100 New Year Quotes to Inspire a Fresh Start in 2024
Updated: Dec. 18, 2023
These New Year quotes for 2024 will inspire hopes for the future and motivate you to reach for your dreams
New Year quotes to celebrate 2024
Who’s ready for 2024? New Year’s is often a welcome occasion, and that has been doubly true the last couple of years. Even if you’ve enjoyed the past year, New Year’s Eve is still an exciting time to look ahead (especially if you’ve got a New Year’s Eve party planned). The key to making 2024 your best year yet is going into it with the right mindset. Why? Because when positive, your thoughts about the new year can help you stay optimistic about what’s to come—no matter what obstacles arise. In fact, these inspirational New Year quotes will help you do just that.
Below, you’ll find 100 “Happy New Year” quotes, some based on New Year’s resolutions, and others inspired by classic New Year’s traditions. We hope they motivate you to reflect on your goals, chase your dreams and believe in yourself.
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New Year quotes about new beginnings
1. “Celebrate endings—for they precede new beginnings.” —Jonathan Lockwood Huie, author
2. “New beginnings are in order, and you are bound to feel some level of excitement as new chances come your way.” —Oscar Auliq-Ice, author
3. “Year’s end is neither an end nor a beginning but a going on.” —Hal Borland, author, journalist and naturalist
4. “You can get excited about the future. The past won’t mind.” —Hillary DePiano, playwright and author
5. “And now we welcome the new year. Full of things that have never been.” —Rainer Maria Rilke, poet
6. “An optimist stays up until midnight to see the new year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves.” —William E. Vaughan, journalist and author
7. “The way I look at it, every day that I’m moving forward is a day I’m not moving backward.” —Bobby Bones, radio personality
8. “I think the more unexpected something is, the more there is to learn from it.” —Michael J. Fox, actor
9. “I hope you realize that every day is a fresh start for you. That every sunrise is a new chapter in your life waiting to be written.” —Juansen Dizon, poet
10. “There are far better things ahead than any we leave behind.” —C.S. Lewis, author
11. “With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts.” —Eleanor Roosevelt, former First Lady
12. “The secret of change is to focus all of your energy not on fighting the old but on building the new.” —Dan Millman, gymnast, coach and lecturer
13. “Whatever it is you’re scared of doing, do it. Make your mistakes, next year and forever.” —Neil Gaiman, author
14. “Each day is a new beginning, the chance to do with it what should be done and not to be seen as simply another day to put in time.” —Catherine Pulsifer, author
15. “If you’re brave enough to say goodbye, life will reward you with a new hello.” —Paulo Coehlo, novelist
16. “Although no one can go back and make a brand-new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand-new ending.” —Carl Bard, writer
17. “We must be willing to get rid of the life we’ve planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us. The old skin has to be shed before the new one can come.” —Joseph Campbell, writer
18. “Just when the caterpillar thought her life was over, she became a butterfly.” —Unknown
New Year quotes to self-reflect
19. “You have those moments where you reflect and say, ‘No matter what I’m going through at the moment, you know what? Life ain’t bad.'” —Dwyane Wade, athlete
20. “Plant seeds every single day that you know who you are, you know what you’re about and you know what goals you’ve set for yourself.” —Stephen Curry, athlete
21. “Keep some room in your heart for the unimaginable.” —Mary Oliver, poet
22. “One ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and if it were possible, to speak a few reasonable words.” —Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, writer
23. “Happiness was always important to me, even at a young age. People would ask, ‘What do you want to be when you grow up?’ I’d tell them, ‘I just want to be happy.'” —Goldie Hawn, actor
24. “Whenever it feels uncomfortable to tell the truth, that’s often the most important time to tell it.” —Jennifer Lopez, musician and actor
25. “And now that you don’t have to be perfect, you can be good.” —John Steinbeck, writer
26. “You don’t have to be perfect to help people. All you have to be is real.” —Trent Shelton, motivational speaker
27. “If people concentrated on the really important things in life, there’d be a shortage of fishing poles.” —Doug Larson, columnist
28. “I’m deciding to be my own individual self, and it looks nothing like what anyone else is doing. There’s something so powerful about being unique.” —Alicia Keys, musician
29. “Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each year find you a better man.” —Benjamin Franklin, Founding Father
30. “There are more people doing good stuff and moving us forward than there are people sowing division. I surround myself with people who have faith.” —Maria Shriver, journalist
