Like most oldest siblings, I was the guinea pig. Through rearing me, wisdom was acquired, lessons were learned and certain models of thought (i.e. anxious hovering) were abandoned with haste. After me, my parents adjusted by the learning curve. So, you’re welcome, Terry! Because being the first-born means that you have to pave the way for your siblings, set the standard, learn how to be responsible in case sh*t hits the fan and help your parents out when things get tough. First-borns are resilient, strong, intuitive and hardworking. And what better way to celebrate the eldest siblings with some solid first-born quotes. From the likes of famous oldest siblings like Beyoncé, Taylor Swift and Kate Middleton to quotes honing in on first-born traits like leadership, maturity and success, here are 75 first-born quotes to send to your eldest.
Here Are 75 First Born Quotes to Share With Your Eldest Child
Here’s to you, No. 1!
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Published Sep 9, 2024
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1. “My parents taught me about the importance of qualities like kindness, respect, and honesty, and I realize how central values like these have been to me throughout my life.” — Kate Middleton
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2. “When you start to develop your powers of empathy and imagination, the whole world opens up to you.” — Susan Sarandon
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3. “I don't think I'm tough but I do think I'm quite a strong character.” — Queen Camilla
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4. “Life is too short to blend in.” — Paris Hilton
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5. “Beauty, to me, is about being comfortable in your own skin.” — Gwyneth Paltrow
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6. “We only have one life, and it is very precious, and there's a lot we can do, and there's a lot we should do.” — Selena Gomez
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7. “I believe there's an inner power that makes winners or losers. And the winners are the ones who really listen to the truth of their hearts.” — Sylvester Stallone
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8. “The simple act of paying attention can take you a long way.” — Keanu Reeves
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9. “If you truly pour your heart into what you believe in, even if it makes you vulnerable, amazing things can and will happen.” — Emma Watson
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10. “Being alone and actually sitting with our own thoughts can lead to such growth and realizations that are rare in our everyday busy lives.” — Kourtney Kardashian
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11. “Life is definitely always about expanding. That's how we grow.” — Jessica Simpson
Quotes About Responsibility and Resiliency
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12. “To me, Fearless is not the absence of fear. It's not being completely unafraid. To me, Fearless is having fears. Fearless is having doubts. Lots of them. To me, Fearless is living in spite of those things that scare you to death.” ― Taylor Swift
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13. “Showing up is not all of life - but it counts for a lot.” — Hillary Clinton
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14. “There's a way of dealing with hardships that are healthier than going out. That's what I've learned.” — Lindsay Lohan
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15. “You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing you think you cannot do.” — Eleanor Roosevelt
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16. “It is often when night looks darkest, it is often before the fever breaks that one senses the gathering momentum for change, when one feels that resurrection of hope in the midst of despair and apathy.” — Hillary Clinton
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17. “You have to laugh at yourself because if you can't, you may as well give up!” — Queen Camilla
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18. “If you get tired, learn to rest, not to quit.” — Banksy
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19. “One of the things I learned the hard way was that it doesn't pay to get discouraged. Keeping busy and making optimism a way of life can restore faith in yourself.” — Lucille Ball
Quotes About Leadership
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20. “Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson
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21. “Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.” — Steve Jobs
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22. “As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others.” — Bill Gates
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23. “If one is lucky, a solitary fantasy can totally transform one million realities.” — Maya Angelou
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24. “A genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus.” — Martin Luther King Jr.
