3 Powerful Quotes That Can Help You Feel More Hopeful in Tough Times
Use these quotes to remind yourself that a better future is possible
(Note: I published an earlier version of this article on Medium in July 2022)
Is it hard for you to feel hopeful about the future these days? If so, you’re not alone. Many of us are finding it difficult to believe that things will get better. We may not agree on who is most responsible for specific problems or how to solve them, but we agree that serious problems exist.
For example, a recent poll reported here found that 55 percent of Democrats and 53 percent of Republicans now believe it is “likely” that the United States will “cease to be a democracy in the future.” As the article containing those results notes, that is a “stunning expression of bipartisan despair about the direction of the country.”
It’s easy to fall into despair when we are bombarded with bad news on a daily basis. The United States is just one of many countries facing major challenges.
Where can we turn to find hope when the future looks bleak? How can we remind ourselves that all is not lost, and get inspired to do the work necessary to make positive changes in our own lives and the world?
Here are three quotes that I find helpful when things seem hopeless.
Use them as inspiration to keep going when you are tempted to give up.
Let these words remind you that none of us can predict or control the future, but we can choose to believe a better future is possible and work together to help make it a reality.
“Hope is not about proving anything. It’s about choosing to believe this one thing, that love is bigger than any grim, bleak sh*t anyone can throw at us.”― Anne Lamott
Anne Lamott is one of my favorite authors. These words reassure me because they ring true. Instead of writing fake platitudes about how wonderful life is, she keeps it real. She acknowledges that we all get “grim, bleak sh*t” thrown at us sometimes.
At the same time, she emphasizes that love is bigger than all of that sh*t. Love makes it possible to cope with it and rise above it.
How you can use this quote to feel more hopeful:
Recognize the “grim, bleak sh*t” in your life. You don’t have to pretend it isn’t there or doesn’t stink. Identify its negative impact on your life.
Acknowledge its presence, then ask yourself what you can do to get that sh*t out of your life or develop skills to cope with it more effectively.
Work on shifting your focus to the love that still exists. Find ways to share that love with others who need it to cope with the sh*t in their lives.
“You may not always have a comfortable life and you will not always be able to solve all of the world’s problems at once but don’t ever underestimate the importance you can have because history has shown us that courage can be contagious and hope can take on a life of its own.” — Michelle Obama
I like this quote because there are times when we all underestimate the importance we can have.
It’s easy to believe there is nothing we can do to change the world. We feel insignificant and powerless.
I have discovered that I often fail to recognize the impact of my words or actions.
Occasionally, someone tells me afterward (sometimes months or even years later) how much something I said or did meant to them. That often surprises me, because sometimes I don’t even remember saying or doing it! At the time, it seemed like such a small thing that I quickly forgot about it.
How you can use this quote to feel more hopeful:
Reflect on your past experiences. Have you ever said or done something that you thought was no big deal but meant a lot to someone else? When has another person’s courage inspired you to do something you were afraid to do?
Use those experiences to help you figure out what you can do now.
Don’t try to solve all of the world’s problems at once. Just identify one small step you can take today.
That step could be as simple as calling or texting a friend you haven’t heard from in a while to see how they’re doing. It could be donating food or money to a local food pantry. It could be volunteering to help the election campaign of a candidate who shares your values.
I have found that when I take some kind of positive action, especially one that helps someone else, I feel more hopeful.
“Hope is a state of mind, not of the world. Hope, in this deep and powerful sense, is not the same as joy that things are going well, or willingness to invest in enterprises that are obviously heading for success, but rather an ability to work for something because it is good.” — Vaclav Havel
I love this definition of hope as “an ability to work for something because it is good.” Hope is what makes change possible when it seems highly unlikely.
When we don’t have any hope that things can get better, we give up. We refuse to do anything that might improve our lives or the world because we are convinced it won’t work. It would be a waste of our time and energy.
Hope enables us to try, even when we doubt our efforts will lead to the results we desire. It empowers us to do the hard work necessary to make a better future possible.
I also appreciate this quote because it reminds me that things do not have to be going well in order for us to have hope. Our state of mind, not the state of the world, makes hope possible.
How you can use this quote to feel more hopeful:
Recognize that you can feel hopeful regardless of what is happening in your life or the world.
Hope can be hard to find when we feel overwhelming sadness, anger, or fear, but it is still there. It does not require us to pretend all is well, or that we are happy about the challenging circumstances we are facing. As the quote says, hope is not the same as joy.
Hope is choosing to believe that things will not always be this bad.
None of us can predict the future, and many factors we cannot control will affect it. What we can control is whether we choose to give in to despair or hold on to hope.
Which will you choose? Your decision will help determine your future and the world’s.
How did you react as you read each of these quotes? Which is your favorite, and why? What else are you reading or doing that gives you hope? Please comment below. An idea or resource you share may give someone else hope, too!
This may be my favorite piece that you have written so far. Reading that hope and joy are not the same is a powerful statement. We do not have to be happy to
Be hopeful. Thanks. It helps to be reminded of that.
Fantastic piece! At this time of uncertainty and fear, we all need more inspiring poetry in our lives. Quotations of hope are beautiful things. Thank you.