42 Motivating Quotes about Overcoming Challenges

Sharing is caring!

If you’re dealing with tough times in your life, these motivating quotes about overcoming challenges can help you find the strength you need to push forward.

We all face tough challenges every day, starting from an early age. Some of these challenges may be small and we feel like we have it figured out; we can get past it, like time management at work or a broken heart.

Other times, we face recurring problems such as feeling you don’t have enough money for the important things in life. Other challenges are huge, and we might feel like it’s impossible, like we’ll never surpass this roadblock, such as the death of a loved one. In those circumstances, it’s hard to feel like you will ever experience a fresh start free of that intense stress.

Overcoming these difficult situations is what allows us to move forward – they educate us and teach us to learn to focus our energy on what’s important.

These experiences are what build resilience, perseverance, and grit. They allow us to become successful people in the long run, no matter how overwhelmed we might feel in the short term.

There have been a number of times in my life where I have had to change directions completely – divorce, moving where the Army sent our family, career shifts, birth, death. Each instance shook my whole world.

However, I’ve realized that these difficult times, while sometimes feeling they may never pass, have been essential to my life. They have led to positive changes and personal growth making me who I am today and each time I overcome a new challenge, I’ve come to find the next hump is a little easier to navigate.

This is called resilience.

What is resilience?

Resilience is defined as:

1: “The ability to be happy, successful, etc. again after something difficult or bad has happened” – Cambridge Dictionary.

2: “The process of adapting well in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats, or significant sources of stress – such as family and relationship problems, serious health problems, or workplace and financial stressors. As much as resilience involves ‘bouncing back’ from these difficult experiences, it can also involve profound growth” – American Psychological Association.

Resilience allows us to overcome a significant challenge, but resilience is built by facing challenges.

It’s a bit of a double-edged sword. We may find ourselves living within our comfort zone and avoiding our bigger challenges rather than searching for the next step to overcome the obstacle at hand.

There are many ways to overcome challenges in your life, and we all face these challenges differently. While I can’t tell you the best solution to any part of life, here are a few tips for overcoming life’s challenges.

Tips for Overcoming Challenges

Take Care of Your Mind and Body 

Ensuring you’re getting proper nutrition (food & hydration), sleep, and exercise is the best way to help your body adapt to stress and helps regulate emotions, such as those related to anxiety and depression.

Try practicing mindfulness and avoid negative outlets (e.g., excessive use of alcohol or drugs) to support your body’s ability to manage stress and build on your inner strength. You’ll find your body and mind will be in a better place to tackle challenges in any area of your life.

I bet you’re thinking, “Well this isn’t rocket science” and you’re right – it’s not! But, there’s a reason why this advice is such a common characteristic in many self help outlets – it works! 

Create Goals or Make a Plan

It’s easy to let our negativity take over and then it’s difficult to get past that all consuming thought process. Whether it means focusing on self-care, seeking out a specialist, starting a new budget, etc., try to focus on creating realistic short-term goals that can help you move towards overcoming the larger, challenging situation at hand.

I like to think of these as ‘checkpoints’!

Even if these goals seem like you’re taking small steps, you’re still moving forward in the right direction and these goals may make the challenge seem a little more manageable. 

Look at the Bigger Picture

Sometimes the biggest challenges can make us derail or come to a full stop. This makes it difficult to look at the final goal or success.

Taking a minute to sit back and see your situation through a different perspective or lens is a great way to consider what you’re working towards and refocus on what’s important, rather than sweating the small details that may not even change the outcome.

I find that I personally work on this strategy on a daily basis as it pertains to the small things. 

Accept Help 

We all face challenges. No matter what difficult challenges you’re facing, there are others who have been through similar challenges before or are currently going through it too.

While it’s easy to feel like we need to face a challenge alone, expressing yourself to a third party and accepting the help of others can support your ability to manage your emotions, maybe gain a new perspective of your situation, and create a plan of first steps for facing your own challenges.

There are community resources, support groups, and networks that you can reach out to if you’re uncomfortable talking to your friends and family. It definitely helps to find strength in numbers, and to find others who related to your particular situation, especially with the larger challenges.

Other times, if you’re lucky enough to be able to lean on a family member, team member at work, or a friend, do it! Ask for the advice, the help with an errand, the childcare.

You’d do it for others and you’ll find when you ask and open your heart and allow yourself to be vulnerable about a challenge you’re experiencing- no matter how big or small- there’s a community out there to support you.

The last thing you should feel is that you’re in this alone.

Don’t Give Up – You Must Keep Trying

I know… you’re probably rolling your eyes and that would be a completely normal response. “Keep trying” or “keep going” is probably the worst thing anyone can say when you’re going through a hard time.

Trust me, I’ve spent a long time wishing things would change on their own without wanting any positive feedback or help from others. But, we have to remember that problem solving takes time and it’s unlikely we’re going to solve a bigger problem on your first go around.

I can also tell you that when you choose to be brave and persevere through big challenges and changes, the outcome could be better than you could have ever imagined.

Through changes in my marriage status, addresses, and career on more than one occasion, all of these trials and tribulations have led me to exactly where I should be, and you must have faith you will come out stronger than before! 

Check out these 48 motivational and inspirational quotes about new beginnings too!

