20 Great Quotes by Former South African President Nelson Mandela

Nelson Mandela, aged at 95 has died. Nelson Mandela was one of the greatest African leaders. He fought for racial equality and was a key figure in the South African apartheid. Mandela focused on tackling major issues such as poverty, inequality and racial issues. He also received countless amounts of awards and honors including the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize Award. Nelson Mandela was truly one of the greatest people to live and during his time he has said may inspiration and memorable quotes. This article will be a tribute to Nelson Mandela and will feature some of his most remarkable quotes and sayings.

Nelson Mandela on getting things and showing nothing is impossible

"It always seems impossible until its done."

A quote about freedom and how is not easy and the road is long and hard however with persistence and focus, anything is achievable.

"There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere, and many of us will have to pass through the valley of the shadow of death again and again before we reach the mountaintop of our desires."

Nelson Mandela hated racism, this is just one of the many things he stood up against. 

"I detest racialism, because I regard it as a barbaric thing, whether it comes from a black man or a white man."

A great quote about success and how to achieve it.

"Money won't create success, the freedom to make it will."

Another thought provoking and inspirational quote.

"Does anybody really think that they didn't get what they had because they didn't have the talent or the strength or the endurance or the commitment?"

Mandela talking about freedom and how you should never give up.

"Let freedom reign. The sun never set on so glorious a human achievement."

You should never give up on your goal, like Nelson Mandela who wanted freedom for South Africa.

"If there are dreams about a beautiful South Africa, there are also roads that lead to their goal. Two of these roads could be named Goodness and Forgiveness."

 Equality should be for everyone.

"Let there be work, bread, water and salt for all."

A message to the leaders of the world, less bloodshed and more peace.

"In countries where innocent people are dying, the leaders are following their blood rather than their brains."

Children should be growing up in a loving and peaceful environment, not one filled with diseases

"Give a child love, laughter and peace, not AIDS."

Nelson Mandela on how he has not fully experienced life. Nelson Mandela did spend a majority of his life in prison.

"Sometimes, I feel like one who is on the sidelines, who has missed life itself."

Mandela talking about the USA and how they should not just invade any country or nation they feel like.

"The United States has made serious mistakes in the conduct of its foreign affairs, which have had unfortunate repercussions long after the decisions were taken."

He was a born leader and was destined to be a great leader.

"By ancestry, I was born to rule."

Nelson Mandela was very passionate about his cause and was prepared to do anything for his cause and country, even die for his country.

"I started to make a study of the art of war and revolution and, whilst abroad, underwent a course in military training. If there was to be guerrilla warfare, I wanted to be able to stand and fight with my people and to share the hazards of war with them."

 

A memorable quote about failure and how every time we fail, we should just lift ourselves up and go for it again.

"The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall"

Nelson Mandela does not condone violence and expresses his outrage at oppression and exploitation.

"I do not deny that I planned sabotage. I did not plan it in a spirit of recklessness nor because I have any love of violence. I planned it as a result of a calm and sober assessment of the political situation that had arisen after many years of tyranny, exploitation and oppression of my people by the whites."

One of his best quotes on how to overcome fear and gain courage. Nelson Mandela was a very courageous man who fought for what he believed in.

"I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear."

One of his best quotes. He speaks the truth

"A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination."

A quote about freedom and how it is necessary to have freedom and respect each other.

"For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others."

We should always strive for more and should always strive for excellence. Whatever we do we should be passionate about it.

"There is no passion to be found playing small - in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living."

We hope you enjoyed this tribute to Nelson Mandela and hope this article has inspired and made you think. What is your best and most memorable Nelson Mandela quote? Did we miss any out? Please include them in the comment section. Remember to share to this article if you enjoyed it.

Top 50 Motivational and Inspirational Quotes That will Make you Change the Way you Think

Inspirational and Motivational quotes can do a lot to a person. They can change a persons mentality completely upon hearing it. It can have great affect upon you. They make you think about things. They make you think about life. They are great. We want to share with you the interviews that we think are the most inspirational to us.

