100 Quotes About Survival

What makes someone a survivor? What doesn’t? The answer to both questions may be found in the survival quotes below. They are about overcoming adversity, living through tragedy, and growing stronger. Whether you’re looking for inspiration or comfort, these quotes are sure to make your day better.

We could do it, you know.
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We could do it, you know."" What?"" Leave the district. Run off. Live in the woods. You and I, we could make it. Suzanne Collins
If you truly want to be respected by people you...
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If you truly want to be respected by people you love, you must prove to them that you can survive without them. Michael Bassey Johnson
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I've always loved strong women, which is lucky for me because once you're over about twenty-five there is no other kind. Women blow my mind. The stuff that routinely gets done to them would make most men curl up and die, but women turn to steel and keep on coming. Any man who claims he's not into strong women is fooling himself mindless; he's into strong women who know how to pout prettily and put on baby voices, and who will end up keeping his balls in her makeup bags. . Tana French
Loving someone always requires you to not love others.
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Loving someone always requires you to not love others. Koushun Takami
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Dignity is as essential to human life as water, food, and oxygen. The stubborn retention of it, even in the face of extreme physical hardship, can hold a man's soul in his body long past the point at which the body should have surrendered it. Laura Hillenbrand
I want to keep my dreams, even bad ones, because...
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I want to keep my dreams, even bad ones, because without them, I might have nothing all night long. Joseph Heller
War is not for winning, Masha,
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War is not for winning, Masha, " sighed Koschei, reading the tracks of supply lines, of pincer strategies, over her shoulder. "It is for surviving. Catherynne M. Valente
Be happy -- if you're not even happy, what's so...
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Be happy -- if you're not even happy, what's so good about surviving? Tom Stoppard
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Would you like to know your future? If your answer is yes, think again. Not knowing is the greatest life motivator. So enjoy, endure, survive each moment as it comes to you in its proper sequence -- a surprise. Vera Nazarian
In the year 2025, the best men don't run for...
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In the year 2025, the best men don't run for president, they run for their lives.. .. Stephen King
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...When you die, the energy that kept you alive filters into the people you loved. Did you know that? It's like a fire you've tended all your life, and the sparks are all scattered into the wind.... That's why we survive as long as we do, because the people who loved us keep us going. Kevin Brockmeier
Tough times don't last, tough people do, remember?
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Tough times don't last, tough people do, remember? Gregory Peck
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We’ll never survive! ” “Nonsense. You’re only saying that because no one ever has. William Goldman
Humor keeps us alive. Humor and food. Don't forget food....
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Humor keeps us alive. Humor and food. Don't forget food. You can go a week without laughing. Joss Whedon
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What to do if you find yourself stuck in a crack in the ground underneath a giant boulder you can't move, with no hope of rescue. Consider how lucky you are that life has been good to you so far. Alternatively, if life hasn't been good to you so far, which given your current circumstances seems more likely, consider how lucky you are that it won't be troubling you much longer. Douglas Adams
Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy like art... It has no...
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Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy like art... It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things that give values to survival. Alice Duer Miller
There is more for us to gain through love than...
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There is more for us to gain through love than hate. Suzy Kassem
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I have a duty to speak the truth as I see it and share not just my triumphs, not just the things that felt good, but the pain, the intense, often unmitigated pain. It is important to share how I know survival is survival and not just a walk throught the rain. Audre Lorde
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After that day, I discovered one indelible truth. I discovered that love wasn’t everything that mattered in life. It was an emotion that not many had the luxury of feeling without any pain attached to it. Many say that love will set you free, but I disagree. Love is a cage, a very painful one; its gilded bars made with yearning, heartache, and unfulfilled dreams. And the moment I realized that love wasn’t necessary to one’s survival I became free. No one would have the power to hurt me again. . Mia Asher
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Today I wore a pair of faded old jeans and a plain grey baggy shirt. I hadn't even taken a shower, and I did not put on an ounce of makeup. I grabbed a worn out black oversized jacket to cover myself with even though it is warm outside. I have made conscious decisions lately to look like less of what I felt a male would want to see. I want to disappear. Sierra D. Waters
We need to be fit and ready for anything that...
