Way More Than a Few of My Favorite Quotes From Dale Carnegie

When it comes to timeless wisdom about human nature, relationships, and personal growth, few voices carry as much weight as Dale Carnegie’s.

His words have been guiding lights for decades, helping people communicate better, overcome fear, and live with more joy. I’ve collected more than a few of my favorite Carnegie quotes over the years — and they never fail to hit home.

Below, you’ll find them grouped by theme, with some key lines pulled out to grab you by the heart (or give you that little mental nudge you didn’t know you needed).

---

🌱 On Self-Reflection & Personal Growth

"Be more concerned with your character than with your reputation, for your character is what you are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are."

• "Talk about your own mistakes before criticizing the other person."

• "If you are not in the process of becoming the person you want to be, you are automatically engaged in becoming the person you don't want to be."

• "You never achieve success unless you like what you are doing."

• "The Successful man will profit from mistakes and try again in a different way."

• "Destiny is not a matter of chance. It is a matter of choice."

• "Nobody is so miserable as he who longs to be somebody and something other than the person he is in body and mind."

• "Keep your mind open to change all the time. Welcome it. Court it."

• "Feeling sorry for yourself, and your present condition is not only a waste of time, but the worst habit you could possibly have."

---

💪 On Fear & Courage

"You can conquer almost any fear if you will only make up your mind to do so. For remember, fear doesn't exist anywhere except in the mind."

• "The way to defeat fear: decide on a course of conduct and follow it. Keep so busy and work so hard that you forget about being afraid."

• "Face the thing that seems overwhelming and you will be surprised how your fear will melt away."

• "First ask yourself: What is the worst thing that can happen? Then prepare to accept it. Then proceed to improve on the worst."

---

🤝 On Dealing with People

"You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you."

• "There is only one way to get anybody to do anything, and that is by making the other person want to do it."

• "Praise the slightest improvements and praise every improvement."

• "Any fool can criticize, complain, and condemn - and most fools do. But it takes character and self-control to be understanding and forgiving."

• "When dealing with people, remember you are not dealing with creatures of logic, but with creatures bristling with prejudice and motivated by pride and vanity."

• "Remember that a person's name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language."

• "Success in dealing with people depends on sympathetic grasp of the other person's viewpoint."

• "You must have a good time meeting people if you expect them to have a good time meeting you."

---

☀ On Worry, Happiness & Perspective

"Remember, today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday."

• "When fate hands you a lemon make lemonade."

• "It isn't what you have or who you are or where you are or what you are doing that makes you happy or unhappy. It is what you think about it."

• "Remember that unjust criticism is often a disguised compliment."

• "Don't fuss about trifles. Don't permit little things, the mere termites of life, to ruin your happiness."

• "By talking to yourself about the things you have to be grateful for you can fill your mind with thoughts that soar and sing."

• "If you have worries, there is no better way to eliminate them than by walking them off."

• "The person who seeks all their applause from outside has their happiness in another's keeping."

• "Instead of worrying about what people say of you, why not spend time trying to accomplish something they will admire."

• "One of the most tragic things I know about human nature is that all of us tend to put off living... instead of enjoying the roses blooming outside your window today."

---

🌟 On Living Fully

"I shall pass this way but once; any good, therefore, that I can do or any kindness that I can show to any human being, let me do it now."

• "Everyone should have a deep-seated interest or hobby to enrich his mind, add zest to living..."

• "I wasn't interested in making a lot of money, but I was interested in making a lot of living."

• "This is the only chance you will ever have on earth with this exciting adventure called life. So why not plan it, and try to live it as richly, as happily as possible?"

• "The only way on Earth to influence other people is to talk about what they want and show them how to get it."

• "I deal with the obvious. I present, reiterate, and glorify the obvious - because the obvious is what people need to be told."