Top 120 Richard Carlson Quotes (2026 Update)
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101. “While eating dessert, we ponder what we should do afterward. After that evening, it’s “What should we do this weekend?” After we’ve been out, we walk into the house and immediately turn on the television, pick up the phone, open a book, or start cleaning. It’s almost as though we’re frightened at the thought of not having something to do, even for a minute.”

— Richard Carlson

102. “In low moods we lose our perspective and everything seems urgent.”

— Richard Carlson

103. “We take our own goals so seriously that we forget to have fun along the way, and we forget to cut ourselves some slack.”

— Richard Carlson

104. “Fortunately, there is an inviolable law in our emotional environment that goes something like this: Our current level of stress will be exactly that of our tolerance to stress.”

— Richard Carlson

105. “We form opinions and then spend our entire lifetimes validating what we believe to be true.”

— Richard Carlson

106. “So perhaps the best thing to do is simply be aware of how much venting is okay and how much is too much.”

— Richard Carlson

107. “We take simple preferences and turn them into conditions for our own happiness.”

— Richard Carlson

108. “Each of us places varying degrees of significance on what’s really relevant and important, and we can almost always find fault with the way someone else is thinking or behaving. We can usually validate our own versions of reality by focusing on examples that, we believe, prove us to be right. In short, the way we see life will always seem justified, logical, and correct – to ourselves. The problem is, everyone else has the same assumption.”

— Richard Carlson

109. “Without getting too psychoanalytical about it, the reason we are tempted to put others down, correct them, or show them how we’re right and they’re wrong is that our ego mistakenly believes that if we point out how someone else is wrong, we must be right, and therefore we will feel better.”

— Richard Carlson

110. “Most people have it backward. When they are feeling down, they roll up their sleeves and get to work. They take their low moods very seriously and try to figure out and analyze what’s wrong. They try to force themselves out of their low state, which tends to compound the problem rather than solve it.”

— Richard Carlson

111. “Circumstances don’t make a person, they reveal him or her.”

— Richard Carlson

112. “The next time someone tells you a story or shares an accomplishment with you, notice your tendency to say something about yourself in response.”

— Richard Carlson

113. “If you’re feeling a little jealous, greedy, or angry, rather than deny or bury your feelings, you can open to them, which helps you move through them quickly and grow beyond them.”

— Richard Carlson

114. “Do I want to be ‘right’ – or do I want to be happy?”

— Richard Carlson

115. “Life’s minor annoyances can become kindling to a fire, and crisis can become the melting point for many not knowing where to turn for help.”

— Richard Carlson

116. “I’m the first to admit that I always prefer approval over disapproval. It feels better and it’s certainly easier to deal with. The more content I’ve become, however, the less I depend on it for my sense of well-being.”

— Richard Carlson

117. “Just like a garden that flourishes best under certain conditions, your home operates more smoothly when the emotional climate is well thought out. Rather than simply reacting to each crisis and circumstance as it arises, setting an emotional climate gives you a head start in fending off potential sources of stress and conflict. It helps you respond to life rather than react to it.”

— Richard Carlson

118. “Life isn’t an emergency.”

— Richard Carlson

119. “Running late makes us feel stressed out and encourages us to sweat the small stuff!”

— Richard Carlson

120. “You never need to be frightened by your own thoughts.”

— Richard Carlson

121. “Let’s be honest. Being part of a family is a privilege and certainly rewarding, but it can also be a little difficult, even when things are going well.”

— Richard Carlson

122. “Any success that you do have is despite your fear, not because of it.”

— Richard Carlson

123. “He chuckles at all the people he knows who have taken out bank loans to travel to exotic places like Europe but who have never seen a single state park right here near home.”

— Richard Carlson

124. “Living in the present simply means living life now, with your attention fully engaged in this present moment, not allowing your mind to carry you away to experiences removed from this moment.”

— Richard Carlson

125. “People who learn to not sweat the small stuff with family and around the home have an enormous edge in life. They expend far less energy being irritated and frustrated and have more left over for having fun and being productive and loving. The energy that used to be spent being “stressed out” is now focused on creativity and the creation of joyful experiences and memories.”

— Richard Carlson

126. “When you hurry someone along, interrupt someone, or finish his or her sentence, you have to keep track not only of your own thoughts but of those of the person you are interrupting.”

— Richard Carlson

127. “Happy people know that regardless of what happened yesterday, last month, years ago – or what might happen later today, tomorrow, or next year – now is the only place where happiness can actually be found and experienced.”

— Richard Carlson

128. “Regardless of who you are or what you do, however, remember that nothing is more important than your own sense of happiness and inner peace and that of your loved ones. If you’re obsessed with getting everything done, you’ll never have a sense of well-being!”

— Richard Carlson

129. “Life is a practice and what you practice grows like a seedling that gets water and sunlight. What you practice grows stronger.”

— Richard Carlson

130. “In low moods we lose our perspective and everything seems urgent. We completely forget that when we are in a good mood, everything seems so much better.”

— Richard Carlson

131. “A failure to live from the heart creates a great deal of internal conflict, which in turn encourages you to become short-tempered, easily bothered, and reactive. Deep down, you know what is true for you, what kind of life you want to be living, and what type of person you want to be.”

— Richard Carlson

132. “The greater our surrender to the truth of the moment, the greater will be our peace of mind.”

— Richard Carlson

133. “Your home is your haven, an escape from the outside world. When you allow too much of the craziness from the outside to enter your home, you eliminate, or at least reduce, a potential source of peace.”

— Richard Carlson

134. “Contrary to popular belief, negative feelings don’t need to be studied and analyzed. When you analyze your negative feelings, you’ll usually end up with more of them to contend with. The.”

— Richard Carlson

135. “My guess is that if you can be more forgiving of your own outbursts and those of others, the downs you experience and your tendency to sweat the small stuff at home will lessen substantially.”

— Richard Carlson

136. “To combat fear, the best strategy is to learn to bring your attention back to the present. Mark Twain said, “I have been through some terrible things in my life, some of which actually happened.” I don’t think I can say it any better. Practice keeping your attention on the here and now. Your efforts will pay great dividends.”

— Richard Carlson

137. “If you want to have an effective, loving experience of family, you must learn to be patient and to not let the little things drive you crazy and take over your life. There are certainly enough difficult things to deal with regarding family and home life. So, the truth is, if you sweat the small stuff at home, you’re probably setting yourself up to be a nervous wreck. To me, this is a very important topic to cover. The stakes are high – the harmony in your home, even your own sanity.”

— Richard Carlson

138. “Mark Twain said, “I have been through some terrible things in my life, some of which actually happened.”

— Richard Carlson