100 Short and Inspiring English Proverbs

Wisdom Proverbs

1. A wise man will make more opportunities than he finds.

2. A wise man never knows all; only fools know everything.

3. It's easier to prevent bad habits than to break them.

4. A fool and his money are soon parted.

5. The nail that sticks up gets hammered down.

Motivational Proverbs

6. You miss 100% of the shots you never take.

7. No pain, no gain.

8. If you want to achieve greatness, stop asking for permission.

9. The harder you work, the luckier you get.

10. Impossible is nothing.

Life and Success Proverbs

11. All things are difficult before they are easy.

12. What you sow, you shall reap.

13. You don't have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great.

14. If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.

15. Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.

Opportunity Proverbs

16. Every dark cloud has a silver lining.

17. Opportunity knocks on every man's door once in a lifetime.

18. Make hay while the sun shines.

19. Luck favors the prepared.

20. When one door closes, another opens.

Love and Relationship Proverbs

21. Love is blind.

22. All's fair in love and war.

23. A friend in need is a friend indeed.

24. A happy wife is a happy life.

25. Blood is thicker than water.

Health and Wellness Proverbs

26. An apple a day keeps the doctor away.

27. Health is wealth.

28. If you don't take care of your body, where will you live?

29. A sound mind in a sound body.

30. Prevention is better than cure.

Perseverance Proverbs

31. It's not over until it's over.

32. When the going gets tough, the tough get going.

33. Fall seven times, stand up eight.

34. Never give up on something that you can't go a day without thinking about.

35. If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.

Honesty and Integrity Proverbs

36. Honesty is the best policy.

37. Cheaters never prosper.

38. Actions speak louder than words.

39. Integrity is doing the right thing, even when no one is watching.

40. The truth shall set you free.

Humility Proverbs

41. Pride goes before a fall.

42. Empty vessels make the most noise.

43. A bird does not sing because it has an answer. It sings because it has a song.

44. The empty can rattles the most.

45. If you boast too much, the opposite will occur.

Change Proverbs

46. Change is the only constant in life.

47. A change is as good as a rest.

48. The more things change, the more they remain the same.

49. Change your thoughts and you change your world.

50. If you change nothing, nothing will change.

Leadership Proverbs

51. A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.

52. Example is not the main thing in influencing others, it is the only thing.

53. A good leader takes a little more than his share of the blame, a little less than his share of the credit.

54. Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right thing.

55. Leaders don't create followers, they create more leaders.

Money and Wealth Proverbs

56. Money can't buy happiness.

57. A penny saved is a penny earned.

58. The love of money is the root of all evil.

59. If you want to know what God thinks of money, just look at the people he gave it to.

60. Time is money.

Experience Proverbs

61. Experience is the best teacher.

62. You learn something every day if you pay attention.

63. The only source of knowledge is experience.

64. The experience of the past is the wisdom of the future.

65. Mistakes are proof that you are trying.

Persistence Proverbs

66. Rome wasn't built in a day.

67. Every accomplishment starts with the decision to try.

68. There is no substitute for hard work.

69. The elevator to success is out of order. You'll have to use the stairs...one step at a time.

70. If you can't fly then run, if you can't run then walk, if you can't walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward.

Character Proverbs

71. Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.

72. The measure of a man's real character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

73. A good character is more valuable than wealth.

74. Your character is your destiny.

75. The true test of a man's character is what he does when no one is watching.

Creativity and Imagination Proverbs

76. Creativity is intelligence having fun.

77. Imagination is more important than knowledge.

78. Nothing is impossible, the word itself says 'I'm possible'!

79. You can't use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.

80. The world is but a canvas to our imagination.

Hope Proverbs

81. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.

82. Everything will be okay in the end. If it's not okay, it's not the end.

83. There is always light at the end of the tunnel.

84. Hope is the anchor of the soul.

85. Hope is a waking dream.

Time Proverbs

86. Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana.

87. Lost time is never found again.

88. Wasting time is the biggest sin.

89. Time and tide wait for no man.

90. Time heals all wounds.

Heart and Mind Proverbs

91. Follow your heart but take your brain with you.

92. The heart has reasons that reason does not understand.

93. The mind is everything, what you think you become.

94. Love and faithfulness keep a king safe; through love his throne is made secure.

95. The mind that is anxious about future events is miserable.

Success and Failure Proverbs

96. Success is a journey, not a destination.

97. Success is not what you have, but who you are.

98. Failure is not falling down but refusing to get up.

99. Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.

100. The only way to do great work is to love what you do.