Mark Twain was a prolific American author and humorist. He was born Samuel Langhorne Clemens in 1835 in the town of Florida, Missouri.
Samuel was a sickly child who, after suffering from scarlet fever and experiencing a brief time at school, was forced to help support his family with odd jobs. He eventually became an apprentice as a printer in Hannibal. When he found out that the printing press was being used to publish only religious material, he quit and returned home to work for his brother Orion who had been appointed secretary of the Nevada Territory.
In 1861 Twain traveled with Orion to Nevada, where he worked for three years as a miner, newspaper correspondent, editor, and occasional lecturer before joining San Francisco’s newspaper The Morning Call in 1864.
Here are some of the most inspiring quotes from the great Mark Twain that can change your life
“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to reform (or pause and reflect).” – Mark Twain
“Continuous improvement is better than delayed perfection.” – Mark Twain
“Give every day the chance to become the most beautiful of your life.” – Mark Twain
“Do something every day that you don’t want to do. This is the golden rule for acquiring the habit of doing your duty without pain.” – Mark Twain
“Giving up smoking is the easiest thing in the world. I know because I’ve done it thousands of times.” – Mark Twain
“All you need in this life is ignorance and confidence, and then success is sure.” – Mark Twain
“A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval.” – Mark Twain
“With courage you will dare to take risks, have the strength to be compassionate, and the wisdom to be humble. Courage is the foundation of integrity.” – Mark Twain
“I was gratified to be able to answer promptly, and I did. I said I didn’t know.” – Mark Twain
“The man who is a pessimist before 48 knows too much; if he is an optimist after it, he knows too little.” – Mark Twain
“When angry, count to four; when very angry, swear.” – Mark Twain
“The more you explain it, the more I don’t understand it.” – Mark Twain
“If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous he will not bite you. This is the principal difference between a dog and man.” – Mark Twain
“Life would be infinitely happier if we could only be born at the age of eighty and gradually approach eighteen.” – Mark Twain
“Forgiveness is the fragrance that the violet sheds on the heel that has crushed it.” – Mark Twain
“Always do what is right. It will gratify half of mankind and astound the other.” – Mark Twain
“If you don’t read the newspaper, you’re uninformed. If you read the newspaper, you’re misinformed.” – Mark Twain
“Golf is a good walk spoiled.” – Mark Twain
“When we remember we are all mad, the mysteries disappear and life stands explained.” – Mark Twain
“Thunder is good, thunder is impressive; but it is lightning that does the work.” – Mark Twain
“When I was younger I could remember anything, whether it happened or not.” – Mark Twain
“Good friends, good books, and a sleepy conscience: this is the ideal life.” – Mark Twain
“Never put off till tomorrow what may be done day after tomorrow just as well”. – Mark Twain
“Principles have no real force except when one is well-fed.” – Mark Twain
“If you don’t read the newspaper, you’re uninformed. If you read the newspaper, you’re mis-informed.” – Mark Twain
“I make it a rule never to smoke while I’m sleeping.” – Mark Twain
“Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear — not absence of fear.” – Mark Twain
“Go to Heaven for the climate, Hell for the company.” – Mark Twain
“Why is it that we rejoice at a birth and grieve at a funeral? It is because we are not the person involved.” – Mark Twain
“Let us endeavor so to live so that when we come to die even the undertaker will be sorry.” – Mark Twain
“Everyone is a moon, and has a dark side which he never shows to anybody.” – Mark Twain
“Kindness is a language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.” – Mark Twain
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain
“Better to keep your mouth shut and appear stupid than to open it and remove all doubt.” – Mark Twain
“The only way to keep your health is to eat what you don’t want, drink what you don’t like, and do what you’d rather not.” – Mark Twain
“A round man cannot be expected to fit in a square hole right away. He must have time to modify his shape.” – Mark Twain
“The finest clothing made is a person’s own skin, but, of course, society demands something more than this.” – Mark Twain
“Only one thing is impossible for God: To find any sense in any copyright law on the planet.” – Mark Twain
“Get your facts first, and then you can distort them as much as you please.” – Mark Twain
“The more I learn about people, the more I like my dog.” – Mark Twain
“Never put off till tomorrow what may be done day after tomorrow just as well.” – Mark Twain
“Nothing so needs reforming as other people’s habits.” – Mark Twain
“The man who does not read has no advantage over the man who cannot read.” – Mark Twain
“Of all the animals, man is the only one that is cruel. He is the only one that inflicts pain for the pleasure of doing it.” – Mark Twain
“It is better to deserve honors and not have them than to have them and not deserve them.” – Mark Twain
“The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated.” – Mark Twain
“I don’t like to commit myself about heaven and hell – you see, I have friends in both places.” – Mark Twain
“Work is a necessary evil to be avoided.” – Mark Twain
