50 Walk Away Quotes For Strength While Moving Forwards
In a world that often praises sticking it out and never giving up, we sometimes forget that walking away can be the ultimate power move. Whether it's negative people, toxic relationships, or unhealthy environments, we should set and respect boundaries that protect our well-being, especially our mental health. Our best collection of walk-away quotes is here to remind you that not all battles are worth fighting and you are brave to move forward toward your happiness.
Quick links to our selection of walk-away quotes:
Walk Away Quotes That Show Strength
Taking that first step to walk away can be challenging, but it's a powerful declaration of self-preservation. It's like flexing our muscles, showing the world we have the strength to prioritize our well-being.
Now, deciding to walk away isn't a choice we make on a whim. It would be best to have self-awareness, acceptance, and a bit of deep thinking to realize that certain circumstances or relationships aren't doing us any favors.
And, of course, sometimes the right answer is to stick it out and persevere. Nevertheless, walking away sends a strong signal: you're in the driver's seat and ready to hit the gas pedal toward better opportunities and connections.
Continue being brave for your well-being as you read the following walk-away quotes below.
Related read: Life Goes on Quotes & Brave Quotes.
"Sometimes walking away has nothing to do with weakness, and everything to do with strength. We walk away not because we want others to realize out worth and value, but because we finally realize our own."
- Robert Tew
"Just pick up your courage and walk away. Don't waste time. The longer one drags on, the amount of pain accumulates."
- Dick Hirayama
"Sometimes you have to smile and pretend everything's okay. Hold back the tears, and just walk away."
- Anurag Prakash Ray
"Courage is the power to let go of the familiar."
- Raymond Lindquist
"Letting go and walking away means you are exercising control and good decision-making powers–you are making your choice rather than letting the situation control you."
- Richard Templar
Relatable Walk Away Quotes On What You Should Be Running From
It's crucial to safeguard our inner peace and protect it from anything that might disrupt it. These are the everyday things we should learn to run away from:
- In a Forbes article. psychotherapist Amy Morin wrote that negative people's "pessimistic outlooks and gloomy attitude can decrease our motivation and change how we feel." Feeling exhausted, irritable, or unhappy is a sign that they're not good for our mental health.
- Various environments could make us uncomfortable or stressed—such as a workplace with an overly critical boss and unsupportive coworkers.
- There are also toxic relationships we should not pour our energy on, whether it's friends, family, or with a romantic partner. (We can dig deeper into this point in the succeeding sections.)
After reading the walk away quotes below, check our boundaries quotes and define your limits.
"Don't walk away from negative people – run!"
- Mark Twain
"There comes a time in your life, when you walk away from all the drama and people who create it."
- José N. Harris
"Trust yourself and walk away from situations and people that don't have your best interest at heart."
- Ben Ruston
"Sometimes you have to walk away from people, not because you don't care, but because they don't."
- Melchor Lim
"The moment you feel like you have to prove your worth to someone is the moment to absolutely and utterly walk away."
- Alysia Harris
"It's better to walk away than to tolerate nonsense."
- Michelle Ross
"There are people who are always insecure, dissatisfied and looking for a conflict. Unfortunately, the only way to deal with them is to walk away cuz the battle they are fighting, is not with you or everyone else around them, it is within themselves. Choose peace over being right."
- Nitya Prakash
"Anyone or anything that is negative, you should walk away from. Make room for all the positives."
- Wendy John
Walk Away Quotes To Remind You Of Your Self-Worth
Walking away because of breached boundaries is not always the first solution because it's easier said than done. For example, we can't quickly resign from a job that is our sole source of income, or we can't completely ignore our parents for a single disagreement, which in time will be forgotten. But for grave situations that put us in danger physically and emotionally, we owe it to ourselves to just walk away.
Each of us is worthy to be loved and respected. So may the next set of walk-away quotes remind you to know your worth.
"In the end, only three things matter: how much you loved, how gently you lived, and how gracefully you let go of things not meant for you."
- Gautama Buddha
"If you don't walk away, you'll hurt yourself beyond repair. Remember, you're a precious child of God, deserving to be treated kindly."
- Zenobia Davis
"Once you realize you deserve a bright future, letting go of your dark past is the best choice you will ever make."
- Roy T. Bennett
"Selfhood begins with a walking away, And love is proved in letting go."
- Cecil Day-Lewis
"One thing I can say is if your gut feeling is telling you to walk away, it is probably the best decision you could make."
- J. Riggins
"Sometimes it's best to just walk away, count your loss, say a prayer and go on with your life. Time and forgiveness has a way of healing the pain and hurt that you will undoubtedly feel."
- David Kreger
Walking Away Quotes For People In Relationships
One glaring sign of an unhealthy relationship is persistent criticism and belittlement. It is toxic if a partner constantly undermines our achievements, makes us feel small, or attempts to dictate our actions. Another red flag is a lack of trust and unending jealousy. If a partner cuts us off from friends and family, it's time to consider walking away.
These could occur in our relationships with friends and family too. Whatever kind of relationship, we should only keep the ones that contribute to our peace. A study supports this by revealing how the quality of social relationships is a significant factor in depression1.
Protect your peace and let the walk away quotes below help you choose the right people to enter your life.
"You know it's time to walk away when the fun and laughter are gone and only pain and sadness exist."
- Jacqueline Scales
"If a relationship is coming to its end, instead of playing out long and complicated– and potentially hurtful–end games, learn the art of walking away."
- Richard Templar
"Sometimes the person you want most is the one you'll be better without. I am learning to love the sound of my feet walking away from things not meant for me."