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We need to be fit and ready for anything that might come our way. Aaron B. Powell
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Law is made by the winner to preserve victory over the loser. Toba Beta
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Public truth telling is a form of recovery, especially when combined with social action. Sharing traumatic experiences with others enables victims to reconstruct repressed memory, mourn loss, and master helplessness, which is trauma's essential insult. And, by facilitating reconnection to ordinary life, the public testimony helps survivors restore basic trust in a just world and overcome feelings of isolation. But the talking cure is predicated on the existence of a community willing to bear witness. 'Recovery can take place only within the context of relationships, ' write Judith Herman. 'It cannot occur in isolation. Lawrence N. Powell
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For there to be harmony and peace, everything must be balanced. And for there to be balance, there must be equality. And where there is equality, there will be justice. And where justice is honored and preserved, there will always be truth. Eliminate the concept of division by class, skills, race, income, and nationality. We are all equals with a common pulse to survive. Every human requires food and water. Every human has a dream and desire to be happy. Every human responds to love, suffering and pain. Every human bleeds the same color and occupies the same world. Let us recognize that we are all part of each other. We are all human. We are all one. . Suzy Kassem
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THREE BASIC TRUTHSThree things have a limited threshold: Time, pain, and death. While truth, love, and knowledge —Are boundless. Three things are needed For humanity to co-exist: Truth, peace and basic needs. Everything else -Is irrelevant. Suzy Kassem
Yet a part of you still believes you can fight...
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Yet a part of you still believes you can fight and survive no matter what your mind knows. It's not so strange. Where there's still life, there's still hope. What happens is up to God. Louis Zamperini
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There was one question, however, which Inciarte had asked him and he could not answer. Why was it that he had lived while others had died? What purpose had God in making this selection? What sense could be made out of it? ‘None, ’ replied Father Andrés. ‘There are times when the will of God cannot be understood by our human intelligence. There are things which in all humility we must accept as a mystery. . Piers Paul Read
Man was designed in a way in which he must...
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Man was designed in a way in which he must eat in order to give him a solid reason to go to work everyday. This helps to keep him out of trouble. God is wise. Criss Jami
What kind of god would create a world in which...
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What kind of god would create a world in which the means of survival depends on our eating each other? Marty Rubin
The man armed with knowledge has a better chance of...
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The man armed with knowledge has a better chance of survival than the man who is simply the fittest. Knowledge is the true strength. Muscle is where the myth is. Suzy Kassem
Never play cards with a man called Doc. Never eat...
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Never play cards with a man called Doc. Never eat at a place called Mom's. Never sleep with a woman whose troubles are worse than your own. Nelson Algren
Wisdom : balance between survival, principles and emotions.
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Wisdom : balance between survival, principles and emotions. Vishal Gupta
Survivors and prevailers are those who love themselves above failure...
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Survivors and prevailers are those who love themselves above failure and everything else except the abstract and mysterious. Janvier ChouteuChando
Never underestimate the latent power of nature. Often when she...
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Never underestimate the latent power of nature. Often when she is most beautiful she is also most dangerous to those who fail to pay attention. Rich Hungerford
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Taking a risk to survive isn’t that impressive. Taking a risk to be happy, that takes guts. Sarah Noffke
Sooner or later in life everyone discovers that perfect happiness...
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Sooner or later in life everyone discovers that perfect happiness is unrealizable, but there are few who stop to consider the antithesis; that perfect unhappiness is equally unattainable. Primo Levi
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Give more, so that we can build more, put interest in understanding another more in whatever actions one might carry out in life. Because we all are fighting for survival against adversaries and are sometimes falling, but if we stand together and help shield and strengthen one another, imagine the world that we will live in together, having more happiness with one another, at one another’s side. Jonathan Anthony Burkett
Be smart. You Only Die Once -YODO
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Be smart. You Only Die Once -YODO Savania China
Advice to my younger self:1 Start where you are with...
