Change exists in many forms and comes at any time. On one hand, stepping out of your comfort zone is a change. On the other, accepting your failures and learning from them is also a change. 

Whether you can’t accept the past, won’t live in the present, or constantly fear the future, we’ve rounded up some influential quotes about change that will help you make sense of it all.

Remember, the first step to conquer change is to understand it, and we can’t think of a better way to do so than learn from the experiences of others. 

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We’ve categorized change into four stages:

Each stage comes with its own hardships, and the following quotes are aimed at helping you tackle these hardships and emerge victoriously; one step at a time. 

The Best Quotes About Change

Change is feared because it’s uncharted territory. Pushing yourself (or getting pushed) into the unknown creates the feeling of uncertainty. What if it gets worse? What if I can’t make it?

“Change is hardest at the beginning, messiest in the middle, and best at the end.” - Robin Sharma

“When we least expect it, life sets us a challenge to test our courage and willingness to change; at such a moment, there is no point in pretending that nothing has happened or in saying that we are not yet ready. The challenge will not wait. Life does not look back. A week is more than enough time for us to decide whether or not to accept our destiny.” - Paulo Coelho

“No one can tell what goes on in between the person you were and the person you become. No one can chart that blue and lonely section of hell. There are no maps of the change. You just come out the other side. Or you don't.” - Stephen King

“In any given moment we have two options: to step forward into growth or step back into safety.” - Abraham Maslow

“Things change. And friends leave. Life doesn't stop for anybody.” - Stephen Chbosky

“She had just realized there were two things that prevent us from achieving our dreams: believing them to be impossible or seeing those dreams made possible by some sudden turn of the wheel of fortune when you least expected it. For at that moment, all our fears suddenly surface: the fear of setting off along a road heading for who knows where, the fear of a life full of new challenges, the fear of losing forever everything that is familiar.” - Paulo Coelho 

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Quotes About Fearing Change

The result of change may not be what you anticipate, and that’s fine. Change is important because it forces you to stop dreaming and start acting. Change may be ugly sometimes, but it’s ultimately the foundation to all success in life. 

When you’re fighting the hardest battles, it helps to remember how far you’ve come. 

“Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.” - James Baldwin

“We all get scared and want to turn away, but it isn't always strength that makes you stay. Strength is also making the decision to change your destiny.” - Zoraida Córdova

“It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.” - Charles Darwin

“The changes we dread most may contain our salvation.” - Barbara Kingsolver

“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.” - Barack Obama

“This was when I learned that you have to give up your life as you know it to get a new one: that sometimes you need to let go of everything you're clinging to and start over, whether because you've outgrown it or because it's not working anymore, or because it was wrong for you in the first place.” - Kelly Cutrone

“The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways. The point, however, is to change it. [These words are also inscribed upon his grave]” - Karl Marx

“Stepping onto a brand-new path is difficult, but not more difficult than remaining in a situation, which is not nurturing to the whole woman.” - Maya Angelou

“You can’t crush ideas by suppressing them. You can only crush them by ignoring them. By refusing to think, refusing to change.” - Ursula K. Le Guin

“We can’t be afraid of change. You may feel very secure in the pond that you are in, but if you never venture out of it, you will never know that there is such a thing as an ocean, a sea.” - C. Joybell C.

“Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.” - George Bernard Shaw

“To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often.” - Winston Churchill

“The past can teach us, nurture us, but it cannot sustain us. The essence of life is change, and we must move ever forward or the soul will wither and die.” - Susanna Kearsley

“If you do not change direction, you might end up where you are heading.” - Lao Tzu

“We are products of our past, but we don't have to be prisoners of it.” - Rick Warren

“We should strive to welcome change and challenges because they are what help us grow. Without them, we grow weak like the Eloi in comfort and security. We need to constantly be challenging ourselves in order to strengthen our character and increase our intelligence. ” - H.G. Wells

“It doesn't matter how strong your opinion is. If you don't use your power for positive change, you are indeed part of the problem.” - Coretta Scott King

“For what it’s worth: it’s never too late or, in my case, too early to be whoever you want to be. There’s no time limit, stop whenever you want. You can change or stay the same, there are no rules to this thing. We can make the best or the worst of it. I hope you make the best of it. And I hope you see things that startle you. I hope you feel things you never felt before. I hope you meet people with a different point of view. I hope you live a life you’re proud of. If you find that you’re not, I hope you have the courage to start all over again.” - Eric Roth 

Quotes About the Importance of Change

You’ll never see change if you wait for it to come to you. Instead, you should actively seek change. Don’t just hope for change, follow through. This is what separates dreamers from accomplishers.

