50 Self-Control Quotes to Help You Build Good Habits

Read this collection of the top 50 self-control quotes to help you manage your actions, emotions, and feelings.

Many aspects of life are beyond our control. Though that’s the case, we must never forget that what we do have power over is ourselves.

It’s through self-control that we can handle varying situations well. Through it, we achieve our desired results and make our lives easier to handle.

The greatest things about this are that we’ll feel more in charge of our lives and feel more confident in who we are.

Sadly, not all are gifted with self-control right from the beginning. After all, it’s an ability and quality that needs to be honed and molded daily.

So, if you don’t know where to begin, read through this list of self-control quotes we’ve prepared for you.

We are confident that it will provide you with the inspiration you need to start taking control of your emotions, decisions, and life!

Begin here.

And make sure to check out these self-acceptance quotes and self-discipline quotes.

Best Self-Control Quotes

1. “Self-control―what lies in our power to do, it lies in our power not to do.” – Aristotle

2. “In that power of self-control lies the seed of eternal freedom.” – Paramahansa Yogananda

3. “Self-control is the ability to control the expression of our passions and emotions.” – Anonymous

4. “Self-control is the chief element in self-respect, and self-respect is the chief element in courage.” – Thucydides

5. “Prudent, cautious self-control, is wisdom’s root.” – Robert Burns

6. “Emotional self-control is the result of hard work, not an inherent skill.” – Travis Bradberry

7. “Self-control means wanting to be effective at some random point in the infinite radiations of my spiritual existence.” – Franz Kafka

8. “God has equipped you to handle difficult things. In fact, He has already planted the seeds of discipline and self-control inside you. You just have to water those seeds with His word to make them grow!” – John Mayer

9. “Self-control, openness, the ability to engage with others, to plan and to persist―these are the attributes that get people in the door and on the job, and lead to productive lives.” – James Heckman

Famous Self-Control Quotes

10. “One’s greatest challenge is to control oneself.” – Kazi Shams

11. “Self-control is strength. Right thought is mastery. Calmness is power.” – James Allen

12. “Self-control might be as passionate and as active as they surrender to passion.” – William Somerset Maugham

13. “You can never conquer the mountain. You can only conquer yourself.” – Jim Whittaker

14. “Self-determination is fine but needs to be tempered with self-control.” – Anonymous

Also read: Famous Quotes, Positive Quotes

Short Self-Control Quotes

15. “If you learn self-control, you can master anything.” – Anonymous

16. “If you lose self-control, everything will fall.” – John Wooden

17. “I am, indeed, a king because I know how to rule myself.” – Pietro Aretino

18. “The man who masters his own soul will forever be called conqueror of conquerors.” – Plautus

19. “If you do not conquer self, you will be conquered by self.” – Napoleon Hill

20. “Man cannot live without self-control.” – Isaac Singer

21. “Self-control is true power.” – Marco Pierre White

22. “I may have lost my heart, but not my self-control.” – Jane Austen

23. “No man is free who cannot command himself.” – Pythagoras

Also read: Short Quotes

Self-Control Quotes That’ll Change Your Life

24. “There never has been, and cannot be, a good life without self-control.” – Leo Tolstoy

25. “Self-control is solely a matter of thought-control!” – Napoleon Hill

26. “Self-control is the power within you that holds the reins of anger, intolerance, and impulsiveness.” – Remez Sasson

Great Self-Control Quotes for Inner Strength

27. “Self-control is one mark of a mature person; it applies to control of language, physical treatment of others, and the appetites of the body.” – Joseph B. Wirthlin

28. “The first and best victory is to conquer self. To be conquered by self is, of all things, the most shameful and objectionable.” – Plato

29. “He who controls others may be powerful, but he who has mastered himself is mightier still.” – Tao Te Ching

30. “Who controls who? It is the spirit―your inner self, controlling the lower nature.” – Remez Sasson

31. “He who reigns within himself, and rules passions, desires, and fears, is more than a king.” – John Milton

32. “We have a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” – Anonymous

Self-Control Quotes for Those Who Want to Achieve Success

33. “Self-control is a key factor in achieving success. We can’t control everything in life, but we can definitely control ourselves.” – Jan McKingley Hilado

34. “The main factor behind success is self-control.” – Rig Veda

35. “Trophies should go to the winners. Self-esteem does not lead to success in life. Self-discipline and self-control do, and sports can help teach those.” – Roy Baumeister

Self-Control Quotes to Make You Reconsider Your Actions

36. “Learning to control your reactions saves you a lot of explaining, regretting, and apologizing.” – Anonymous

37. “You can’t control the fact people will annoy you, but what you can control is your reaction.” – Anonymous

38. “You are always responsible for how you act, no matter how you feel. Remember that.” – Anonymous

39. “Ultimately, the only power to which man should aspire is that which he exercises over himself.” – Elie Wiesel

Self-Control Quotes From the Bible

40. “A person without self-control is like a city with broken-down walls.” – Proverbs 25:28

41. “Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we have an imperishable one.” – 1 Corinthians 9:25

42. “Better a patient person than a warrior, one with self-control than one who takes a city.” – Proverbs 16:32

43. “Like a city whose walls are broken through is a person who lacks self-control.” – Proverbs 25:28

44. “Do not deprive each other except perhaps by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.” – 1 Corinthians 7:5

45. “The end of all things is at hand; therefore, be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers.” – 1 Peter 4:7

46. “But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.” – 1 Corinthians 9:27

More Self-Control Quotes to Learn About Other Values and Morals

47. “I have learned that I really do have discipline, self-control, and patience. But they were given to me as a seed, and it’s up to me to choose to develop them.” – Joyce Meyer

48. “Self-reverence, self-knowledge, self-control―these three alone lead life to sovereign power.” – Alfred Tennyson

49. “By constant self-discipline and self-control you can develop greatness of character.” – Grenville Kleiser

50. “Being forced to work, and forced to do your best, will breed in you temperance and self-control, diligence and strength of will, cheerfulness and content, and a hundred virtues which the idle will never know.” – Charles Kingsley

Did These Quotes Help You Improve Your Self-Control?

Self-control is one of many characteristics that enable people to move forward in life effectively. But, not everyone is capable of exercising self-control. Many tend to be impulsive and act without considering the implications of their actions.

When we do this, we set ourselves up for errors and regrets. In worst-case scenarios, we might even destroy the relationships we’ve built with others. Exercising self-control is such an essential aspect of our lives, so we must actively hone and perfect it.

If you think you can’t do this and you’re just impulsive in nature, don’t fret. Everyone possesses the ability to exercise self-control.

We just have to seek it out and mold it actively. Also, when faced with challenges, we have to take deep breaths and consider every aspect of something before we jump into action.

With that, we hope this list of quotes was able to push you to control, discipline, and master yourself. Always remember that the choice to have self-control is yours to make!

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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.