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Advice to my younger self:1 Start where you are with what you have2 Try not to hurt other people3 Take more chances4 If you fail, keep trying Germany Kent
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What could I offer the local bad boy except my livelihood? Oh, I know. My body or my planes! Why didn't I think of that? Would you have preferred that I offer him my body, Nic, because I sure as hell wasn't going to sign over either of my planes! Sharon K. Garner
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Listen up, Nic, " she said firmly, looking straight into his gray-blue eyes. "If you die on me out here, so help me I'll hold seances and pester you. I won't give you a moment's peace in the hereafter, " she threatened in a fierce whisper. Gabrielle O'Hara, River of Dreams Sharon K. Garner
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This is a kiss worthy of a blood-soaked battlefield, a kiss born out of tragedy and misery and death and loss. A kiss that has been long in the making, one that I have strenuously avoided, and he has tortuously waited for. Summer Lane
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Despite everything, every piece of Alaska sang to me. I remembered every curve in the trails, every tree in the forest. It was familiar to me, comfortable. The more I thought about leaving it, the less I liked the idea. This was my home. Summer Lane
Just above our terror, the stars painted this storyin perfect...
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Just above our terror, the stars painted this storyin perfect silver calligraphy. And our souls, too oftenabused by ignorance, covered our eyes with mercy. Aberjhani
Love, Mercy, and Grace, sisters all, attend your wounds of...
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Love, Mercy, and Grace, sisters all, attend your wounds of silence and hope. Aberjhani
Mind led bodyto the edge of the precipice. They stared...
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Mind led bodyto the edge of the precipice. They stared in desireat the naked abyss. If you love me, said mind, take that step into silence. If you love me, said body, turn and exist. Anne Stevenson
Mother can beat me all she wants, but I haven’t...
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Mother can beat me all she wants, but I haven’t let her take away my will to somehow survive. Dave Pelzer
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Sorry Johnny." "Sorry for what " "For shouting at you. It's just that when I think about the future I keep panicking. It's like falling from the top of the stairs in the dark not knowing where I'll end up." He put his arm around my shoulders. "I understand. Life is precarious for most of us but more so for you. What you forget is what most of your friends see in you." "What's that " "The ability to beat the odds.." "And fall on my feet " He nodded. "I just hope that lasts." "It will Catkin it will. It wouldn't dare fail you. Julia Golding
Everything will work out... don't give up hope, remain calm.
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Everything will work out... don't give up hope, remain calm. Jonathan Franklin
She was a ray of sunshine, a warm summer rain,...
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She was a ray of sunshine, a warm summer rain, a bright fire on a cold winter’s day, and now she could be dead because she had tried to save the man she loved. Grace Willows
Oh honey, someday a real man is going to make...
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Oh honey, someday a real man is going to make you see stars and you won't even be looking at the sky." Excerpt from Grace Willow's Last Minute Bride Grace Willows
You are enough to drive a saint to madness or...
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You are enough to drive a saint to madness or a king to his knees. Grace Willows
You are enough to drive a saint to madness or...
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You are enough to drive a saint to madness or a king to his knees Excerpt from To Kiss a King by Grace WillowsComing this summer to Amazon Kindle and paperback. Grace Willows
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And when hope returns to us, it will be with a passion and power to match every ounce of this crushing despair and pain, every fiery shred of determination that carried us when hope failed. It will claim us with a courage that will make the goddess herself quake and doubt herself. Rachel L. Schade
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There is never a guarantee of survival, no matter your strength or skill or wit. There is only the day you are conceived and the day you die, and all else is a series of moments you either embrace or endure. Rachel L. Schade
I know it is difficult to believe in your own...
