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Appendix H:
Motivational Quotes
An optional activity for each session is identifying an affrmation or motivational quote that
participants can keep in mind between sessions to help them stay focused. The “power of
positive thinking” is the idea behind using an affrmation.
An affrmation is a statement that can encourage self-effcacy. It should be short enough that
program members can remember it and can repeat it to themselves during an activity such as
walking. Some people like to use basic statements from familiar stories (such as the affrmation of
The Little Engine That Could, who kept repeating, “I think I can, I think I can” as he climbed the
hill). Others prefer quotes from people they admire (such as the statement by Martin Luther King,
Jr.: “Take the frst step in faith. You don’t need to see the whole staircase, just take the frst step.”).
Participants in your group may even want to develop their own individual or group sayings to
bolster confdence and to lend support (for example, “Every day in every way I am getting stronger
and stronger”). Warn group members to avoid a common self-fulflling prophesy; that is, if you tell
yourself, “I’m a failure, I can’t do it,” even silently, there is a good chance you will fail.
Examples of Affrmations and
Motivational Quotes
The following list of motivational quotes is offered as a resource. Such quotes can be found in many
sources, such as Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations, which can be found at your local library. Consider
asking participants to bring in quotes they fnd particularly encouraging or relevant.
“Where there is a will, there is a way.”
—Anonymous
“After a rainstorm, the sun will shine.”
—Anonymous
“Take the frst step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the frst step.”
—Martin Luther King, Jr.
“God made the sea, we make the ship; He made the wind, we make a sail; He made the calm, we
make the oars.”
—Senegal proverb
“You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated. In fact, it may be necessary to
encounter the defeats, so you can know who you are, what you can rise from, how you can come
out of it.”
—Maya Angelou
“Luck is a matter of preparation.”
—Oprah Winfrey
NDEP Power to Prevent Appendices 25