1. “When you see a person who has been given more than you in money and beauty, then look to those who have been given less.” - Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W)
2. "I'm gonna show you how great I am" - Muhammad Ali
3.  “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” – Aristotle
4. "You miss 100% of shots that you don't take" - Wayne Gretzky
5. "Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve" - Napoleon Hill
6. There is no passion to be found playing small – in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.” – Nelson Mandela
7. "If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always gotten." –Tony Robbins
8. “The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” – Winston Churchill
9. Eighty percent of success is showing up. –Woody Allen
10. Whether you think you can or you think you can’t, you’re right. –Henry Ford
11. The best revenge is massive success. –Frank Sinatra
12. If you hear a voice within you say “you cannot paint,” then by all means paint and that voice will be silenced. –Vincent Van Gogh
13. When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left and could say, I used everything you gave me. –Erma Bombeck
14. “Your life does not get better by chance, it gets better by change.” – Jim Rohn

    
15. "It is during our darkest moments that we must focus to see the light" - Aristotle
16. "Try to be like the turtle - at ease with your shell" - Bill Copeland
17. "Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still plant my apple tree." - Martin Luther King Jnr
18. "I hated every minute of training, but I said, 'Don't quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion." - Muhammad Ali  
19. "Oh yes, the past can hurt. But you can either run from it, or learn from it."- Rafiki, (The Lion King)
20. “Vision without action is just a dream, action without vision just passes the time, vision with action can change the world” – Nelson Mandela
21. "If you accept the expectations of others, especially negative ones, then you never will change the outcome." - Michael Jordan
22. “Conformity is the jailer of freedom and the enemy of growth.” – John F. Kennedy
23. “I am tomorrow, or some future day, what I establish today. I am today what I established yesterday or some previous day.” – James Joyce
24. "Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” – Leonardo da Vinci
25. “Try not. Do or do not. There is no Try.” – Yoda (Star Wars)
26. "In a gentle way, you can shake the world." - Mahatma Gandhi
27. "If you're not willing to risk it all, then you don't want it bad enough." - Unknown
28. Successful people are always looking for opportunities to help others.  Unsuccessful people are always asking, “What’s in it for me?” – Brian Tracy
29. “The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt
30. “When I thought I couldn’t go on, I forced myself to keep going. My success is based on persistence, not luck.” – Estee Lauder
31. "Believe you can and you’re halfway there." –Theodore Roosevelt
32. "Start where you are. Use what you have.  Do what you can." –Arthur Ashe
33. "When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life.  When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up.  I wrote down ‘happy’.  They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life. " –John Lennon
34. “There is only one success – to be able to spend your life in your own way.” – Christopher Morley
35. "Fall seven times and stand up eight." –Japanese Proverb
36. "First, have a definite, clear practical ideal; a goal, an objective. Second, have the necessary means to achieve your ends; wisdom, money, materials, and methods. Third, adjust all your means to that end." –Aristotle
37. "In this country, you gotta make the money first. Then when you get the money, you get the power. Then when you get the power, then you get the woman" - Tony Montana (Scarface)
38. "What’s the difference between a wife and a job? After 10 years a job still sucks" - Mel Gibson (What Women Want)
39. "Too many of us are not living our dreams because we are living our fears." –Les Brown
40. "The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing." –Walt Disney
41. "Limitations live only in our minds.  But if we use our imaginations, our possibilities become limitless." –Jamie Paolinetti
42. "What’s money? A man is a success if he gets up in the morning and goes to bed at night and in between does what he wants to do." –Bob Dylan

    
43. "I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do." –Leonardo da Vinci
44. "In order to succeed, your desire for success should be greater than your fear of failure." – Bill Cosby
45. "The person who says it cannot be done should not interrupt the person who is doing it." – Chinese Proverb
46. "You become what you believe." – Oprah Winfrey
47. Build your own dreams, or someone else will hire you to build theirs. – Farrah Gray
48. "Education costs money.  But then so does ignorance." – Sir Claus Moser
49. "Let the refining and improving of your own life keep you so busy that you have little time to criticize others." – H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
50. "Dream big and dare to fail." –Norman Vaughan

 

What inspires and Motivates you? Are there any quotes that we have missed? Tell us what you think in the comment section below!