- Zenobia Davis
"I walk away because you were too busy finding faults in me, and I was busy overlooking yours."
- Unknown
"Strong women get tired. Strong women feel broken. Strong women eventually get fed up. Strong women will eventually walk away for good."
- Unknown
"The most painful thing is losing yourself in the process of loving someone too much, and forgetting that you are special too."
- Ernest Hemingway
"The moment he makes you feel like he's done something to benefit you, walk away, because it's what will get you into the most trouble."
- K. Weikel
Quotes About Walking Away In Other Situations
Walking away could also mean more than distancing ourselves from unhealthy relationships and environments. It could also mean running from our old undisciplined selves if we want to start moving toward our future goals. We all have those past habits that we're not proud of, but we have the power to change them. It's difficult, but we can do it by setting achievable goals and gradually building our discipline.
From negotiations to conforming to the world, check out other situations where people walk away through the quotes below.
"I am a slow walker, but I never walk back."
- Abraham Lincoln
"You've got to make a conscious choice every day to shed the old – whatever 'the old' means for you."
- Sarah Ban Breathnach
"Every wise man have walked away from the world in his way with the only obstinacy to make it."
- P.S. Jagadeesh Kumar
"To win a negotiation you have to show you're willing to walk away. And the best way to show you're willing to walk away is to walk away."
- Matt Nix
"I know you'll think this is crazy, but all I want to do is hold you, and I think that if you'll let me do that just for a few seconds, I can walk away, and never speak to you again."
- David Guterson
"You can walk away and say 'We don't need this.' but something in your eyes says 'We can beat this.'"
- Taylor Swift
"Some people feel like they don't deserve love. They walk away quietly into empty spaces, trying to close the gaps of the past."
- Sean Penn
"I am good at walking away. Rejection teaches you how to reject."
- Jeanette Winterson
Reassuring Quotes About Letting Go
Letting go can feel like an emotional rollercoaster, especially when it involves walking away from situations or people that once meant the world to us.
However, practicing self-compassion is like a warm hug we give ourselves during these difficult times, reminding us to be gentle and understanding. A clinical psychologist, Dr. Ramani Durvasula, also suggests creating a physical or psychological distance.
Furthermore, she advises us to let all the emotions accompanying letting go, such as grief, anger, and sadness, flow out of us. Doing these challenging but necessary steps is a testament to our resilience.
So always remember to practice compassion as you give yourself a chance to heal after reading the walk away quotes below.
"Goodbye is the absolute hardest thing to say because you have to walk away with just a memory and after awhile that memory fades."
- Sarah Dillon
"There's an important difference between giving up and letting go."
- Jessica Hatchigan
"When people walk away from you, let them go. Your destiny is never tied to anyone who leaves you, and it doesn't mean they are bad people. It just means that their part in your story is over."
- Tony McCollum
"Today expect something good to happen to you no matter what occurred yesterday. Realize the past no longer holds you captive. It can only continue to hurt you if you hold on to it. Let the past go. A simply abundant world awaits."
- Sarah Ban Breathnach
"Letting go doesn't mean that you don't care about someone anymore. It's just realizing that the only person you really have control over is yourself."
- Deborah Reber
"Some people believe holding on and hanging in there are signs of great strength. However, there are times when it takes much more strength to know when to let go and then do it."
- Ann Lander
Related read: Hang in there quotes.
Heartfelt Quotes About Walking Away And Moving Forward
A positive attitude plays a crucial role in successfully moving on after bravely walking away from a person or situation. When we focus on growth, healing, and embracing new opportunities, even the most difficult experiences can become catalysts for transformation. After all, when one door closes, another one often opens, and we might find a hidden treasure behind it.
Find words of comfort and wisdom from the next set of walk-away quotes below.
"Forgiveness enables me to walk away from that pain, the loneliness and suffering."
- Sharon E. Rainey
"Don't dwell on what went wrong. Instead, focus on what to do next. Spend your energy moving forward together towards an answer."
- Denis Waitley
"Accept yourself, love yourself, and keep moving forward. If you want to fly, you have to give up what weighs you down."
- Roy T. Bennett
"The only thing a person can ever really do is keep moving forward. Take that big leap forward without hesitation, without once looking back. Simply forget the past and forge toward the future."
- Alyson Noel
Positive Quotes About Finding Happiness And Opportunities When You Walk Away
Everything mentioned above requires so much energy and time when we're in an actual situation. Healing and moving on does not happen overnight, but it is all worth it in the end.
Like Santiago, the Spanish Shepherd from the book The Alchemist encountered during his expedition lessons of walking away from the fear of failure and constricting comforts of life. Similarly, the inspirational life of Alexander Graham Bell tells us how the multitudes of challenges in life could lead to the revolutionary invention of the telephone.
After reading the walk away quotes below, read their books or biographies that will guide you toward happiness and opportunities. And for some more positivity, check out our good vibes and happiness quotes.
"If you are brave enough to say goodbye, life will reward you with a new hello."
- Paulo Coelho
"Walking away from the false is the same as heading toward what is true."
- Guy Finley
"The beautiful journey of today can only begin when we learn to let go of yesterday."
- Steve Maraboli
"When one door closes another door opens; but we so often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door, that we do not see the ones which open for us."
- Alexander Graham Bell
"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 incredible change."
- Shannon L. Alder
"Let the past go. A simply abundant world awaits."
- Sarah Ban Breathnach
| 1 | Teo, A. R., Choi, H., & Valenstein, M. (2013). Social Relationships and Depression: Ten-Year Follow-Up from a Nationally Representative Study. PLOS ONE, 8(4), e62396. |
