The Very Best Inspirational Dr. Seuss Quotes for Every Occasion

It goes without saying that Dr. Seuss and his genius nonsensical books have magic to them. In all his wonderful weirdness, the acclaimed children’s author puts forth wisdom that rivals Confucius and puts Socrates to shame, all while making up words and warping the rules of grammar to fit his needs. From “The Cat in the Hat” and “Green Eggs and Ham” to “Oh, the Places You’ll Go” and “The Lorax,” Dr. Seuss’s books offer children unparalleled lessons on self-acceptance, love, and positivity.

Most impressive, and perhaps why the lines from his books resonate so profoundly with readers, is that they exude Seuss’s uniquely childlike sense of optimism while refusing to neglect the hard truths about life. He does what every parent aims to: he gives kids the encouragement that they can do and be anything they want in life, but the motivational punch of reality that it won’t always be easy. While the real magic comes from reading his picture books in full, these inspirational Dr. Seuss quotes will never fail to put a smile on your and your kid’s faces.

Inspirational Dr. Seuss Quotes

• “Only you can control your future.”
• “If we do not choose, we will end up with none.”
• “You have to be odd to be number one.”
• “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot. Nothing is going to get better. It’s not.”
• “Oh, the things you can find. If you don’t stay behind!”
• “In the places I go there are things that I see that I never could spell if I stopped with the Z.”
• “You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose.”
• “Oh the thinks you can think!”
• “You’ll be on your way up! You’ll be seeing great sights! You’ll join the high fliers who soar to high heights.”
• “With your head full of brains and your shoes full of feet, you’re too smart to go down any not-so-good street.”
• “Today I shall behave as if this is the day I will be remembered.”
• “You’re off to great places! Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting so get on your way!”
• “Today you are you! That is truer than true! There is no one alive who is you-er than you!”

Wise Dr. Seuss Quotes

• “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”
• “You’ll miss the best things if you keep your eyes shut.”
• “Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple.”
• “Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the things you can think up if you only try.”
• “It’s better to know how to learn than to know.”
• “Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory.”
• “All alone! Whether you like it or not, Alone is something you’ll be quite a lot!”
• “So be sure when you step, Step with care and great tact. And remember that life is a great balancing act.”
• “And will you succeed? Yes! You will, indeed! (98 and ¾ percent guaranteed) Kid, you’ll move mountains.”
• “Today was good. Today was fun. Tomorrow is another one.”
• “They say I’m old-fashioned and live in the past, but sometimes I think progress progresses too fast!”
• “I’m afraid that sometimes you’ll play lonely games too. Games you can’t win ’cause you’ll play against you.”
• “You know when you’re in love when you can’t fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.”
• "Sometimes, when I see my granddaughters make small discoveries of their own, I wish I were a child."
• "Fun is good."
• "You're in pretty good shape for the shape you are in."
• “I like nonsense; it wakes up the brain cells.”

Self-Love Dr. Seuss Quotes

• “You are you. Now isn’t that pleasant.”
• “Why fit in when you were born to stand out?”
• “You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And you are the one who’ll decide where to go.”
• “Today you are you, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is youer than you.”
• “A person’s a person, no matter how small.”
• “Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.”
• “To the world you may be one person; but to one person you may be the world.”

Positive Dr. Seuss Quotes

• “Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living, it’s a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope.”
• “If things start happening, don’t worry. Don’t stew. Just go right along and you’ll start happening too.”
• “Just tell yourself, duckie. You’re really quite lucky!”
• “I know it is wet and the sun is not sunny, but we can have lots of good fun that is funny.”
• “Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile because it happened.”
• “We are all a little weird and life’s a little weird, and when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours. we join up with them and fall in mutual weirdness and call it love.”
• “It’s a troublesome world. All the people who are in it are troubled with troubles almost every minute. You ought to be thankful, a whole heaping lot, for the places and people you’re lucky you’re not.”
• “From there to here, and here to there, funny things are everywhere.”
• “Remember me and smile, for it’s better to forget than to remember me and cry.”