Inspirational Quotes from Ralph Waldo Emerson

Ralph Waldo Emerson was a 19th century American writer who was part of the transcendentalist movement. He was an influential friend of Henry David Thoreau. He was also a staunch supporter of the abolition movement. These quotes from Ralph Waldo Emerson would be great additions to graduation or other classroom speeches. Use these in conjunction with themes and speech writing techniques.

• None of us will ever accomplish anything excellent or commanding except when he listens to this whisper which is heard by him alone.
  
  
• Whatever course you decide upon, there is always someone to tell you that you are wrong. There are always difficulties arising which tempt you to believe that your critics are right. To map out a course of action and follow it to an end requires courage.
  
  
• The ancestor of every action is a thought.
  
  
• Enthusiasm is the mother of effort, and without it nothing great was ever achieved.
  
  
• Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising up every time we fail.
  
  
• What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.
  
  
• Do not go where the path may lead; go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.
  
  
• A hero is no braver than an ordinary man, but he is braver five minutes longer.
  
  
• The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.

More Information: Inspirational Quotes for Speeches