Sometimes, we women need a gentle reminder of just how mighty and powerful we truly are. Today, I’m sharing some of my favorite quotes by and about strong women that always help inspire me to find and embrace my own inner strength. Just keep reading to check them out.
13 Inspirational Quotes for Strong Women
I broke this post down into two sections: quotes for strong women and quotes by strong women. Let’s start with the first bunch, shall we? These are the ones that always remind me that I am a truly indomitable force of nature. I hope they do the same for you!
1. Never apologize for being strong
Here’s a good one to start with! Never ever, ever apologize for being a strong woman. Never let anyone make you feel bad for standing up for yourself.
2. Stand up for yourself and you stand up for all women
When you stand up for yourself, you’re not just standing up for all women, but for all of the little girls who will one day become women.
3. If you want to be a legend, go ahead and be one!
Decide who you want to be, then go for it. If you want to be a legend, go ahead and be one. If you want to live a quiet life, that’s fine, too. YOU and YOU ALONE get to decide who and what you want to be.
4. No one knows what you’ve been through better than you
― Nikki Rowe
No one walks in your shoes, so they have no way of truly knowing what you’ve been through in your life. But they can see your inner strength shining through.
5. You can do anything you put your mind to
If someone tells you that you’re incapable of doing something, prove them wrong. Don’t do it to make a point, through, do it for yourself. You CAN do anything you put your mind to.
6. You’re always a strong woman!
This is one of my favorite “here’s to strong women” quotes! Sometimes we’re sweet, sometimes a little spicy. But we’re always mighty!
7. We’re a force to be reckoned with
Even the nicest people can be scary when pushed too far. When that happens, everyone better get out of our way. We are a true force to be reckoned with, especially when someone we love gets hurt.
8. Strength is about going on despite the fear
Bravery and strength aren’t about never being scared. It’s about what we choose to do despite that fear.
9. We don’t bother explaining ourselves
Yes, respect is earned, not just freely given. But you shouldn’t have to constantly explain why you feel you’ve earned it. Your actions speak louder than words. If you feel like you’ve more than earned respect, don’t engage with those who don’t give it to you. Just walk away. It’s their loss!
10. Let the fire forge you rather than burn you
You can choose whether fire burns you or forges you into something new. When life hurts, focus on the lesson and not the pain. Let the fire build you up and make you stronger.
11. Glow…but help others glow, too
Truly powerful women don’t need to put other women down to make themselves shine brighter. In other words, strong women surround themselves with other strong women! By the way, if you like this one, you may also love: 79 Inspiring Friendship Quotes to Share with Your BFF
12. You never know how strong you are until you HAVE to be strong
The thing about inner strength is that we never really know how much we truly have until we have no choice but to be strong.
13. The world NEEDS strong women!
I think this one says it all, don’t you? Now, let’s check out my favorite quotes by some of the strongest women throughout history!
Quotes by Strong Women Throughout History
From inspiring us to dream big to helping us recognize our own inner strength, these quotes by strong women throughout history are overflowing with lessons that we all need to hear sometimes. Read them when you need a little reminder that YOU, too, are strong and mighty!
1. Being alone is better than feeling alone
I agree with Amelia! Truly strong women would rather be alone than spend their lives with jerks. Besides, if you surround yourself with friends who are like family, you’re never truly alone anyway!
2. We can endure more than we think
“At the end of the day, we can endure much more than we think we can.”― Frida Kahlo
I think this goes along with what Eleanor Roosevelt said above. We are so much stronger than we think we are.
3. The more we know, the less we fear
I think this is such an important lesson for all of us right now. Our world is so filled with hate, and much of that hate stems from fear. If we spent more time talking and getting to know more about each other, we’d fear a lot less.
4. Make this world a better place for all
“I believe we are here on the planet Earth to live, grow up and do what we can to make this world a better place for all people to enjoy freedom.”― Rosa Parks
There are 7+ billion people- and counting- on this planet. If everyone existed solely to make their own lives better…well, we’ve already seen what that gets us. If we focus on being kind and decent to each other, we could make this world a better place for everyone.
5. Fight in a way that inspires others to join you
Stand up for what’s right, but do it in a way that inspires others to stand beside you.
6. The formula for success
“The formula for success is simple: practice and concentration then more practice and more concentration.” ~ Babe Didrikson Zaharias
Babe Didrikson Zaharias should know all about success! She won not one, but TWO gold medals in track and field in the 1932 Olympics. She was also a master at golf, basketball and baseball.
7. Don’t be in such a hurry. Take time to rest
We’re all feeling rushed these days, but women, in particular, have always been under so much pressure to prove that they can do everything all at once. We need to find balance and take time to rest.
8. All we have is today, so make the best of it
“Nobody promised you tomorrow.” – Marsha P Johnson
One of the most important words of wisdom ever: tomorrow is never promised, so make the very most of today.
9. No one is too small to make a difference
― Greta Thunberg
Greta Thunberg, born in 2003, made the Forbes list of The World’s 100 Most Powerful Women when she was just 13. She was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize three times before she became an adult. She has FOUR species named after her. So when she says no one is too small to make a difference, I believe it!
