No matter how easygoing you are, life can get stressful. And when stress takes over, even for those who appear to have the calmest center, it can be a chore to find your Zen again.
The emotional demand of stress can build up over time, but if you learn to silence the outside world and find an unshakable peace, you’ll find a way to return to your happy place, no matter what.
To get you there faster, here are 63 stress-related quotes to help you calm down, manage your stress and maybe even have a laugh or two along the way.
Calming quotes to stress less
- “There are times when we stop, we sit still. We listen, and breezes from a whole other world begin to whisper.” —James Carroll
- “Breath is the power behind all things…. I breathe in and know that good things will happen.” —Tao Porchon-Lynch
- “Within you, there is a stillness and a sanctuary to which you can retreat at any time and be yourself.” —Hermann Hesse
- “Feelings come and go like clouds in a windy sky. Conscious breathing is my anchor.” —Thích Nhất Hạnh
- “Calmness is the cradle of power.” —Josiah Gilbert Holland
- “Simply let experience take place very freely so that your open heart is suffused with the tenderness of true compassion.” —Tsoknyi Rinpoche
- “Don’t try to force anything. Let life be a deep let-go. God opens millions of flowers every day without forcing their buds.” —Osho
- “Understand this and be free: we are not in our bodies; our bodies are inside us.” —Sean A. Mulvihill
- “Set peace of mind as your highest goal and organize your life around it.” —Brian Tracy
- “Many a calm river begins as a turbulent waterfall, yet none hurtles and foams all the way to the sea.” —Mikhail Lermontov
- “In the woods, we return to reason and faith. There I feel that nothing can befall me in life—no disgrace, no calamity (leaving me my eyes), which nature cannot repair.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson
- “It’s a good idea always to do something relaxing prior to making an important decision in your life.” —Paulo Coelho
- “Take rest; a field that has rested gives a bountiful crop.” —Ovid
- “Calm mind brings inner strength and self-confidence, so that’s very important for good health.” —Dalai Lama
- “A crust eaten in peace is better than a banquet partaken in anxiety.” —Aesop
- “You are the sky. Everything else—it’s just the weather.” —Pema Chödrön
- “Calm your mind. Life becomes much easier when you keep your mind at peace.” —Unknown
- “Your calm mind is the ultimate weapon against your challenges. So relax.” —Bryant McGill
Stress management quotes
- “Doing something that is productive is a great way to alleviate emotional stress. Get your mind doing something that is productive.” —Ziggy Marley
- “Rule number one is, don’t sweat the small stuff. Rule number two is, it’s all small stuff.” —Robert Eliot
- “Give your stress wings and let it fly away.” —Terri Guillemets
- “The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another.” —William James
- “The day she let go of the things that were weighing her down was the day she began to shine the brightest.” —Katrina Mayer
- “Breathe. Let go. And remind yourself that this very moment is the only one you know you have for sure.” —Oprah Winfrey
- “The more tranquil a man becomes, the greater is his success, his influence, his power for good. Calmness of mind is one of the beautiful jewels of wisdom.” —James Allen
- “It’s not stress that kills us, it is our reaction to it.” —Hans Selye
- “Do not anticipate trouble or worry about what may never happen. Keep in the sunlight.” —Benjamin Franklin
- “You must learn to let go. Release the stress. You were never in control anyway.” —Steve Maraboli
- “Adopting the right attitude can convert a negative stress into a positive one.” —Hans Selye
- “For fast-acting relief, try slowing down.” —Lily Tomlin
- “You cannot always control what goes on outside. But you can always control what goes on inside.” —Wayne W. Dyer
- “Sometimes the most productive thing you can do is relax.” —Mark Black
- “You can’t stop the waves, but you can learn to surf.” —Jon Kabat-Zinn
Light-hearted stress quotes
- “When you realize how perfect everything is, you will tilt your head back and laugh at the sky.” —Buddha
- “Stress is caused by being ‘here’ but wanting to be ‘there,’ or being in the present but wanting to be in the future.” —Eckhart Tolle
- “Tension is who you think you should be. Relaxation is who you are.” —Chinese proverb
- “Much of the stress that people feel doesn’t come from having too much to do. It comes from not finishing what they’ve started.” —David Allen
- “If you ask, ‘What is the single most important key to longevity?’ I would have to say it is avoiding worry, stress, and tension.” —George Burns
- “The time to relax is when you don’t have time for it.” —Sydney J. Harris
- “Don’t stress the ‘could haves.’ If it should have, it would have.” —Unknown
- “Worrying does not take away tomorrow’s troubles. It takes away today’s peace.” —Randy Armstrong
- “Your mind will answer most questions if you learn to relax and wait for the answer.” —William S. Burroughs
- “Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.” —Anne Lamott
- “A day of worry is more exhausting than a week of work.” —John Lubbock
- “There is more to life than simply increasing its speed.” —Mahatma Gandhi
- “The only difference between a good day and a bad day is your attitude.” —Dennis S. Brown
- “Life isn’t as serious as the mind makes it out to be.” —Eckhart Tolle
- “Remember, today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.” —Dale Carnegie
Motivational stress quotes
- “Stress is an important dragon to slay—or at least tame—in your life.” —Marilu Henner
- “Stress should be a powerful driving force, not an obstacle.” —Bill Phillips
- “Don’t let your mind bully your body into believing it must carry the burden of its worries.” —Astrid Alauda
- “The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one.” —Elbert Hubbard
- “Slow down and everything you are chasing will come around and catch you.” —John De Paola
- “In times of stress, the best thing we can do for each other is to listen with our ears and our hearts and to be assured that our questions are just as important as our answers.” —Fred Rogers
- “Stress is the trash of modern life—we all generate it, but if you don’t dispose of it properly, it will pile up and overtake your life.” —Danzae Pace
- “Worrying is like a rocking chair; it gives you something to do, but it gets you nowhere.” —Glenn Turner
- “Our anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows, but only empties today of its strength.” —Charles H. Spurgeon
- “Our anxiety does not come from thinking about the future, but from wanting to control it.” —Kahlil Gibran
- “Sometimes the most important thing in a whole day is the rest we take between two deep breaths, or the turning inwards in prayer for five short minutes.” —Etty Hillesum
- “Don’t let your struggle become your identity.” —Ralston Bowles
- “One of the best pieces of advice I ever got was from a horse master. He told me to go slow to go fast. I think that applies to everything in life. We live as though there aren’t enough hours in the day, but if we do each thing calmly and carefully, we will get it done quicker and with much less stress.” —Viggo Mortensen
- “When we long for life without difficulties, remind us that oaks grow strong in contrary winds and diamonds are made under pressure.” —Peter Marshall
- “Smile, breathe and go slowly.” —Thích Nhất Hạnh
This article was updated May 2024. Photo by PeopleImages.com – Yuri A/Shutterstock.com