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I know it is difficult to believe in your own courage or fortitude when everything inside of you feels weak and shattered. But do not believe what you feel. You will not be easily broken. Rachel L. Schade
We will not die cornered and cowering in the ruins...
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We will not die cornered and cowering in the ruins of a dead city. Rachel L. Schade
God is my strength and my defense. When I am...
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God is my strength and my defense. When I am weak, he makes me strong. When I am broken, he makes me whole. Amaka Imani Nkosazana
We'd stared into the face of Death, and Death blinked...
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We'd stared into the face of Death, and Death blinked first. You'd think that would make us feel brave and invincible. It didn't. Rick Yancey
Relax. They're not going to kill us. They're going to...
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Relax. They're not going to kill us. They're going to TRY and kill us. And that is a very different thing. Steve Voake
I would rather live than die. I would rather die...
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I would rather live than die. I would rather die than survive as a monster. Robert Fanney
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Survival is the celebration of choosing life over death. We know we're going to die. We all die. But survival is saying: perhaps not today. In that sense, survivors don't defeat death, they come to terms with it. Laurence Gonzales
I'm sure we all have dreams of leaving at some...
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I'm sure we all have dreams of leaving at some time in our lives, but when we reach the bottom, most of us go running home. Deborah Curtis
In a world where everyone struggles to survive whatever the...
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In a world where everyone struggles to survive whatever the cost, how could one judge those who decide to die? Paulo Coelho
Grief is like the ocean; it comes on waves ebbing...
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Grief is like the ocean; it comes on waves ebbing and flowing. Sometimes the water is calm, and sometimes it is overwhelming. All we can do is learn to swim. Vicki Harrison
I wish I could recommend the experience of not being...
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I wish I could recommend the experience of not being killed to everyone. Tim Kreider
That kind of imagination is why we're not dead.
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That kind of imagination is why we're not dead. Rebecca McKinsey
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Don't you have a religion?" Dorolow asked Horza."Yes, " he replied, not taking his eyes away from the screen on the wall above the end of the main mess-room table. "My survival."" So... your religion dies with you. How sad, " Dorolow said, looking back from Horza to the screen. The Changer let the remark pass. Iain Banks
We were playing a game against an unknown and unforgiving...
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We were playing a game against an unknown and unforgiving opponent. The stakes were terrible–play well or die–but we didn’t even know the ground rules. Nando Parrado
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Many a survivor of a plane crash who is or was against cannibalism and had never eaten human flesh once found themselves in a situation where they had to either eat human flesh, or go the way of all flesh. Mokokoma Mokhonoana
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We, in the interest of the so-called progress, have been persuaded to leave the production and at times the cooking of our food to companies whose owners and employees make a living by exploiting our busyness or laziness and our innate hunger to continue living. Mokokoma Mokhonoana
Getting through life without a lot of money, possessions, and/or...
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Getting through life without a lot of money, possessions, and/or friends is admirable, especially if it is by choice. Mokokoma Mokhonoana
Going against the storm requires strength, energy and a will...
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Going against the storm requires strength, energy and a will to succeed. Mitta Xinindlu
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To write as if your life depended on it; to write across the chalkboard, putting up there in public the words you have dredged; sieved up in dreams, from behind screen memories, out of silence-- words you have dreaded and needed in order to know you exist. Adrienne Rich
I have always believed in the principle that immediate survival...
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I have always believed in the principle that immediate survival is more important than long-term survival. Jack McClelland
Compassion is the key to the ultimate survival of our...
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Compassion is the key to the ultimate survival of our species. Doug Dillon
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Cancer gave me an understanding of the point of all this. To survive. Most of our lives it is easy but for the moments when it becomes difficult, when accident or sickness or sadness strikes, it's just about remembering one thing. You must simply survive. Shaun Hick
You never know what will save you.
