Procrastination quotes
359 quotes on this topic — from poets, philosophers, and thinkers across history.
"Throughout history, it has been the inaction of those who could have acted; the indifference of those who should have known better; the silence of the voice of justice when it mattered most; that has made it possible for evil to triumph."
"Think of all the years passed by in which you said to yourself "I'll do it tomorrow," and how the gods have again and again granted you periods of grace of which you have not availed yourself. It is time to realize that you are a member of the Universe, that you are born of Nature itself, and to know that a limit has been set to your time. Use every moment wisely, to perceive your inner refulgence, or 'twill be gone and nevermore within your reach."
"The only difference between success and failure is the ability to take action."
"Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work at hand. The sun's rays do not burn until brought to a focus."
"A man who procrastinates in his choosing will inevitably have his choice made for him by circumstance."
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Browse quotes that often appear alongside procrastination — connected by shared ideas and recurring themes.
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"The problem with waiting until tomorrow is that when it finally arrives, it is called today."
"Our chief defect is that we are more given to talking about things than to doing them."
"The most valuable of all education is the ability to make yourself do the thing you have to do, when it has to be done, whether you like it or not."
"The era of procrastination, of half-measures, of soothing and baffling expedients, of delays is coming to its close. In its place we are entering a period of consequences."
"Plan to be spontaneous tomorrow."
"Nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent."
"Don't be afraid of failure, be afraid of not trying in the first place."
"Who waits until circumstances completely favor his undertaking, will never accomplish anything."
"God has promised forgiveness to your repentance, but He has not promised tomorrow to your procrastination."
"I never put off till tomorrow what I can do the day after."
"Leave nothing for to-morrow which can be done to-day."
"My advice is to never do tomorrow what you can do today. Procrastination is the thief of time."
"Procrastination is like a credit card: it's a lot of fun until you get the bill."
"Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration, the rest of us just get up and go to work."
"The surest way to be late is to have plenty of time"
"Never save the best for later. You don't know what tomorrow holds."
"Time is an equal opportunity employer. Each human being has exactly the same number of hours and minutes every day. Rich people can't buy more hours. Scientists can't invent new minutes. And you can't save time to spend it on another day. Even so, time is amazingly fair and forgiving. No matter how much time you've wasted in the past, you still have an entire tomorrow."
"Do not say, 'When I have leisure, I will study,' because you may never have leisure."
"One of the most tragic things I know about human nature is that all of us tend to put off living."
"We are now faced with the fact, my friends, that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there is such a thing as being too late. Procrastination is still the thief of time. Life often leaves us standing bare, naked, and dejected with a lost opportunity. . . . Over the bleached bones and jumbled residues of numerous civilizations are written the pathetic words, 'Too late.' ... Now let us begin. Now let us rededicate ourselves to the long and bitter, but beautiful, struggle for a new world."