31. “I strive to be a skeptic, in the best sense of that word: I question everything, and yet I’m open to everything.” —Amy Tan, author
32. “Next time you are discussing an important issue with someone, ask yourself, ‘Is this a monologue or dialogue?’ Personally, I’m only interested in the latter.” —Reese Witherspoon, actor
33. “When we get home at night, we plug in our phones. But we don’t think of ourselves as phones that need to be recharged. You need to make sure you’re getting back up to 100 percent.” —Bobby Berk, designer
34. “For last year’s words belong to last year’s language. And next year’s words await another voice.” —T. S. Eliot, writer
35. “Make New Year’s goals. Dig within, and discover what you would like to have happen in your life this year. This helps you do your part. It is an affirmation that you’re interested in fully living life in the year to come.” —Melody Beattie, author
New Year quotes to believe in yourself
36. “It is your right to choose what you do and don’t do, to choose what you believe in and don’t believe in. It is your right to curate your life and your own perspective.” —Lady Gaga, musician
37. “The book is called Opportunity, and its first chapter is New Year’s day.” —Edith Lovejoy Pierce, poet
38. “You can find inspiration in everything. If you can’t, then you’re not looking properly.” —Paul Smith, fashion designer
39. “I don’t know where I’m going from here, but I promise it won’t be boring.” —David Bowie, musician and actor
40. “It’s a myth that you can’t have it all. You can have it all—just maybe not all at the same time.” —Eva Longoria, actor
41. “Don’t wait your turn. Bet on yourself and have the confidence to stand up and say, ‘My time is now.'” —Robert F. Smith, businessman
42. “You can always put on a pretty dress, but it doesn’t matter what you wear on the outside if your mind isn’t strong.” —Angelina Jolie, actor
43. “Every time you tear a leaf off a calendar, you present a new place for new ideas.” —Charles Kettering, engineer and businessman
44. “I listen to everyone. Then I do what I want.” —Diane von Furstenberg, fashion designer
45. “Resolve to keep happy, and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against difficulties.” —Helen Keller, author and activist
46. “I don’t believe in pessimism. If something doesn’t come up the way you want, forge ahead. If you think it’s going to rain, it will.” —Clint Eastwood, actor
47. “When juggling as much as you are, remember that some balls are glass, and some are rubber. You can’t drop the glass balls.” —Nora Roberts, author
48. “Never underestimate the power you have to take your life in a new direction.” —Germany Kent, journalist
49. “Take a leap of faith and begin this wondrous new year by believing.” —Sarah Ban Breathnach, author
50. “It’s never too late to become who you want to be. I hope you live a life that you’re proud of, and if you find that you’re not, I hope you have the strength to start over.” —F. Scott Fitzgerald, novelist
New Year quotes about chasing dreams
51. “If you don’t find your passion in your paycheck, go find it somewhere else.” —Sara Haines, journalist
52. “It is often easier to make progress on mega-ambitious dreams. Since no one else is crazy enough to do it, you have little competition.” —Larry Page, entrepreneur
53. “Don’t be scared if you don’t do things in the right order. I didn’t think I’d have dessert before breakfast today, but hey, it turned out that way and I wouldn’t change a thing.” —Mindy Kaling, comedian
54. “Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone.” —Pablo Picasso, artist
55. “If you just keep putting one foot in front of the other, fantastical things can happen.” —Sheryl Crow, musician
56. “My best ideas come to me when I’m bored. I’d love to be bored more, but there just isn’t time.” —Sam Reich, producer
57. “The ‘success’ parts of life look good to others, but the best parts are actually the simple, daily experiences. This is true whether you’re an actor or a teacher or a waitress. I know because I’ve been all three.” —Lauren Graham, actor
58. “The world is not yours for the taking, but for the trying. Try hard.” —Scott Galloway, professor
59. “I’d rather regret the risks that didn’t work out than the chances I didn’t take at all.” —Simone Biles, athlete
60. “I could give example after example of how doing the right thing ended up making us more money.” —Yvon Chouinard, businessman
61. “Life’s not about expecting, hoping and wishing; it’s about doing, being and becoming.” —Mike Dooley, author and speaker
62. “We have to continually be jumping off cliffs and developing our wings on the way down.” —Kurt Vonnegut, author
63. “Be the hardest-working person you know. If you’re not, someone else will be.” —Ian Brennan, screenwriter
64. “Some people feel confusion and uncertainty and do nothing. Don’t do nothing.” —Alex Dimitrov, poet
65. “We either make ourselves miserable or make ourselves strong. The amount of work is the same.” —Carlos Castañeda, writer
66. “The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide you’re not going to stay where you are.” —J.P. Morgan, financier
Loving these “Happy New Year” quotes? If so, you’ll enjoy these funny New Year’s quotes too!
