If there is someone out there, someone with vast wisdom, then that someone has poured most of it into Maya Angelou. To list all of her achievements, one first has to know where to start and mentioning her work as a civil rights activist together with such historical figures as Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. would be a good place. Although that's absolutely not the sole achievement of Angelou—she's also an acclaimed author, a correspondent, an actress, producer, a Reynolds Professor, and so much more. Each of her roles has gained her acclaim, 50 honorary titles, and dozens of awards. What's most important, though, is that her words and actions changed societies worldwide and inspired people to be the best versions of themselves.
To paraphrase The Guardian writer Gary Younge, to know Maya Angelou's life story is both to wonder what the heck you have been doing with yours and to feel relieved that you didn't have to go through it all at the same time. Her story starts in the years of the Great Depression deep in the South. After that, it's a whirlwind of events and an array of occupations, each of which definitely added to Angelou's immense wisdom and worldliness. And although all of her words are noteworthy, we've rounded up the most memorable, most impactful Maya Angelou quotes in one place. Be warned, though—you might come out even better than you are after reading her wise words!
However much we'd like to include all of Maya Angelou's motivating quotes on our list, we've restricted ourselves to a hundred and four of them. Still, plenty to read and plenty to absorb! So, as per usual, give your votes for the intelligent quotes that moved you the most, and share this article with anyone in need of encouragement and inspiration!
#1
“We need much less than we think we need.”
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#2
“You alone are enough. You have nothing to prove to anybody.”
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#3
“My mother said I must always be intolerant of ignorance but understanding of illiteracy.”
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#4
“Forgive yourself for not knowing what you didn't know before you learned it.”
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#5
“I don't trust people who don't love themselves and tell me, 'I love you.' ... There is an African saying which is: Be careful when a naked person offers you a shirt.”
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#6
“Jealousy in romance is like salt in food. A little can enhance the savor, but too much can spoil the pleasure and, under certain circumstances, can be life-threatening”
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#7
“Segregation shaped me, education liberated me.”
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#8
“I’ve learned that making a living is not the same thing as making a life.”
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#9
“At the end of the day people won't remember what you said or did, they will remember how you made them feel.”
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#10
“When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time.”
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#11
“Everything in the universe has a rhythm, everything dances.”
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#12
“I can be changed by what happens to me. But I refuse to be reduced by it."
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#13
“Courage is the most important of all the virtues because without courage, you can't practice any other virtue consistently.”
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#14
“Never make someone a priority when all you are to them is an option.”
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#15
“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.”
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#16
“When I look back, I am so impressed again with the life-giving power of literature. If I were a young person today, trying to gain a sense of myself in the world, I would do that again by reading, just as I did when I was young.”
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#17
“If I am not good to myself, how can I expect anyone else to be good to me?”
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#18
“Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.”
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#19
“The desire to reach for the stars is ambitious. The desire to reach hearts is wise.”
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#20
“Remember, people will judge you by your actions not your intentions. You may have a heart of gold but so does a hard-boiled egg.”
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