33 Maya Angelou Quotes To Inspire Personal Growth

“Love is like a virus. It can happen to anybody at any time.” – Maya Angelou

This collection of quotes by Maya Angelou will help you navigate life’s challenges with grace and courage.

Use these quotes to inspire personal growth, develop empathy, and celebrate the brilliance of resilience.

General Information about Maya Angelou

NameMaya Angelou
Birthdate and PlaceFaced racial discrimination growing up in the southern United States. She experienced early trauma and was mute for several years.
OccupationPoet, Author, Civil Rights Activist
Early LifeActively involved in the Civil Rights Movement worked with Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X.
EducationGraduated from the California Labor School; much of her education came from life experiences rather than formal education.
Key Works“I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings”, “Gather Together in My Name”, “And Still I Rise”, “The Heart of a Woman”, “On the Pulse of Morning”
Career HighlightsActively involved in the Civil Rights Movement and worked with Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X.
Awards and HonorsPresidential Medal of Freedom (2010), Grammy Awards for her spoken word albums, over 50 honorary degrees
Philanthropy and ActivismAdvocated for women’s rights and taught about inclusion and understanding.
Personal LifeHad one son, Guy Johnson. She married Paul du Feu (m. 1974–1983) and Enistasious Tosh Angelos (m. 1951–1954).
Influence and LegacyInfluential in promoting African-American culture and rights, female empowerment, and overcoming adversity. Her works continue to inspire and educate on the human condition, equality, and the power of storytelling.

Top 10 Maya Angelou Quotes

1. “Nothing will work unless you do.” – Maya Angelou

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Maya Angelou Quotes about work

2. “Try to be a rainbow in someone’s cloud.” – Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes about kindness

3. “All great achievements require time.” – Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes about greatness

4. “If you have only one smile in you, give it to the people you love.”Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes that will make you smile

5. “Love is like a virus. It can happen to anybody at any time.” – Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes about love

6. “I believe that every person is born with talent.” – Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes about talent

7. “At 50, I began to know who I was. It was like waking up to myself.” – Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes about self discovery

8. “We may encounter many defeats but we must not be defeated.” – Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes about perseverence

9. “If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.” – Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes about change

10. “I know for sure that loves saves me and that it is here to save us all.” – Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes and sayings

Inspirational Maya Angelou Quotes About Hope

11. “While I know myself as a creation of God, I am also obligated to realize and remember that everyone else and everything else is also God’s creation.” – Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes About God

12. “Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope.” – Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes About Love

13. “Courage is the most important of all the virtues because without courage you can’t practice any other virtue consistently.” – Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes About Courage

Uplifting Maya Angelou Quotes About Loving Others

14. “My great hope is to laugh as much as I cry; to get my work done and try to love somebody and have the courage to accept the love in return.” – Maya Angelou

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Maya Angelou Quotes About Hope

15. “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” – Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes About Forgetting

16. “You are the sum total of everything you’ve ever seen, heard, eaten, smelled, been told, forgot – it’s all there. Everything influences each of us, and because of that I try to make sure that my experiences are positive.” – Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes About

17. “One isn’t necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential. Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency.” – Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes About potential

18. “A wise woman wishes to be no one’s enemy; a wise woman refuses to be anyone’s victim.” – Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes About Women

19. “Words mean more than what is set down on paper. It takes the human voice to infuse them with deeper meaning.”Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes About Words

20. My life has been one great big joke, a dance that’s walked, a song that’s spoke, I laugh so hard I almost choke when I think about myself.” – Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes About Life

Maya Angelou Quotes about Love

21. “You can’t forgive without loving. And I don’t mean sentimentality. I don’t mean mush. I mean having enough courage to stand up and say, ‘I forgive. I’m finished with it.”‘ – Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes About Forgiving

22. “History, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, but if faced with courage, need not be lived again.” – Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou Quotes About History

23. “If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude. Don’t complain.” – Maya Angelou

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Maya Angelou Quotes to change your attitude

24. “Whatever you want to do, if you want to be great at it, you have to love it and be able to make sacrifices for it.” – Maya Angelou

Powerful Maya Angelou Quotes

25. “It’s one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself, to forgive. Forgive everybody.” – Maya Angelou

Smart Maya Angelou Quotes

Heart Warming Maya Angelou Quotes

26. “If you are always trying to be normal you will never know how amazing you can be.” ― Maya Angelou

27. “You may shoot me with your words, you may cut me with your eyes, you may kill me with your hatefulness, but still, like air, I’ll rise!” ― Maya Angelou

28. “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.” ― Maya Angelou

29. “Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.” ― Maya Angelou

30. “We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty.” ― Maya Angelou

31. “If you are going down a road and don’t like what’s in front of you, and look behind you and don’t like what you see, get off the road. Create a new path!” ― Maya Angelou

32. “Hope and fear cannot occupy the same space. Invite one to stay.” ― Maya Angelou

33. “Open your eyes to the beauty around you, open your mind to the wonders of life, open your heart to those who love you, and always be true to yourself.” ― Maya Angelou

With over a decade of writing experience, Norbert Juma is a Lifestyle Writer and Editor at EverydayPower.com. Norbert love for all things internet has led him to earn a BSC in Computer Science. For the past 5 years with EverydayPower, Norbert has covered tech, family, and entertainment.
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7 Comments
  1. Renee

    January 2, 2023 at 3:33 PM

    Thank you. I am a huge fan and love reading her works. She was so powerful with a strong aura the 2 times I met hher in person

  2. Kathy

    February 13, 2020 at 11:59 AM

    I’ve been looking for days to find a great reflection for a meeting. And here I’ve found so many that are powerful and truly inspirational! Thank you for this great compilation of loving wisdom from Maya Angelou:)

  3. PADDY CREAN

    December 21, 2019 at 8:42 AM

    I first read Maya in my 80s and I began life all over. The most remarkable person I have come across

  4. Edna

    April 1, 2019 at 10:11 AM

    What an inspirational, phenomenal woman. Her words pierce the soul in a way that provokes introspection and action. if you are not moved by her words, check your pulse.

  5. DoloresTighe

    March 16, 2019 at 9:47 PM

    I am watching Maya on the opera show. Fantastic..I hope to share her quotes with my friends

  6. Glenda

    February 14, 2019 at 3:18 AM

    They are amazing and so true.
    Heartfelt and applicable to everyday life

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