New Year quotes about time
67. “They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.” —Andy Warhol, artist
68. “Age is not the enemy. Stagnation is the enemy. Complacency is the enemy.” —Twyla Tharp, dancer
69. “Don’t live the same year 75 times and call it a life.” —Robin Sharma, writer
70. “The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.” —Michael Altshuler, job coach
71. “Time is a created thing. To say ‘I don’t have time’ is to say ‘I don’t want to.’” —Lao Tzu, philosopher
72. “The future is something which everyone reaches at the rate of 60 minutes an hour, whatever he does, whoever he is.” —C.S. Lewis, writer
73. “There’s never enough time to do it right, but there’s always enough time to do it over.” —Jack Bergman, politician
74. “You can’t turn back the clock. But you can wind it up again.” —Bonnie Prudden, rock climber
75. ‘”Life is short’ really means ‘do something.'” —Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, author
76. “When you’re young, you’re encouraged to try new things. At a certain age, nobody says that to you anymore. If you’re lucky enough to be alive, why not say yes to all of it at any age?” —Mary Steenburgen, actor
77. “Youth is when you’re allowed to stay up late on New Year’s Eve. Middle-age is when you’re forced to.” —Bill Vaughan, author
New Year quotes about love
78. “You know you’re in love when you can’t fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.” —Dr. Seuss, author and illustrator
79. “I have found that if you love life, life will love you back.” —Arthur Rubenstein, pianist
80. “Remove ‘shoulds’ from your vocabulary this year. Start your journey of self-love now.” —Kelly Martin, author
81. “As we begin a new year, let’s discard what was jaded. Let’s put on in its place, the beautiful garments of Faith, Hope and Love.” —Anusha Atukorala, author
82. “Past and Present I know well; each is a friend and sometimes an enemy to me. But it is the quiet, beckoning Future, an absolute stranger, with whom I have fallen madly in love.” —Richelle E. Goodrich, author
83. “The greatest happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved; loved for ourselves, or rather, loved in spite of ourselves.” —Victor Hugo, novelist
84. “Have enough courage to trust love one more time and always one more time.” —Maya Angelou, poet
85. “Be so busy loving your life that you have no time for hate, regret or fear.” —Unknown
Short New Year quotes
86. “Go confidently in the direction of your dreams.” —Henry David Thoreau, author
87. “A surplus of effort could overcome a deficit of confidence.” —Sonia Sotomayor, Supreme Court Justice
88. “You are never too old to reinvent yourself.” —Steve Harvey, actor
89. “Don’t make plans. Make options.” —Jennifer Aniston, actor
90. “The place in which I’ll fit will not exist until I make it.” —James Baldwin, author, playwright and activist
91. “When you see a new year, see realities and limit fantasies!” —Ernest Agyemang Yeboah
92. “The sky isn’t the limit—the sky has no limit.” —Sarah Barker, astrophysicist
93. “Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson, poet and philosopher
94. “It is never too late to be what you might have been.” —George Eliot, novelist
95. “You’re never too broken to be fixed.” —Jonathan Van Ness, television personality
96. “Don’t let a win get to your head, and loss to your heart.” —Chuck D, rapper
97. “Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow.” —Albert Einstein, scientist
98. “Don’t let today’s disappointments cast a shadow on tomorrow’s dreams.” —Unknown
99. “Last year told you what you needed to know. Now it’s go time.” —Richie Norton, author
100. “You never go wrong when you take the high road—it’s less crowded up there.” —Gayle King, journalist
