Catalyst Quotes
Compiled by Alex Pena ~ ‘Catalyst’: “to spark, to ignite, energize, mobilize; something that accelerates a reaction (DDI)." Thought-provoking & motivational quotes and stories for you to read, reflect on and move forward in making creative and positive changes in your life.
“What Are We Looking For?”
“The Beginning of a New Dream”
“There comes a time for healing no matter how broken you are right now; no matter how heavy your heart is right now. There comes a time when you will go outside and let the sun shine on your face and let the wind touch your hair and you will not be tired by just simply being awake.
There comes a time when you will be happy to be alive again and that day you will appreciate your own being because now you know the other side. Now you know the opposite.
Now you know what it’s like to not be sure if you really are; who you really are; if you simply are, anymore.
And that day will be the beginning of everything.” (Charlotte Eriksson, Empty Roads & Broken Bottles; In Search for the Great Perhaps)
“Things change, so I have to change too.” (Adam Scythe, Immortals, Vol. III)
“Any new beginning is forged from the shards of the past, not from the abandonment of the past.” (Craig D. Lounsbrough)
“Where should I start? I texted my old Jiko this question, and she wrote back this: You should start where you are.” (Ruth Ozeki, A Tale for the Time Being)
“What about the rest of your life?” She shrugged.
“What about it?”
“Aren’t you worried about, like, forever?”
“Forever is composed of nows,” she says.” (John Green, Paper Towns)
“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, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button)
“Follow your bliss.
If you do follow your bliss, you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the while waiting for you, and the life you ought to be living is the one you are living.
When you can see that, you begin to meet people who are in the field of your bliss, and they open the doors to you.
I say, follow your bliss and don’t be afraid, and doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be.
If you follow your bliss, doors will open for you that wouldn’t have opened for anyone else.” (Joseph Campbell)
“Today is the beginning of a new dream.” (Miguel Ruiz, The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom)
“Here’s to new beginnings,” Stuart says and raises his bourbon.
I nod, sort of wanting to tell him that all beginnings are new.” (Kathryn Stockett, The Help)
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“Life is a Book / Read and Be Nice to Each Other”
“A book is made from a tree. It is an assemblage of flat, flexible parts (still called “leaves”) imprinted with dark pigmented squiggles. One glance at it and you hear the voice of another person, perhaps someone dead for thousands of years. Across the millennia, the author is speaking, clearly and silently, inside your head, directly to you. Writing is perhaps the greatest of human inventions, binding together people, citizens of distant epochs, who never knew one another. Books break the shackles of time ― proof that humans can work magic.” (Carl Sagan)
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“I read a book one day and my whole life was changed.” (Orhan Pamuk, The New Life)
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“All the secrets of the world are contained in books. Read at your own risk.” (Lemony Snicket)
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“Reading is like thinking, like praying, like talking to a friend, like expressing your ideas, like listening to other people’s ideas, like listening to music, like looking at the view, like taking a walk on the beach.” (Roberto Bolaño, 2666)
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“’Life is a book, and there are a thousand pages I have not read. I would read them together with you, as many as I can, before I die …’
She put her hand against his chest, just over his heart, and felt its beat against her palm, a unique time signature that was all its own.
‘I only wish you would not speak of dying,’ she said. ‘But even for that, yes, I know how you are with your words, and, Will – I love all of them. Every word you say. The silly ones, the mad ones, the beautiful ones, and the ones that are only for me. I love them, and I love you.’” (Cassandra Clare, Clockwork Princess)
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“A library is a place where you can lose your innocence without losing your virginity.” (Germaine Greer)
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“People can lose their lives in libraries. They ought to be warned.” (Saul Bellow)
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“The only way to do all the things you’d like to do is to read.” (Tom Clancy)
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“Some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again.” (C.S. Lewis)
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”Do not read, as children do, to amuse yourself, or like the ambitious, for the purpose of instruction. No, read in order to live.” (Gustave Flaubert)
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“Why can’t people just sit and read books and be nice to each other?” (David Baldacci, The Camel Club)
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“Create an Original Thought to Begin Each Day”
“There is something wonderfully bold and liberating about saying yes to our entire imperfect and messy life.” (Tara Brach)
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“If you listen to your fears, you will die never knowing what a great person you might have been.” (Robert Schuller)
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“You always do what you want to do. This is true with every act. You may say that you had to do something, or that you were forced to but actually, whatever you do, you do by choice.
