Pride is a complex emotion that could have different meanings. It can refer to self-confidence or imply an unhealthy and excessive belief in one's abilities. We also associate it with the LGBTQ community, which celebrates the colorful identities reminding us of respect and acceptance. Check out our pride quotes below that encapsulate this emotion's definitions and significant meanings.
Quick links to our selection of pride quotes:
Even in the olden days, Pride could both be a sin and a virtue. Today, researchers formally looked into it and divided it into two types. The negative type, hubristic, shows arrogance, while the positive kind, authentic, relates to fulfillment and self-esteem.
A study examined the connection between varying expressions of pride1 and concluded that authentic pride characterizes a sense of purpose, self-control, adaptive achievement, and goal engagement. In contrast, hubristic pride depicts extrinsic impulsiveness, public recognition, and social dominance values.
Start reading our pride quotes below to differentiate the types of pride further.
"Remember, you have been criticizing yourself for years, and it hasn’t worked. Try approving of yourself and see what happens."
"Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously. A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves, vanity to what we would have others think of us."
"Pride helps us, and pride is not a bad thing when it only urges us to hide our own hurts—not to hurt others."
"Don’t let compliments mess with your head or criticism mess with your heart."
With all the achievements we’ve notched up and the experiences we have gained, we owed ourselves pride (the positive one). No matter how big or tiny our wins are, we should take a moment to reflect on them.
And we should appreciate our unique qualities. Studies have shown that healthy pride in oneself can lead to better self-esteem and positive emotions2.
Do not be afraid. Stand out, look in the mirror, and consider the following pride quotes to help retain a positive attitude.
"Success is a long process. If you're making steady progress on the path to your goals, you have already succeeded. Feel proud of that."
"Be happy being you. Don’t try to be anyone else. You’re unique, so be loud and proud."
"Pride is holding your head up when everyone around you has theirs bowed. Courage is what makes you do it."
"To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment."
"To be yourself is truly a revolutionary act, and I think more and more people should try it, because it's gotten me a pretty cool life."
"Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one's definition of your life. Define yourself."
"It’s a fine thing to rise above pride, but you must have pride in order to do so."
"One’s dignity may be assaulted, vandalized and cruelly mocked, but it can never be taken away unless it is surrendered."
When can we know if we have passed the line into harmful pride? First, through awareness, we can step back and evaluate our actions.
Being too prideful in a negative way can manifest in different ways, such as taking credit for someone else's work or becoming easily offended. Once we catch these, we should look to correct our behavior. There's also no harm in asking those around us for their honest opinion on our behavior. At the end of the day, nobody is perfect, so we should always check in with ourselves.
Reflect on the pride quotes below from time to time.
"I hope they help you foster healthy self-esteem and build your confidence! Pride is the trap of ego pleasure."
"A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and, of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you."
"Be careful, ever so careful, in trumpeting your own achievements, and always talk less about yourself than about other people. Modesty is generally preferable."
"All men make mistakes, but a good man yields when he knows his course is wrong, and repairs the evil. The only crime is pride."
"Too many people spend money they haven't earned, to buy things they don't want, to impress people that they don't like."
"It is better to lose your pride with someone you love rather than to lose that someone you love with your useless pride."
"Too many people overvalue what they are not and undervalue what they are."
"I could easily forgive his pride if he had not mortified mine."
"History isn't something you look back at and say it was inevitable. It happens because people make decisions that are sometimes very impulsive and of the moment, but those moments are cumulative realities."
As mentioned earlier, authentic pride correlates with self-esteem. And we can witness this through successful yet humble personalities, from celebrities to authors.
For example, despite her past struggles, Oprah Winfrey worked her way up until she became one of the most influential and wealthiest African-Americans. Another is a Brazilian lyricist and novelist, Paulo Coelho, known for his book The Alchemist. He composes visionary stories that teach life lessons related to love and self-actualization.
They used their platforms and influence to spread the importance of believing in ourselves by being proud of who we are.
Fill yourselves with positivity as you read the following pride quotes below.
"Nothing is ever wrong. We learn from every step we take. Whatever you did today was the way it was meant to be. Be proud of you."
