The competition for this year’s 22 Under 22 Most Inspiring College Women contest was fierce. We received applications from so many amazing collegiettes, and when we finally narrowed down our list to these 22 incredible women, we were totally in awe of their accomplishments.
Though these 22 college women certainly inspire us, we wanted to know what inspired them—so we asked each of them to share their favorite inspirational quotes with us. If you’re looking for some motivation, check out the quotes that inspire each of our amazing winners to achieve their goals and follow their dreams!
Abigail Zeitler
“People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered. Forgive them anyway. If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Be kind anyway. If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies. Succeed anyway. If you are honest and sincere people may deceive you. Be honest and sincere anyway. What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight. Create anyway. If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous. Be happy anyway. The good you do today, will often be forgotten. Do good anyway. Give the best you have, and it will never be enough. Give your best anyway. In the final analysis, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.” – Mother Teresa
Ana-Maria Constantin
“Be kind.” – Kurt Vonnegut
Andrea Carrizales
“The best things in life are free. The second best things are very, very expensive.” – Coco Chanel
Bernadette Lim
“When I dare to be powerful – to use the strength in the service of my vision – then it makes no difference on whether or not I am afraid.” – Audre Lorde
Caroline Jones
“One day your life will flash before your eyes. Make sure it’s worth watching.” – Gerard Way
Cynthia Sularz
“What I hear when I’m being yelled at is people caring loudly at me.” – Leslie Knope
Elizabeth Kleiner
“Make every day count by using your talents to make a difference.” – Kevin Luce
Jennifer Kizza
“Faith is taking the first step, even when you don’t see the whole staircase.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.
Judy Hou
“We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand.” – Randy Pausch
Kate Wallace
“90 percent of success is showing up.” – Woody Allen
Morgan Ramsey
“I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” – Romans 8:18
Olivia Pavco-Giaccia
“Well-behaved women seldom make history.” – Laurel Thatcher Ulrich
Pavane Gorrepati
“We do not need magic to change the world. We carry all the power we need inside ourselves already. We have the power to imagine better.” – J.K. Rowling
Rachel Conboy
“Go big or go home.” – Unknown
Rachel Davis
“If I had a chance for another try, I wouldn’t change a thing. It’s made me all of who I am inside.” – Angels & Airwaves
Rachel Heacock
“Don’t let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity.” –1 Timothy 4:12
Rahimah Faiq
“Nothing lasts forever, so live it up, drink it down, laugh it off, avoid the bulls**t, take chances & never have regrets, because at one point everything you did was exactly what you wanted.” – Marilyn Monroe
Ruchi Shah
“Always keep your eyes open. Keep watching. Because whatever you see can inspire you.” – Grace Coddington
Sarah Hwang
“I want to live the rest of my life, however long or short, with as much sweetness as I can decently manage, loving all the people I love, and doing as much as I can of the work I still have to do.” – Audre Lorde
Sarah White
“It was a silly, silly dream, being unhappy.” – Virginia Woolf
Shree Bose
“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is.” – Albert Einstein
Xyla Foxlin
“All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.” – Walt Disney