60 Fortitude Quotes on Navigating Life’s Challenges

Let this list of fortitude quotes help you gain strength in this world full of trials and challenges!

When you experience a difficult situation, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and just give up without trying.

Even if you don’t necessarily want to quit, it often feels like it’s the best option at the moment. But, if you face these challenges with fortitude, you can keep going even when things are tough.

That’s what fortitude is—the strength to not give up in the face of opposition, hardship, and suffering.

It’s also the ability to recover quickly from setbacks, trauma, or misfortune.

So, if you’re one of those people who want to practice fortitude in your life to attain success, read on! 

Continue reading below.

And don’t miss out these prudence quotes and enthusiasm quotes.

Best Fortitude Quotes

1. “Fortitude is the disposition of soul which enables us to despise all inconveniences and the loss of things not in our power.” – Augustine of Hippo

2. “Fortitude is the capacity to say no when the world wants to hear yes.” – Erich Fromm

3. “Fortitude is the guard and support of the other virtues.” – John Locke

4. “Fortitude is the marshal of thought, the armor of the will, and the fort of reason.” – Francis Bacon

5. “Fortitude. It means fixity of purpose. It means endurance. It means having the strength to live with what constrains you.” – Hilary Mantel

6. “One’s own troubles can be borne with fortitude; only a monster of indifference can bear the sufferings of others with fortitude.” – Susan Ertz

7. “Fortitude is a strength of mind that enables one to endure adversity with courage.” – Anonymous

8. “Fortitude has its extremes as well as the rest of the virtues, and ought, like them, to be always attended by prudence.” – Gisbertus Voetius

9. “True fortitude is seen in great exploits that justice warrants, and that wisdom guides; and all else is tow’ring phrenzy and distraction.” – Joseph Addison

10. “Fortitude creates winners and champions that aren’t always perfect but perfectly persistent.” – Allene van Oirschot

Inspiring Fortitude Quotes to Uplift You

11. “Fortitude gives us the courage and strength to be brave in moments of fear.” – Virginia Lieto

12. “During times of persistent hardship is when the warrior learns the most about his fortitude.” – Bohdi Sanders

13. “It is by surmounting difficulties, not by sinking under them, that we discover our fortitude.” – Hannah Webster Foster

14. “Gird your hearts with silent fortitude, suffering yet hoping all things.” – Felicia Hemans

15. “I treasure the memory of the past misfortunes. It has added more to my bank of fortitude.” – Bruce Lee

16. “There is but one philosophy, and its name is fortitude! To bear is to conquer our fate.” – Edward Bulwer-Lytton

17. “All of us have sufficient fortitude to bear the misfortunes of others.” – François de La Rochefoucauld

18. “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

Also read: Inspirational Quotes, Positive Quotes

Fortitude Quotes That’ll Push You Forward

19. “I believe that fortitude is key. More than anything, be consistent. Go at it. Go at it. Go at it. When you succeed, don’t forget the responsibility of making somebody else succeed with you.” – Antonia C. Novello

20. “It takes incredible fortitude to keep on the road, even though it’s fun and it’s rewarding, and you can’t complain—it’s just a great life—but, you know, it takes a lot of energy.” – Kate Pierson

21. “One can summon courage and fortitude to face tragedy; irritations and frustrations are a cloud of mosquitoes that nip and sting and drive one frantic.” – Edna Ferber

22. “A true man is one who overcomes the ups and downs of life with fortitude. One should not recoil before reverses of fortunes. One should bravely face them and overcome them.” – Sathya Sai Baba

Also read: Keep Pushing Quotes

Profound Fortitude Quotes to Reflect On

23. “Fortitude implies a firmness and strength of mind that enables us to do and suffer as we ought. It rises upon an opposition, and, like a river, swells the higher for having its course stopped.” – Jeremy Collier

24. “Fortitude: that quality of mind which does not care what happens so long as it does not happen to us.” – Elbert Hubbard

25. “The longer I live, the more I think of the quality of fortitude men who fall, pick themselves up and stumble on, fall again, and are trying to get back up when they die.” – Theodore Roosevelt

26. “Suffering for truth’s sake Is fortitude to highest victory, and to the faithful death the gate of life.” – John Milton

27. “The fortitude which has encountered no dangers, that prudence which has surmounted no difficulties, that integrity which has been attacked by no temptation, can at best be considered but as gold not yet brought to the test, of which therefore the true value cannot be assigned.” – Samuel Johnson

Fortitude Quotes to Shift Your Outlook on Life

28. “It’s not the life that counts but the fortitude you bring into it.” – John Galsworthy

29. “I try to view the challenges in my life not as annoyances, but as confirmations of fortitude.” – Oprah Winfrey

30. “There is no treasure equal to contentment and no virtue equal to fortitude.” – Sarada Devi

31. “There is a natural firmness in some minds, which cannot be unlocked by trifles, but which, when unlocked, discovers a cabinet of fortitude.” – Thomas Paine

32. “A lot of things I’ve done in my life have taken incredible mental fortitude.” – Gretchen Carlson

33. “You can’t learn mental fortitude in a book. Those things are earned, not learned.” – Caleb Plant

Fortitude Quotes to Strengthen Your Mindset

34. “The power never to compromise—to have the fortitude—the guts! The stamina for the long haul.” – Harvey Dorfman