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25. “The best executive is the one who has sense enough to pick good men to do what he wants done, and self-restraint to keep from meddling with them while they do it.” — Theodore Roosevelt
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26. “The supreme quality for leadership is unquestionable integrity.” — Dwight D. Eisenhower
Quotes About Caring For Yourself and Others
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27. “I’ve had this extraordinary feeling, for years and years, ever since I can remember really, of wanting to heal and make things better.” — King Charles
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28. “Be healthy and take care of yourself, but be happy with the beautiful things that make you, you.” — Beyoncé
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29. “No matter what happens in life, be good to people. Being good to people is a wonderful legacy to leave behind.” — Taylor Swift
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30. “Everyone of us needs to show how much we care for each other and, in the process, care for ourselves.” — Princess Diana
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31. “My guiding principles in life are to be honest, genuine, thoughtful and caring.” — Prince William
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32. “Everyone has highs and lows that they have to learn from, but every morning I start off with a good head on my shoulders, saying to myself, 'It's going to be a good day!'.” — Lindsay Lohan
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33. “Let’s not wait to be prompted. Let us go out today, tomorrow and the days that follow and let us demonstrate our humanity.” — Princess Diana
Quotes About Success
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34. “I don’t like to gamble, but if there’s one thing I’m willing to bet on, it’s myself.” — Beyoncé
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35. “Champions keep playing until they get it right.” — Billie Jean King
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36. “I never dreamt of success. I worked for it.” — Estée Lauder
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37. “Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence." — Helen Keller
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38. “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.” — Thomas Edison
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39. “I believe any success in life is made by going into an area with a blind, furious optimism.” — Sylvester Stallone
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40. “Never let success go to your head, never let failure get to your heart.” — Beyoncé
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41. “If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” — Isaac Newton
Quotes About Working Hard
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42. “I think I know I've been working very hard for the family business, sometimes those days are long days and I think if I know I'm working hard and pulling my weight, both working and playing hard at the same time, I think everyone who I work with can see I am there pulling my weight.” — Kate Middleton
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43. “Dreams are lovely. But they are dreams. Fleeting, ephemeral, pretty. But dreams do not come true just because you dream them. It's hard work that makes things happen. It's hard work that makes things happen.” — Shonda Rhimes
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44. “I don’t feel like I have to please anyone. I feel free. I feel like I’m an adult. I’m grown. I can do what I want. I can say what I want. I can retire if I want. That’s why I’ve worked hard.” — Beyoncé
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45. “Success isn't always about greatness. It's about consistency. Consistent hard work leads to success. Greatness will come.” — Dwayne Johnson
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46. “I’ve come to believe that each of us has a personal calling that's as unique as a fingerprint and that the best way to succeed is to discover what you love and then find a way to offer it to others in the form of service, working hard and also allowing the energy of the universe to lead you.” — Oprah Winfrey
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47. “People who say it cannot be done should not interrupt those who are doing it.” — George Bernard Shaw
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48. “I’m a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work the more I have of it.” — Thomas Jefferson
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49. “The greater the difficulty, the more the glory in surmounting it.” — Epicurus
Quotes About Being Independent
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50. “What then is freedom? The power to live as one wishes.” — Marcus Tullius Cicero
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51. “Independence? That's middle class blasphemy. We are all dependent on one another, every soul of us on earth.” — George Bernard Shaw
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52. “My mother told me to be a lady. And for her, that meant be your own person, be independent.” — Ruth Bader Ginsburg
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53. “Originality is independence, not rebellion; it is sincerity, not antagonism.” — George Henry Lewes
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54. “The only real prison is fear, and the only real freedom is freedom from fear.” — Aung San Suu Kyi
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55. “You must do what you believe you are incapable of doing. Above all, be the heroine, not the victim, of your own story.” — Eleanor Roosevelt
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56. “A true and strong woman is graceful, talented, fearless, brave, and modest, and she embraces the war she went through and is deified by her scars.” — Sonia Sotomayor
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57. “Life without liberty is like a body without spirit.” — Kahlil Gibran
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58. “I am no bird; and no net ensnares me; I am a free human being with an independent will.” — Charlotte Brontë from Jane Eyre
Quotes About Persistence
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59. “Persistence is the twin sister of excellence. One is a matter of quality; the other, a matter of time.” — Marabel Morgan
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60. “Let me tell you the secret that has led me to my goals: my strength lies solely in my tenacity.” — Louis Pasteur
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61. “A little more persistence, a little more effort and what seemed hopeless failure may turn to glorious success.” — Elbert Hubbard
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62. “Always do your best. What you plant now, you will harvest later.” — Og Mandino
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63. “It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop.” — Confucius
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64. “People are either glass-half-empty or glass-half-full. I always think hopefully.” — Queen Camilla
Quotes About Paving Your Own Path
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65. “I'd rather take risks than make something that's cookie cutter.” — Sandra Bullock
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66. “There is only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that’s your own self.” — Aldous Huxley
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67. “Nothing in life is to be feared; it is only to be understood. Now is the time to understand more so that we may fear less.” — Marie Curie
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68. “I always say, the greatest cost of leading is the cost of paving the way.” — Kathy Giusti
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69. “Normality is a paved road: it’s comfortable to walk, but no flowers grow on it.” — Vincent Van Gogh
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70. “Never be limited by other people’s limited imaginations.” — Dr. Mae Jemison
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71. “When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.” — Wayne Dyer
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72. “This is the thing: I know I'm paving the way for the next generation of girls, and they're not going to have to do this. That's what I hope. I'll take the brunt work and just handle it, and then you guys can just sail right on through.” — Ashley Graham
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73. “Authenticity is a collection of choices that we have to make every day. It’s about the choice to show up and be real. The choice to be honest. The choice to let our true selves be seen.” — Brene Brown
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74. “He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life.” — Muhammad Ali
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75. “If you don't like the road you're walking, start paving another one.” — Dolly Parton