Try using the STOP Technique

S: Stop what you’re doing (pause your actions and your thoughts).

T: Take a few deep breaths; let your breaths center yourself and bring yourself back into the present moment.

O: Observe what is going on with your body, emotions and mind. Consider physical sensations, how you’re feeling, what you’re doing and what you’re thinking about. 

P: Proceed with what you were doing (or maybe change what you’re doing), but make a conscious effort to increase awareness of what’s going on inside you and around you and focus on the good things and your goal.

Using the STOP Technique is a great opportunity to refocus on a daily basis. It can help you feel more engaged in your own life, leading to more significant progress in working towards your goal and overcoming challenges.

Sometimes I get so lost in the details or minor setbacks in the day and I find it really helps for me to take a moment, breathe, and ask myself, is this going to matter in a day, in a week, or in a year? This helps me re-center and focus on what’s important.

I will also say that when it comes to work stressors, sometimes simply taking a moment and stepping away from the overwhelming task can lead to breakthroughs in new ideas you would have never originally have anticipated. Give it a shot!

Inspirational Quotes About Overcoming Challenges

I also know that it’s easy to lose motivation and it can be helpful to have motivating or inspiring quotes when staring into the face of a real challenge. These words can provide hope, drive, and confidence and can help motivate and guide us – maybe even provide us with a fresh perspective.

The following motivational quotes are words that I have personally found to be inspirational when I need it most, and I am sharing them in hopes they can serve the same purpose for you. 

“If you’re going through hell, keep going.” -Winston Churchill

“The beginning is always today.” -Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

“Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life a champion.” -Muhammad Ali.

“Fire is the test of gold; adversity, of strong men.” -Martha Graham

“When you meet obstacles with gratitude, your perception starts to shift, resistance loses its power, and grace finds a home within you.” -Oprah Winfrey

“All the world is full of suffering. It is also full of overcoming.” -Helen Keller

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” -Lao Tzu

“There’s nothing that cleanses your soul like getting the hell kicked out of you.” -Woody Hayes

“Suffering has been stronger than all other teaching, and has taught me to understand what your heart used to be. I have been bent and broken, but – I hope – into a better shape.” -Charles Dickens

“Every moment is a fresh beginning.” -T.S. Eliot

“Strength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle” -Napoleon Hill

“Life always gives us another change: it’s called ‘to move on.'” -Ana Claudia Antunes

“We don’t develop courage by being happy every day. We develop it by surviving difficult times and challenging adversity.” -Barbara De Angelis

“Success in life depends on your desire to keep moving forward despite the odds.” -Lailah Gifty Akita.

“Difficulties strengthen the mind, as labor does the body.” -Lucius Annaeus Seneca

“When adversity strikes, that’s when you have to be the most calm. Take a step back, stay strong, stay grounded, and press on.” -LL Cool J.

“Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.”-Robert Kennedy

“Because some people see a wall, and assume that’s the end of their journey. Others see it, and decide it’s just the beginning.” -Angeline Trevena

“Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.” -Robert F. Kennedy

“Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goals.” -Henry Ford

“The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide you’re not going to stay where you are.” -John Pierpont “J.P.” Morgan

“The beginning is the most important part of the work.” -Plato

“It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer.” -Albert Einstein

“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

“Always listen to experts. They’ll tell you what can’t be done, and why. Then do it.” -Robert A. Heinlein

“I discovered that a fresh start is a process. A fresh start is a journey – a journey that requires a plan.” -Vivian Jokotade

Don’t miss: 63 Loving and Motivational Quotes for Husbands

“Beginnings could happen more than once or in different ways.” -Rachel Joyce

“One who conquers the sea today is ready to conquer the ocean tomorrow.” – Matshona Dhliwayo

“Change can be scary, but you know what’s scarier? Allowing fear to stop you from growing, evolving, and progressing.” -Mandy Hale

“If it scares you, it might be a good thing to try.” -Seth Godin

“The magic in new beginnings is truly the most powerful of them all.” -Josiyah Martin

“There are two mistakes one can make along the road to truth… not going all the way, and not starting.” -Buddha

“There will be obstacles. There will be doubters. There will be mistakes. But with hard work, there are no limits.” -Michael Phelps

“Don’t be distracted by criticism. Remember – the only taste of success some people have is when they take a bite out of you.” -Zig Ziglar

“Yesterday’s mistakes cannot affect today’s possibilities unless you dwell on them” -Benjamin Lotter

“You can learn new things at any time in your life if you’re willing to be a beginner. If you actually learn to like being a beginner, the whole world opens up to you.” -Barbara Shur

“Life keeps throwing me stones. And I keep finding the diamonds.” -Ana Claudia Antunes

“Being able to see the end result, rather than just the task, eliminates obstacles, focuses your energy, and provides motivation to excel.” -Catherine Pulsifer

“Nothing in the universe can stop you from letting go and starting over.” -Guy Finley

“No one can ever take your memories from you – each day is a new beginning, make good memories every day.” – Catherine Pulsifer

“New beginnings are often disguised as painful endings.” -Lao Tzu

The only thing to remember is you are strong enough to face whatever is thrown your way! I hope I helped you tackle whatever challenge it is that you’re experiencing today, no matter how small or large! 

Sharing is caring!