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You never know what will save you. Abbey Wilson
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Is being burnt a requisite for the making of art? Personally, I don't think it is. But art is poultice for a burn. It is a privilege to have, somewhere within you, a capacity for making something speak from your own seared experience. Molly Peacock
What doesn't kill me provides writing material.
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What doesn't kill me provides writing material. Wayne Gerard Trotman
When walking alone in a jungle of true darkness, there...
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When walking alone in a jungle of true darkness, there are three things that can show you the way: instinct to survive, the knowledge of navigation, creative imagination. Without them, you are lost. Toba Beta
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You push the TRUTH off a cliff, but it will always fly. You can submerge the TRUTH under water, but it will not drown. You can place the TRUTH in the fire, but it will survive. You can bury the TRUTH beneath the ground, but it will arise. TRUTH always prevails! Amaka Imani Nkosazana
Acquiring new knowledge has been crucial for survival over the...
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Acquiring new knowledge has been crucial for survival over the millennia. Eraldo Banovac
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We do not live to think, but, on the contrary, we think in order that we may succeed in surviving. Unknown
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As I began examining my successes and failures, what I gradually realized was that the very same activities that had rescued me from failure, that had carried me from the failure line up to the survival line, would also rescue me from average and carry me from the survival line to the success line- I F I WOULD JUST KEEP DOING THEM. Jeff Olson
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My definition of success is not based on achieving the impossible, but rather surviving the probable. And with a threshold that horribly low, simple survival cannot help but become my highest aspiration. Craig D. Lounsbrough
Education is not merely meant for you to write and...
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Education is not merely meant for you to write and pass exams, get a good job and a good spouse, and settle down for survival. Israelmore Ayivor
We aren’t teaching our children to thrive. We teach them...
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We aren’t teaching our children to thrive. We teach them to survive. It’s not the same thing. Resilience increases thriving without taking anything away from others. Jeanine Joy
Perseverance, endurance and patience are the three greatest survival skills.
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Perseverance, endurance and patience are the three greatest survival skills. Lailah Gifty Akita
All men are born firstly with the instinct to protect...
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All men are born firstly with the instinct to protect themselves. But few grow to really love themselves, and even fewer learn to love their neighbor as themselves. Criss Jami
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The best relationship is not one that brings together perfect partners, but rather one in which the partners learn to live with the differences, imperfections and objections of one another, and seek to appreciate the good qualities that make this relationship worth building on in order to survive better together. Nabil N. Jamal
The difference between failure and survival is that coping skill...
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The difference between failure and survival is that coping skill you used in between the struggles. Ymatruz
Your fear is 100% dependent on you for its survival.
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Your fear is 100% dependent on you for its survival. Steve Maraboli
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As time goes by, as time goes by, the whip-crack of the years, the precipice of illusions, the ravine that swallows up all human endeavour except the struggle to survive. Unknown
SimpleComplex systems can arisefrom simple rules. It
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SimpleComplex systems can arisefrom simple rules. It Rae Armantrout
Extinction is the rule. Survival is the exception.
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Extinction is the rule. Survival is the exception. Carl Sagan
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‎Using his burgeoning intelligence, this most successful of all mammals has exploited the environment to produce food for an ever increasing population. Instead of controlling the environment for the benefit of the population, perhaps it's time we controlled the population to allow the survival of the environment. David Attenborough
Can you imagine a scenario, given our present circumstances, in...
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Can you imagine a scenario, given our present circumstances, in which human life will actually survive and be here in a thousand years? Daniel J. Rice
A law of survival, Ragle had said. Those who refused...
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A law of survival, Ragle had said. Those who refused to respond to the new stimulus would perish. Adapt or perish .. . version of a timeless rule. Philip K. Dick
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There is nothing ideal in Nature, because it was not created by some sort of ideal Almighty Being with perfect peerless craftsmanship. Nature as it is, has evolved through millions of years out of the biological drive for survival. Abhijit Naskar