“The world as we have created it is a process of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking.” - Albert Einstein

“The greatest discovery of all time is that a person can change his future by merely changing his attitude” - Oprah Winfrey

“Change the way you look at things and the things you look at change.” - Wayne W. Dyer

“It’s only after you’ve stepped outside your comfort zone that you begin to change, grow, and transform.” - Roy T. Bennett

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

“You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.” - Buckminster Fuller

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

“Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.” - Rumi

“We must be impatient for change. Let us remember that our voice is a precious gift and we must use it.” -  Claudia Flores

“Only I can change my life. No one can do it for me.” - Carol Burnett

“Incredible change happens in your life when you decide to take control of what you do have power over instead of craving control over what you don’t.” - Steve Maraboli

“You cannot change what you are, only what you do.” - Philip Pullman

“They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.” - Andy Warhol

“We are taught you must blame your father, your sisters, your brothers, the school, the teachers - but never blame yourself. It's never your fault. But it's always your fault, because if you want to change you're the one who has got to change.” - Katharine Hepburn

“Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.” - Leo Tolstoy 

Quotes on How To Change

The aftermath of a life-changing event is usually accompanied by a feeling of emptiness. This “now what?” sensation can prevent you from reaching inner peace and, ultimately, true acceptance.

The most important thing to remember about change is that it takes time. Even a spontaneous event that takes you by surprise can have trailing effects. Remember, you’ve already passed the most difficult part. All you need to do now is take a deep breath and let the pieces fall naturally into place.

“Change, like healing, takes time.” - Veronica Roth

“Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.” - Lao Tzu

“The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.” - Alan Watts

“All great changes are preceded by chaos.” - Deepak Chopra

“Some changes look negative on the surface but you will soon realize that space is being created in your life for something new to emerge.” - Eckhart Tolle

“Men do change, and change comes like a little wind that ruffles the curtains at dawn, and it comes like the stealthy perfume of wildflowers hidden in the grass.” - John Steinbeck

"Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts." - Arnold Bennet

“Resilience is accepting your new reality, even if it's less good than the one you had before. You can fight it, you can do nothing but scream about what you've lost, or you can accept that and try to put together something that's good.” - Elizabeth Edwards

“Nothing is lost. . .Everything is transformed.” - Michael Ende

“I've come to believe that in everyone's life, there's one undeniable moment of change, a set of circumstances that suddenly alters everything.” - Nicholas Sparks

“Forget yesterday - it has already forgotten you. Don't sweat tomorrow - you haven't even met. Instead, open your eyes and your heart to a truly precious gift - today.” - Steve Maraboli

“Why do you go away? So that you can come back. So that you can see the place you came from with new eyes and extra colors. And the people there see you differently, too. Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving.” - Terry Pratchett

“When people are ready to, they change. They never do it before then, and sometimes they die before they get around to it. You can't make them change if they don't want to, just like when they do want to, you can't stop them.” - Andy Warhol 

Quotes on Accepting Change

It seems that change is inevitable. It can come quickly and overwhelm you or take decades to unfold. In any case, change is destined to happen, whether you’re ready for it or not.

The most essential thing is to stay motivated and believe things will eventually turn out okay. When the dust starts to settle and the sun starts to rise, you’ll come out as a stronger and wiser person. So, don’t resist it and let life run its course.

Quotes About Change

The Best Quotes About Change

Quotes About Fearing Change

Quotes About the Importance of Change

Quotes on How To Change

Quotes on Accepting Change

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