"Be proud of your scars. They remind you that you have the will to live."
"Remember always that you not only have the right to be an individual, you have an obligation to be one."
"Respect your uniqueness, and drop comparison. Relax into your being."
"Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those that matter don't mind."
"Don't be ashamed of anything you've gone through. Be proud of everything you've overcome!"
"I do not care so much what I am to others as I care what I am to myself."
"Few people can walk in your shoes. You are the only one that knows your obstacles, challenges, and struggles. Be proud of yourself and the progress you’ve made."
In honor of the 1969 Stonewall Uprising in Manhattan, LGBTQ pride month is held every June. The harassment in Stonewall Inn triggered riots, which catalyzed the gay rights movement. If you are part of the community or participating in its support, aside from attending the colorful pride march, the whole month is packed full of activities raising awareness of diversity and some of the difficulties faced, including discrimination.
Get insights from openly gay politician and civil rights activist Harvey Milk and other LGBTQ allies through their pride quotes below.
To get you in the mood, check out our rainbow quotes full of colors synonymous with the movement.
"Rights are won only by those who make their voices heard."
"If you are not personally free to be yourself in that most important of all human activities — the expression of love — then life itself loses its meaning."
"Love takes off the masks we fear we cannot live without and know we cannot live within."
"There's nothing wrong with you. There's a lot wrong with the world you live in."
"The single best thing about coming out of the closet is that nobody can insult you by telling you what you've just told them."
"Everybody's journey is individual. If you fall in love with a boy, you fall in love with a boy. The fact that many Americans consider it a disease says more about them than it does about homosexuality."
"The more I accept myself as a genderless human being, in a way, the more I'm loving my body."
Not only gender but many factors like race and financial status still cause discrimination and unequal opportunities.
Despite that, we should always be proud of who we are and use that pride to fight for equal rights for everyone. Moreover, we can start creating an equitable and just world where everybody treats each other with respect and dignity by promoting an understanding of our differences and celebrating what makes us unique.
Whether you're part of a minority group or not, advocate for equal human rights because all of us deserve them. After reading the pride quotes below, you can also check our equality quotes that inspire diversity and inclusion.
"I am a strong, black, lesbian woman. Every single time I say it, I feel so much better."
"The more I've been able to learn about gay rights and equal pay and gender equity and racial inequality, the more that it all intersects. You can't really pick it apart. It's all intertwined."
"This community has fought and continues to fight a war of acceptance, a war of tolerance and the most relentless bravery. You are the definition of courage, do you know that?"
"We should indeed keep calm in the face of difference, and live our lives in a state of inclusion and wonder at the diversity of humanity."
"Every woman that finally figured out her worth, has picked up her suitcases of pride and boarded a flight to freedom, which landed in the valley of change."
"I'm proud to be gay, and I consider being gay among the greatest gifts God has given me."
Being proud of ourselves and others through social media promotes positivity and creates a supportive online community. We can use our posts to inspire others and vice versa.
Commenting with compliments and encouraging words make people's day. Still, if we have nothing nice to say, the next best option is to scroll down. And if we see negativity brewing online, we could also defend the victim of hate while still exercising kindness.
Fill your social media feeds with compassion and inspiration using the rest of our pride quotes below.
"We are not what other people say we are. We are who we know ourselves to be, and we are what we love."
"With pride, there are many curses. With humility, there come many blessings."
"Understand: You should be radiating confidence, not arrogance or disdain."
"The world will never value you more than you value yourself."
"It was pride that changed angels into devils; it is humility that makes men as angels."
"When you feel nervous, recall your pride."
"Pride comes before the fall. Stay humble."
"Ignorance and power and pride are a deadly mixture, you know."
1 | Carver CS, Johnson SL. Authentic and Hubristic Pride: Differential Relations to Aspects of Goal Regulation, Affect, and Self-Control. J Res Pers. 2010 Dec;44(6):698-703. doi: 10.1016/j.jrp.2010.09.004. PMID: 21769159; PMCID: PMC3137237. |
2 | Elena Stanculescu, The self-conscious emotion of pride as mediator between selfesteem and positive affect, Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, Volume 33, 2012, Pages 263-267, ISSN 1877-0428, |