35. “If you have the fortitude to survive, you have more than ample ability to thrive.” – Craig D. Lounsbrough

36. “I, for one, love strength, daring, fortitude. I do not want people to kill the fight in them; I want them to fight for the right things.” – Helen Keller

Fortitude Quotes That’ll Comfort You in Times of Distress

37. “A man’s word and his intestinal fortitude are two of the most honorable virtues known to mankind.” – Jim Nantz

38. “It is true fortitude to stand firm against all shocks of fate, when cowards faint and die in fear to suffer more calamity.” – Philip Massinger

39. “I didn’t need to get knocked down to know the fortitude that I have in me.” – Andre Ward 

40. “I know of no higher fortitude than stubbornness in the face of overwhelming odds.” – Louis Nizer

41. “There is no fortitude like patience, just as there is no destructive emotion worse than hatred.” – Oscar Auliq-Ice

42. “Attitude with gratitude supported by fortitude will take you to the next altitude!” – Bayode Ojo

Short Fortitude Quotes That Will Change Your Life

43. “Fortitude is a fortune.” – Lailah Gifty Akita

44. “Fortitude is the principle of not fleeing danger, but meeting it.” – Plato

45. “Patience and fortitude conquer all things.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

46. “To be conscious of shame is near to fortitude.” – Confucius

47. “Fortitude is a great help in distress.” – Plautus

48. “The virtue of prosperity is temperance; the virtue of adversity is fortitude.” – Francis Bacon

Fortitude Quotes for Work

49. “Nothing is more admirable than the fortitude with which millionaires tolerate the disadvantages of their wealth.” – Jean Rostand

50. “To buy when others are despondently selling and sell when others are greedily buying requires the greatest fortitude and pays the greatest reward.” – John Templeton

51. “Leadership requires a non-stop demand of fortitude from day one to the end.” – Bill Hybels

52. “Being an entrepreneur is simply going from one mistake to the next. You must have the fortitude to continue on.” – Robert Kiyosaki

Fortitude Quotes That’ll Change the Way You See Society

53. “I have often had occasion to remark the fortitude with which women sustain the most overwhelming reverses of fortunes.” – Washington Irving

54. “Women can endure pain with fortitude, and they can perform monotonous tasks with patience.” – Melvil Dewey

55. “Whether you come from a council estate or a country estate, your success will be determined by your own confidence and fortitude.” – Michelle Obama

56. “It was the transcendent fortitude and steadfastness of these men who in adversity and in suffering through the darkest hour of our history held faithful to an ideal. Here men endured that a nation might live.” – Herbert Hoover

More Fortitude Quotes for All Christians

57. “The fortitude of a Christian consists in patience, not in enterprises which the poets call heroic, and which are commonly the effects of interest, pride, and worldly honor.” – John Dryden

58. “A Christian builds his fortitude on a better foundation than stoicism; he is pleased with everything that happens because he knows it could not happen unless it first pleased God, and that which pleases Him must be best.” – Charles Caleb Colton

59. “One of the duties of fortitude is to keep the weak from receiving injury; another, to check the wrong motions of our own souls; a third, both to disregard humiliations and to do what is right with an even mind. All these clearly ought to be fulfilled by all Christians, and especially by the clergy.” – Saint Ambrose

60. “To be strong, to steer straight onward, to dare to praise God, to sit alone and keep silence because He has laid it upon us, to put our mouths in the dust, if so be there may be hope—here is fortitude indeed.” – Frederick Brotherton Meyer

Do You Think Fortitude Is Necessary When You’re Striving for Success?

Many say they want to be successful, but not everyone can say they are willing to work hard. Perhaps the reason for this is a difference in fortitude. Some people can push themselves to achieve their goals, while others are not. 

Fortitude is a virtue that allows us to be strong in the face of opposition. Without it, we would never have been able to overcome any challenges or hardships in our lives. So, learning how to improve our fortitude is a skill that can help us achieve anything we set our minds to.

But, building our fortitude is a lifelong process. Cultivating this vital character trait takes time, commitment, and practice. You just have to be patient; take the time to develop your fortitude to meet the challenges in your life!

With that, we hope this list of fortitude quotes was able to help you learn vital lessons you can apply in life. If you’re looking for something to help you keep going, consider rereading this collection to encourage you!

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Karen Danao

Hi, I’m Karen, a content curator and writer for Quote Ambition; I’m also a marketing and advertising professional. Beyond the keyboard and the screen, I’m someone who’s out to enjoy every bit that life has to offer!

Poetry, philosophy, history, and movies are all topics I love writing about! However, my true passion is in traveling, photography, and finding common ground to which everyone from different cultures can relate.

With the many places I’ve been to, I found that love, inspiration, and happiness are some things that bring people together. No matter how different we are on the outside, I’m a true believer that our emotions don’t lie; if you dig deep into our psyche, we’re all the same inside.

This belief was further amplified when I joined Quote Ambition. Through the quotes I’ve read, collected, organized, and written about, I found that humans are resilient, creative, and compassionate.

We take from each others’ hearts and courage, and it’s through our individual experiences that we learn how to rise above our challenges and pain. In so many ways, Quote Ambition is a platform that allows people from all over the world to gain the inspiration they need anytime, anywhere!

You can find me on MuckRack and LinkedIn.