This document contains a collection of quotes by various famous and influential women throughout history. Some key themes that emerge are the importance of self-reliance, courage, taking action, and embracing life experiences rather than regret. Many of the quotes encourage women to stand up for themselves, follow their aspirations, and understand themselves rather than relying on others for strength or confidence.

1. It is only rarely that one can see in a little
boy the promise of a man,
but one can almost always see in a little
girl the threat of a woman.
Alexandre Dumas
(1802-1870) French novelist and playwright

2. For most of history,
Anonymous was a woman.
Virginia Woolf
(1892-1941) British writer

3. If you want something said,
ask a man.
If you want something done,
ask a woman.
Margaret Thatcher
Prime Minister of Great Britain

4. Self-reliance is the only road
to true freedom.
Patricia Sampson
U.S. writer

5. I was always looking outside myself for
strength and confidence, but it comes
from within. It is there all the time.
Anna Freud
(1895-1982) Austrian psychoanalyst

6. Women complain about
premenstrual syndrome,
but I think of it as
the only time of the month
I can be myself.
Roseanne Barr
U.S. comedienne

7. You can’t be brave if you’ve only
had wonderful things happen to you.
Mary Tyler Moore
Actress

8. I see my body as an instrument,
rather than an ornament.
Alanis Morissette
Canadian singer

9. Far away there in the sunshine are
my highest aspirations. I may not
reach them, but I can look up and
see their beauty, believe in them,
and try to follow where they lead.
Louisa May Alcott
Novelist (1832-1888)

10. We ask ourselves, ‘Who am I to
be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and
fabulous?’ Actually, who are you
not to be? You are a child of God.
Marianne Williamson
Author

11. Ever notice that what the hell is
always the right decision?
Marilyn Monroe
(1926-1962) U.S. actress

12. Never bend your head. Hold it high.
Look the world straight in the eye.
Helen Keller
(1880-1968) U.S. writer, lecturer

13. Toughness doesn’t have to
come in a pinstriped suit.
Dianne Feinstein
U.S. Senator

14. The thing women have got to learn
is that nobody gives you power.
You take it.
Roseanne Barr
U.S. comedienne

15. You can stand tall without
standing on someone. You can
be a victor without having
victims.
Harriet Woods
Activist

16. Action is the antidote to despair.
Joan Baez
Singer

17. My grandfather once told me that
there were two kinds of people:
those who do the work and those
who take the credit. He told me to
try to be in the first group. There
was much less competition.
Indira Gandhi
Politician (1917-1984)

18. Life itself is the proper binge.
Julia Child, Chef

19. Death and taxes and childbirth!
There’s never a convenient time
for any of them!
Margaret Mitchell
(1900-1949) U.S. writer

20. There must be quite a few things
a hot bath won’t cure, but I don’t
know many of them.
Sylvia Plath
(1932-1963) U.S. writer and poet

21. Life shrinks or expands in proportion
to one’s courage.
Anaïs Nin
(1903-1977) French writer

22. My favorite thing is to go where I’ve
never been.
Diane Arbus
(1923-1971) U.S. photographer

23. I am not afraid of storms, for I am
learning how to sail my ship.
Louisa May Alcott
(1832-1888) U.S. writer

24. I have no riches but my thoughts.
Yet these are wealth enough for me.
Sara Teasdale
(1884-1933) U.S. poet

25. Success is liking yourself, liking what
you do, and liking how you do it.
Maya Angelou
U.S. writer

26. Some of my best leading men
have been dogs and horses.
Elizabeth Taylor
U.S. actress

27. There is a fountain of youth:
It is your mind, your talents,
the creativity you bring to your life
and the lives of the people
you love. When you learn to
tap this source, you will
truly have defeated age.
Sophia Loren
Actress

28. I love being married. It’s so great to find
that one special person you want to
annoy for the rest of your life.
Rita Rudner
U.S. comedienne

29. I am extraordinarily patient, provided
I get my own way in the end.
Margaret Thatcher
Prime Minister of Great Britain

30. Self-development is a higher duty
than self-sacrifice.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton
(1815-1902) U.S. suffragist

31. Surviving is important, but
thriving is elegant.
Maya Angelou
U.S. writer

32. Nobody can make you feel inferior
without your consent.
Eleanor Roosevelt
(1884-1962) U.S. humanitarian; First Lady (1933-1945)

33. Some of us are becoming the
men we wanted to marry.
Gloria Steinem
U.S. writer, feminist, political activist

34. Nothing in life is to be feared.
It is only to be understood.
Marie Curie
Scientist

35. Never go to bed mad.
Stay up and fight.
Phyllis Diller
U.S. comedienne

36. All marriages are happy. It’s trying
to live together afterwards that
causes all the problems.
Shelly Winters
(1922-2006) U.S. actress

37. When nothing is sure,
everything is possible.
Margaret Drabble
Novelist

38. There are only two ways of
spreading light—to be the
candle or the mirror
that reflects it.
Edith Wharton
Novelist (1862-1937)

39. I have no regrets. Regret only
makes wrinkles.
Sophia Loren
Italian actress

40. Female friendships that work are
relationships in which women help
each other belong to themselves.
Louise Bernikow
U.S. author

41. You grow up the day you have your
first real laugh – at yourself.
Ethel Barrymore
(1879-1959) U.S. actress

42. If you always do what interests you,
at least one person is pleased.
Katharine Hepburn
(1907-2003) U.S. actress

43. Until you’ve lost your reputation, you
never realize what a burden it was.
Margaret Mitchell
(1900-1949) U.S. author

44. Too much of a good thing is wonderful.
Mae West
(1893-1980) U.S. actress, writer

45. Everyone’s entitled to my opinion.
Madonna
U.S. singer

46. Don’t compromise yourself.
You are all you’ve got.
Janis Joplin
(1943-1970) U.S. rock singer

47. We turn not older with years,
but newer every day.
Emily Dickinson
(1830-1886) U.S. poet

48. The more you praise and
celebrate your life, the more there
is in life to celebrate.
Oprah Winfrey
U.S. talk-show host, actress, producer

49. Adventure is worthwhile in itself.
Amelia Earhart
(1897-1937) U.S. aviator

50. Oh, never mind the fashion. When
one has a style of one’s own, it is
always twenty times better.
Margaret Oliphant
(1828-1897) Scottish novelist

51. At the worst, a house unkept cannot
be so distressing as a life unlived.
Rose Macaulay
(1881-1958) British writer