The world is full of people looking for quick money and wealth, especially in this age of information technology and instant gratification. There is nothing particularly wrong with that, but too often we miss the mark in our quest for wealth and material possessions and fall short of what we truly desire in life. Here are powerful quotes and words of wisdom from some of the greatest thinkers and achievers in history that will inspire your heart and mind for true wealth and happiness in life.
On the True Measure of Wealth
1. “Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants.” —Epictetus
2. “Money is only a tool. It will take you wherever you wish, but it will not replace you as the driver.” —Ayn Rand
3. “The gratification of wealth is not found in mere possession or in lavish expenditure, but in its wise application.” —Miguel de Cervantes
4. “Only when the last tree has died and the last river been poisoned and the last fish been caught will we realize we cannot eat money.” —Indian Proverb
5. “One man to live in pleasure and wealth whilst all other weep and smart for it, that is the part not of a king, but of a jailor.” —Thomas More
6. “We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.” —Winston Churchill
7. “The real measure of your wealth is how much you’d be worth if you lost all your money.” —unknown
8. “The wealth of a soul is measured by how much it can feel… its poverty by how little.” —Sherrilyn Kenyon
9. “Integrity is the essence of everything successful.” —R. Buckminster Fuller
10. “To be wealthy and honored in an unjust society is a disgrace.” —Confucius
Image: thenext28days via flickr
On Taking Charge of Your Wealth
11. “Let others lead small lives, but not you. Let others argue over small things, but not you. Let others cry over small hurts, but not you. Let others leave their future in someone else’s hands, but not you.” —Jim Rohn
12. “Destiny is as destiny does. If you believe you have no control, then you have no control.” —Wess Roberts
13. “If we command our wealth, we shall be rich and free. If our wealth commands us, we are poor indeed.” —Edmund Burke
14. “Be master of your petty annoyances and conserve your energies for the big, worthwhile things. It isn’t the mountain ahead that wears you out – it’s the grain of sand in your shoe.” —Robert Service
15. “Create a set of great personal values and surround yourself with the right people that can form your support system. Have an optimistic spirit and develop a strong purpose that you completely believe in and everything you can imagine is possible, for you.” —Andrew Horton
16. “I am grateful for the blessings of wealth, but it hasn’t changed who I am. My feet are still on the ground. I’m just wearing better shoes.” —Oprah Winfrey
17. “Wealth is the slave of a wise man. The master of a fool” —Seneca
18. “A wise man should have money in his head, but not in his heart.” —Jonathan Swift
19. “An investment in knowledge pays the best dividends.” —Benjamin Franklin
20. “Anything that you learn becomes your wealth, a wealth that cannot be taken away from you; whether you learn it in a building called school or in the school of life. To learn something new is a timeless pleasure and a valuable treasure. And not all things that you learn are taught to you, but many things that you learn you realize you have taught yourself.” ― C. JoyBell
Image: trustypics via flickr
On Pursuing Wealth and Happiness
21.“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
22. “It’s a kind of spiritual snobbery that makes people think they can be happy without money.” —Albert Camus
23. “Money is neither my god nor my devil. It is a form of energy that tends to make us more of who we already are, whether it’s greedy or loving.” —Dan Millman
24. “What good is money if it can’t buy happiness?” —Agatha Christie
25. “View money and things not as something you create to fill a lack, but as tools to help you more fully express yourself and realize your potential.” —Sanaya Roman and Duane Packer
26. “Acknowledging the good that you already have in your life is the foundation for all abundance.” —Eckhart Tolle
27. “Be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never, ever have enough.” —Oprah Winfrey
28. “Both abundance and lack exist simultaneously in our lives, as parallel realities. It is always our conscious choice which secret garden we will tend… when we choose to be grateful for the abundance that’s present — love, health, family, friends, work, the joys of nature and personal pursuits that bring us pleasure — the wasteland of lack falls away and we experience heaven on Earth.” —Sarah Ban Breathnach
29. “Seek not greater wealth, but simpler pleasure; not higher fortune, but deeper felicity.” —Mahatma Gandhi
30. “Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.” —Herman Cain
Image: Thomas Shahan 3 via flickr
On Attaining Wealth
31. “It is not in everyone’s power to secure wealth, office, or honors; but everyone may be good, generous, and wise.” —Luc De Clapiers
32. “Education is the great engine of personal development. It is through education that the daughter of a peasant can become a doctor, that the son of a mineworker can become the head of the mine, that a child of farm workers can become the president of a great nation. It is what we make out of what we have, not what we are given, that separates one person from another.” —Nelson Mandela
Image: redtouchmedia via flickr
33. “The tragedy of life doesn’t lie in not reaching your goal. The tragedy lies in having no goal to reach.” —Benjamin E. Mayes
34. “One important key to success is self-confidence. An important key to self-confidence is preparation.” —Arthur Ashe
35. “When we feel stuck, going nowhere – even starting to slip backward – we may actually be backing up to get a running start.” —Dan Millman
36. “Be ready when opportunity comes…. Luck is when preparation and opportunity meet.” —Roy D. Chapin Jr.
37. “What is opportunity, and when does it knock? It never knocks. You can wait a whole lifetime, listening, hoping, and you will hear no knocking. None at all. You are opportunity, and you must knock on the door leading to your destiny.” —Maxwell Maltz
38. “Fortune sides with him who dares.” —Virgil
39. “No man should receive a dollar unless that dollar has been fairly earned.” —Theodore Roosevelt
40. “No wealth can ever make a bad man at peace with himself” —Plato
Featured photo credit: Celestine Chua via flickr.com
