25 Quotes About Overcoming Challenges

Life has a way of knocking you down. I know because I’ve been there, stuck in a cycle of unhealthy habits that felt impossible to break.

Change felt like a distant dream. For years I struggled with gaming addiction binge eating and a general laziness that kept me from living. The person I saw in the mirror wasn't the person I wanted to be. But slowly one step at a time I started fighting back. I lost over 110 pounds. I built a life of purpose and discipline. And I learned that even the biggest mountains are climbed one step at a time.

Challenges are a part of life. They are not signs that you are broken. They are opportunities to prove how strong you are. On the toughest days a few powerful words can be the spark you need to keep going. They remind you that you’re not alone and that this feeling won't last forever.

Here are 25 quotes that have helped me. I hope they can help you too.

For When You Feel Stuck and Overwhelmed

Starting is often the hardest part. When you’re at the bottom the climb looks impossible. These quotes are for those moments when you don’t even know where to begin.

I remember the feeling perfectly. The thought of losing over 100 pounds wasn’t motivating. It was crushing. I couldn't focus on the end goal. I had to focus on the next right thing. The next healthy meal. The next 10-minute walk. That’s it. That’s how it starts.

• "The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones." – Confucius
• "Do what you can with all you have wherever you are." – Theodore Roosevelt
• "The secret of getting ahead is getting started." – Mark Twain
• "We are all failures–at least the best of us are." – J.M. Barrie
• "It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop." – Confucius

For When the Journey Gets Long

Initial motivation fades. That's a fact. The real test comes in the middle when the progress is slow and the finish line is nowhere in sight. This is the daily grind. This is where character is built.

During my weight loss journey there were weeks when the scale wouldn't budge. I wanted to quit. I wanted to go back to my old ways. What saved me was celebrating small wins. I didn’t eat junk food today? That’s a win. I finished my work without getting distracted? That’s a win. These small victories create momentum. They prove you are still moving forward even when it doesn't feel like it.

• "Success is not final failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts." – Winston S. Churchill
• "I am not what happened to me I am what I choose to become." – Carl Jung
• "Endurance is not just the ability to bear a hard thing but to turn it into glory." – William Barclay
• "He who has a why to live can bear almost any how." – Friedrich Nietzsche
• "Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened ambition inspired and success achieved." – Helen Keller

For Finding Strength Beyond Yourself

I’ll be honest. There were many times my own willpower wasn't enough. I felt weak and alone in my struggle. My strength ran out.

That’s when my faith became my foundation. For me as a Christian Orthodox strengthening my relationship with God gave my struggle a deeper meaning. It wasn’t just about losing weight or being more productive anymore. It was about honoring the life and body He gave me. It was about finding purpose in the pain. This shift from "I have to do this" to "I get to do this for a greater reason" changed everything.

• "Hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny." – C.S. Lewis
• "I have been driven many times upon my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go." – Abraham Lincoln
• "God allows us to experience the low points of life in order to teach us lessons that we could learn in no other way." – C.S. Lewis
• "Faith does not eliminate questions. But faith knows where to take them." – Elisabeth Elliot
• "Relying on God has to begin all over again every day as if nothing had yet been done." – C.S. Lewis

25 Quotes to Save for a Rainy Day

Here is the complete list. Find one that speaks to you. Write it down. Put it somewhere you’ll see it every day. Let it be your anchor.

1. "The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones." – Confucius
2. "Do what you can with all you have wherever you are." – Theodore Roosevelt
3. "The secret of getting ahead is getting started." – Mark Twain
4. "We are all failures–at least the best of us are." – J.M. Barrie
5. "It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop." – Confucius
6. "Success is not final failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts." – Winston S. Churchill
7. "I am not what happened to me I am what I choose to become." – Carl Jung
8. "Endurance is not just the ability to bear a hard thing but to turn it into glory." – William Barclay
9. "He who has a why to live can bear almost any how." – Friedrich Nietzsche
10. "Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened ambition inspired and success achieved." – Helen Keller
11. "Hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny." – C.S. Lewis
12. "I have been driven many times upon my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go." – Abraham Lincoln
13. "God allows us to experience the low points of life in order to teach us lessons that we could learn in no other way." – C.S. Lewis
14. "Faith does not eliminate questions. But faith knows where to take them." – Elisabeth Elliot
15. "Relying on God has to begin all over again every day as if nothing had yet been done." – C.S. Lewis
16. "A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles." – Christopher Reeve
17. "The gem cannot be polished without friction nor man perfected without trials." – Chinese Proverb
18. "Obstacles don't have to stop you. If you run into a wall don't turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it go through it or work around it." – Michael Jordan
19. "The oak fought the wind and was broken the willow bent when it must and survived." – Robert Jordan
20. "You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it." – Margaret Thatcher
21. "What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us." – Ralph Waldo Emerson
22. "Strength does not come from winning. Your struggles develop your strengths." – Arnold Schwarzenegger
23. "A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor." – Franklin D. Roosevelt
24. "Tough times never last but tough people do." – Robert H. Schuller
25. "Courage is resistance to fear mastery of fear–not absence of fear." – Mark Twain

You are stronger than you think. Your current challenge is not the end of your story. It’s just a chapter.

So what's your next step? You don’t have to solve everything today. Just choose one thing.

Which of these quotes resonated with you the most? Pick one. Let it be your focus for this week and a reminder that you have what it takes to overcome. You can do this.