10. You can’t make people go farther than want to go
“You take people as far as they will go, not as far as you would like them to go.” ~ Jeannette Rankin
Before women even had the right to vote, Rankin became the very first woman elected to Congress. She’s said a lot of powerful things, but this one really stood out to me. You can’t try to help someone, you can try to inspire them, but ultimately it’s up to them to decide how far they want to go.
11. Stand up for what’s right, even if you have to stand alone
I always tell young people to hold on to their dreams. And sometimes you have to stand up for what you think is right even if you have to stand alone. Claudette Colvin
I tell my kids this all of the time. Never be afraid to stand up for what you believe in, even if no one else stands beside you.
12. There’s more to life than winning
“Being champion is all well and good, but you can’t eat a crown.” ~ Althea Gibson
Life isn’t about winning. Sure, we all like to be champions. But ultimately, it’s about the journey and the hard work we put into winning that really matters.
13. Every dream begins with a dreamer
Every great dream begins in the same exact place…with the dreamer. Find the courage to go after your dreams, reach for the stars, and never forget that YOU have the power to change the world.
14. Let your own conscience be your guide
Don’t worry so much about what others think of you. Do what you think is right, speak your mind, and look within yourself for approval.
15. Women will get their rights anyway…
I’ve always loved this quote from Sojourner Truth. All through history, women have had to fight for every last right that we have. Every. Last. One. Not even the big stuff, like voting and body autonomy. We had to fight just to open bank accounts and wear pants! But we won. No matter how many people hissed and spit and whined about it, we won. We will keep winning, too. Because we women ARE strong. We ARE powerful, mighty, and indomitable forces of nature. Never, ever forget that for a single moment.
25 More Amazing Quotes About Strong Women
While the 28 above are definitely my favorites, they’re far from the only quotes about women being strong. Here are a bunch more that I love from history, literature, movies, and more.
- She is free in her wildness, she is a wanderess, a drop of free water. She knows nothing of borders and cares nothing for rules or customs. ‘Time’ for her isn’t something to fight against. Her life flows clean, with passion, like fresh water.” ―
- “For mad I may be, but I will never be convenient.” ― Revolution
- “Dignity will only happen when you realize that having someone in your life doesn’t validate your worth.” ―
- “She has fought many wars, most internal. The ones that you battle alone, for this, she is remarkable. She is a survivor.” ―
- “I may be in pain, but I am not weak.” ― Carve the Mark
- “Perhaps some detours aren’t detours at all. Perhaps they are actually the path.” — Katherine Wolf
- “One by one she slew her fears, and then planted a flower garden over their graves.” ―
- “Women have got to make the world safe for men since men have made it so darned unsafe for women.” ―
- “There are two powers in the world; one is the sword and the other is the pen. There is a third power stronger than both, that of women.” — Malala Yousafzai
- “Life is very interesting… in the end, some of your greatest pains, become your greatest strengths.” — Drew Barrymore
- “Develop enough courage so that you can stand up for yourself and then stand up for somebody else.”— Maya Angelou
- “The one person who will never leave us, whom we will never lose, is ourself. Learning to love our female selves is where our search for love must begin.” — bell hooks
- “I love challenging the status quo.” — Sara Ramirez
- “Some people say I have attitude – maybe I do… but I think you have to. You have to believe in yourself when no one else does – that makes you a winner right there.” — Venus Williams
- . “Be courageous. Challenge orthodoxy. Stand up for what you believe in. When you are in your rocking chair talking to your grandchildren many years from now, be sure you have a good story to tell.” — Amal Clooney
- “You draw your own box. You introduce yourself as who you are. . . . You create the identity you want for yourself.” — Meghan Markle
- “Being a strong woman is very important to me. But doing it all on my own is not.” — Reba McEntire
- “Courage starts with showing up and letting ourselves be seen.” —Brené Brown
- “I am no longer accepting the things I cannot change. I am changing the things I cannot accept.” — Angela Davis
- “We still think of a powerful man as a born leader and a powerful woman as an anomaly.” — Margaret Atwood
- “There is power in seeing a face that looks like yours do something, be someone. There is power in moving from the sidelines to the center.” — Jenny Han
- “We need women who are so strong they can be gentle, so educated they can be humble, so fierce they can be compassionate, so passionate they can be rational, and so disciplined they can be free.” — Kavita Ramdas
- “I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day, and I believe in miracles.” — Audrey Hepburn
- “I encourage women to step up. Don’t wait for somebody to ask you.” — Reese Witherspoon
- “We may encounter many defeats but we must not be defeated.” — Maya Angelou
I had a hard time deciding which of those last three to end with! I think they’re all incredibly inspirational quotes from strong women. Audrey Hepburn reminds us that true happiness is also true beauty and to believe in ourselves, our dreams, and miracles. Reese Witherspoon’s quote encourages us to take the first step toward following our dreams. Both are such great advice. I decided to end with Maya Angelou’s quote, though, because, like the Soujourner quote above, it reminds us that we women will ALWAYS prevail.
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