percent of American kids reach adulthood with the same two parents they started out with.

But it’s also true that the marriage rate has collapsed, particularly for working-class Americans. Of those without a high school diploma, more than two-thirds are unmarried.

Wilcox writes that “the American heart is closing,” but I wouldn’t put it that way. I think many Americans want to marry but don’t feel sufficiently financially stable, or they can’t find the right person.

I’m staggered by the interest in virtual boyfriends and virtual girlfriends. One virtual boyfriend app offers an assortment of possibilities such as “polite and intelligent Edward” or “romantic and cute Daniel.”

“Don’t be shy, he’ll definitely like you,” the app advises. “He knows how to cheer you up, so you won’t feel sad or lonely.”

Just reading that makes me achingly sad. Virtual mates feel like an elegy for civilization.

One reason for the decline in marriage in working-class communities may be a lack of economic opportunity, particularly for men, and another may be culture and changing norms. That’s worth pondering. In polls, majorities of college-educated liberals seem diffident about marriage, unwilling to criticize infidelity and disagreeing with the idea that children do better with two married parents. Perhaps this liberal lack of enthusiasm for marriage also accounts for the marriage penalties built into benefit programs like Medicaid, in turn disincentivizing marriage for low-income Americans.

Wilcox scolds elites for clinging to traditional values themselves — in the sense that they get married and have kids for the most part — even as they are reluctant to endorse marriage for fear of seeming judgmental or intolerant. Elites “talk left but walk right,” he says.

We are social animals, Aristotle noted more than two millenniums ago, and it’s still true. Spouses can be exasperating (as my wife can attest), but they also can cuddle, fill us with love and connect us to a purpose beyond ourselves. They are infinitely better, for us and for society, than virtual lovers on an app, and that seems worth celebrating openly.

Update: I have the final figures for my 2023 holiday giving guide , so I owe readers a follow-up and a “thank you.” More than 5,400 readers contributed a total of $7.2 million to the three nonprofits I recommended , and here’s what the donations will mean in practical terms: 12,150 girls in rural Africa will be supported for a year of high school through Camfed ; 1,645 young people in the United States will be supported for a year of instruction and mentoring to succeed in college or technical school through OneGoal ; and 4,218 low-income Americans will get free training in information technology through Per Scholas so that they can start better-paying careers in the tech world. All three organizations do excellent work. In addition, 671 readers volunteered to help refugees settle in the United States through my recommended volunteer opportunity, Welcome.US . Thanks so much to all who donated and volunteered: People are benefiting here and abroad from your generosity.

The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. We’d like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips . And here’s our email: [email protected] .

Follow the New York Times Opinion section on Facebook , Instagram , TikTok , WhatsApp , X and Threads .

Nicholas Kristof became a columnist for The Times Opinion desk in 2001. He has won two Pulitzer Prizes, for his coverage of China and of the genocide in Darfur. @ NickKristof