Only you have the power to choose for yourself.” (W. Clement Stone)
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“Each day we wake in the morning with a thought in our minds. This thought, whatever it may be, sets the tone for the rest of the day. This is not always a good thing as we may wake up in a rush for work or school, with a hangover, feeling depressed or generally in a state of confusion
Therefore, it is a good idea to learn how to create an original thought to begin each day, and to make the day a perfect expression of your original thought.” (The Tibetan Art of Positive Thinking)
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“Be great in little things.” (St. Francis Xavier)
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“Be great in little things, and you will be given opportunity to do big things.” (Richard Shivers)
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“When we accept small wonders, we qualify ourselves to imagine great wonders.” (Tom Robbins)
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“Each child can always teach an adult three things: to be happy for no reason, to always be busy with something, and to know how to demand with all his might that which he desires.” (Paulo Coelho, The Fifth Mountain)
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“Control Your Own Destiny”
“Would you like you if you met you?” (Tegan and Sara)
“Oh, what we might accomplish, were it not for an exaggerated sense of our own unimportance.” (Robert Brault, Round Up the Usual Subjects, Thoughts on Just About Everything)
“Braveness is not the absence of fear
But rather the strength to keep on going forward despite the fear.” (Paulo Coelho)
“To know what is right and not do it is the worst cowardice.” (Confucius)
“You never know what worse luck your bad luck has saved you from.” (Cormac McCarthy)
“Why abandon a belief merely because it eases to be true.
Cling to it long enough, and not a doubt it will turn true again, for so it goes.
Most of the change we think we see in life is due to truths being in and out of favor.” (Robert Frost)
“Forget self-esteem. You need self-compassion.
Self-esteem has long been considered the bedrock of individual success. But high self-esteem many not be all that it’s cracked up to be. Thinking you’re great (which of course you are) comes with pressure to live up to your self-image. You may live in quiet terror of making mistakes, and even worse, feel devastated when you do. When faced with a challenge, you don’t need to believe in your own brilliance as much as you need to confront your flaws head on. Develop self-compassion, a willingness to look at your own shortcomings with kindness and understanding. With a realistic sense of your abilities and actions, you can figure out what needs to be done differently next time. Being perfect doesn’t lead to success, but being able to avoid the same mistake does.” (“To Succeed, Forget Self-Esteem” by Heidi Grant Halvorson, Harvard Business Management Blog, 1.12.13)
“Control your own destiny or someone else will.” (Jack Welch)
“You’re braver than you believe, and stronger that you seem, and smarter than you think.” (A. A. Milne)
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“There’s Always a New Chapter in Life”
“Why does life give you nothing when you ask for so little?
That’s why.” (Robert Brault, Round Up the Usual Subjects, Thoughts on Just About Everything)
“Do more than belong: participate. Do more than care: help. Do more than believe: practice. Do more than be fair: be kind. Do more than forgive: forget. Do more than dream: work.” (William A. Ward)
“Our job is to love others without stopping to inquire whether or not they are worthy.” (Thomas Merton)
“Whatever you do, live a life of adventure and meaning so brilliant that, like a Roman candle, it lights up the world. Dazzle us. Astonish us. Be extraordinary.” (President George H.W. Bush, UT Commencement address, 1990)
“There is always a new chapter in life. You ride into the sunset and discover it’s the sunrise.” (Robert Brault, Round Up the Usual Subjects, Thoughts on Just About Everything)
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“Be and Do Good in Your Life”
“Don’t be afraid of your fears. They’re not there to scare you. They’re there to let you know that something is worth it.” (C. JoyBell C.)
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“It is said that you only get one life. Truth is, you only get one birth and one death. How many lives you squeeze in is up to you.” (Robert Brault, Reflections)
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“Do your little bit of good where you are; it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.” (Desmond Tutu)
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“When I was young, my ambition was to be one of the people who made a difference in this world. My hope is to leave the world a little better for having been there.” (Jim Henson)
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“Life becomes easier and more beautiful when we can see the good in other people.” (Roy T. Bennett)
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“You have to believe. Otherwise, it will never happen.” (Neil Gaiman, Stardust)
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“To believe in something, and not to live it, is dishonest.” (Mahatma Gandhi)
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“When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they can seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall. Think of it – always.” (Mahatma Gandhi)
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“Don’t be pushed around by the fears in your mind. Be led by the dreams in your heart.” (Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart)
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“Don’t go on discussing what a good person should be. Just be one.” (Marcus Aurelius, Meditations)
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Some of the Catalyst Community
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Catalyst Quotes 