“Life is short, break the rules. Forgive quickly, kiss slowly. Love truly. Laugh uncontrollably and never regret anything that makes you smile.” – Mark Twain
“I can teach anybody how to get what they want out of life. The problem is that I can’t find anybody who can tell me what they want.” – Mark Twain
“Man was made at the end of the week’s work, when God was tired.” – Mark Twain
“The most interesting information comes from children, for they tell all they know and then stop.” – Mark Twain
“Many a small thing has been made large by the right kind of advertising.” – Mark Twain
“I do not fear death. I had been dead for billions and billions of years before I was born, and had not suffered the slightest inconvenience from it.” – Mark Twain
“Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter.” – Mark Twain
“The lack of money is the root of all evil.” – Mark Twain
“The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.” – Mark Twain
“There’s one way to find out if a man is honest: ask him; if he says yes, you know he’s crooked.” – Mark Twain
“Never tell the truth to people who are not worthy of it.” – Mark Twain
“A lie can travel half way around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes.” – Mark Twain
“Do the right thing. It will gratify some people and astonish the rest.” – Mark Twain
“Books are for people who wish they were somewhere else.” – Mark Twain
“I have never taken any exercise, except sleeping and resting, and I never intend to take any.” – Mark Twain
“I am an old man and have known a great many troubles, but most of them never happened.” – Mark Twain
“A banker is a fellow who lends you his umbrella when the sun is shining, but wants it back the minute it begins to rain.” – Mark Twain
“There are basically two types of people. People who accomplish things, and people who claim to have accomplished things. The first group is less crowded.” – Mark Twain
“A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way.” – Mark Twain
“We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.” – Mark Twain
“When you fish for love, bait with your heart, not your brain.” – Mark Twain
“I can live for two months on a good compliment.” – Mark Twain
“It’s not the size of the dog in the fight, it’s the size of the fight in the dog.” – Mark Twain
“Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not absence of fear.” – Mark Twain
“Action speaks louder than words but not nearly as often.” – Mark Twain
“Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain
“Never allow someone to be your priority while allowing yourself to be their option.” – Mark Twain
“A man’s character may be learned from the adjectives which he habitually uses in conversation.” – Mark Twain
“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.” – Mark Twain
“If you tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything.” – Mark Twain
“Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; truth isn’t.” – Mark Twain
“To succeed in life, you need two things: ignorance and confidence.” – Mark Twain
“Out of all the things I have lost, I miss my mind the most.” – Mark Twain
“Good friends, good books and a sleepy conscience: this is the ideal life.” – Mark Twain
“Any emotion, if it is sincere, is involuntary.” – Mark Twain
“Thousands of geniuses live and die undiscovered – either by themselves or by others.” – Mark Twain
“The secret of getting ahead is getting started.” – Mark Twain
“Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear – not absence of fear” – Mark Twain
“Wrinkles should merely indicate where the smiles have been.” – Mark Twain
Don’t part with your illusions. When they are gone you may still exist, but you have ceased to live.” – Mark Twain
“Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.” – Mark Twain
“Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society.” – Mark Twain
“The best way to cheer yourself up is to try to cheer somebody else up.” – Mark Twain
“Get your facts first, then you can distort them.” – Mark Twain
“I don’t remember my first lie; I was too young. But I do remember my second.” – Mark Twain
“A clear conscience is the sure sign of a bad memory.” – Mark Twain
“Anger is an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything
on which it is poured.” – Mark Twain
“Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.” – Mark Twain
“Get your facts first, then you can distort them as you please.” – Mark Twain
“I have never let my schooling interfere with my education.” – Mark Twain
“You can’t depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus.” – Mark Twain
“Wisdom is the reward you get for a lifetime of listening when you would rather have talked.” – Mark Twain
“The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why.” – Mark Twain
“Don’t wait. The time will never be just right.” – Mark Twain
“Do the thing you fear most and the death of fear is certain.” – Mark Twain
“It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.” – Mark Twain
“Never argue with stupid people, they will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience.” – Mark Twain
“A half-truth is the most cowardly of lies.” – Mark Twain
“It is wiser to find out than suppose.” – Mark Twain
“To get the full value of joy you must have someone to divide it with.” – Mark Twain
“The world owes you nothing. It was here first.” – Mark Twain
“Man is the only animal that blushes. Or needs to.” – Mark Twain
“The trouble is not in dying for a friend, but in finding a friend worth dying for.” – Mark Twain
“Life does not consist mainly, or even largely, of facts or happenings. It consist mainly of the storm of thoughts that is forever flowing through one’s head.” – Mark Twain
