When someone tells you to ‘Just forget it and move on’, the last thing you actually want to do is move on.
Because beneath that duvet on the sofa (surrounded by half a packet of cookies, a collection of empty mugs, and the phone charger you forgot to plug in) lies a sense of security. And we all seek that kind of comfort from time to time.
It’s hard to shrug off those feelings of self-pity. Of anger, and loss.
But these ‘Move on’ quotes will help you see that there is life beyond a crumb-covered duvet. And, with time, look forward to the next chapter in your life.
Why is Moving on So Hard?
Becoming emotionally involved with something or someone is amazing. It brings purpose and energy like no other. It’s exciting and even intoxicating with the right people.
But when it ends, the misery is equally charged. Unlike a job that dragged you down or a housemate that drove you crazy, the emotional connection, now cut, brings heartache and regret.
Aspects such as relationships, careers, or a home bring stability to our lives. They’re security, even when they no longer bring happiness. Comforting, even when the nights are lonely.
And a pitful of pain when they're gone.
Crazy as it may seem, that pain feels like a lifeline to hold on to. Without it, you're forced to accept that things aren't the same anymore. That the hope you're clinging onto is fading. And the door that you so desperately want to step back through is now shut.
But that's exactly what you need to let happen. As terrifying as it may sound, these are actually positive steps forward.
With that emotional weight no longer holding you down, you’ll be able to look up and see the path ahead. And whilst it might not be the life you once imagined, it will be full of hope and opportunity.
These ‘Move on’ quotes are from people who’ve felt what you’re feeling now, who’ve cut those emotional ties. And then lived the life they deserved.
Now, it’s your turn.
71 Move On Quotes to Focus on What's Next in Life
- “Say yes, and you’ll figure it out afterward.” – Tina Fey
- “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
- “Cry. Forgive. Learn. Move on. Let your tears water the seeds of your future happiness.” – Steve Maraboli
- “Yesterday is not ours to recover, but tomorrow is ours to win or lose.” – Lyndon B. Johnson
- “For what it’s worth it’s never too late to be whoever you want to be. I hope you live a life you’re proud of, and if you find that you’re not, I hope you have the strength to start over.” – F. Scott Fitzgerald
- “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
- “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,
- “The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.” – Alan Watts
- “Girls you've gotta know when it's time to turn the page.” – Tori Amos
- “If you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk, if you can’t walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward.” – Martin Luther King Jr
- “Convince yourself everyday that you are worthy of a good life. Let go of stress, breathe. Stay positive, all is well.” – Germany Kent
- “When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us.” – Alexander Graham Bell
- “I always get to where I am going by walking away from where I have been.” – Winnie the Pooh
- “My wish for you is that you continue. Continue to be who you are, to astonish a mean world with your acts of kindness.” – Maya Angelou
- “Life becomes easier when you learn to accept an apology you never got.” – Robert Brault
- “So many amazing opportunities arise when a chapter of our life ends. When we resign from a job that we weren't happy in, or even get fired, it's actually a blessing because a better experience is waiting to happen. It's all about perspective.” – Miya Yamanouchi
- “The answer to every adversity lies in courageously moving forward with faith.” – Edmond Mbiaka
- “Get past your past, be a presence in your present, and let no one refute your future.” – Johnnie Dent Jr.
- “That's all you can do in this world, no matter how strong the current beats against you, or how heavy your burden, or how tragic your love story. You keep going.” – Robyn Schneider
- “If we fail to adapt, we fail to move forward.” – John Wooden
- “It’s not so much that we are losing our identities, but rather that we are no longer embracing false identities. If we hold on to what once defined us, we will miss out on the authentic identity we are being called to.” – Dale Hanson Bourke,
- “My mission in life is not merely to survive but to thrive and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor and some style.” – Maya Angelou
- “When you hold onto a script that doesn't serve you, you leave no space to write a new one that does.” – Jennifer Ho-Dougatz
- “Keeping baggage from the past will leave no room for happiness in the future.” – Wayne L Misner
- “Take time to deliberate; but when the time for action arrives, stop thinking and go in.” – Napoleon Bonaparte
- “Life is like riding a bicycle, to keep your balance, you must keep moving.” – Albert Einstein
- “The choice isn’t to move on—life moves whether I want it to or not. No, the choice is to look forward, not backward, to take a step because refusing to move won’t draw the past nearer, only postpone better days.” – Caroline George
- “The greatest win is walking away and choosing not to engage in drama and toxic energy at all.” – Lalah Delia
- “You were never created to live depressed, defeated, guilty, condemned, ashamed, or unworthy. You were created to be victorious.” – Unknown
- “It's amazing how one ending can lead to a beautiful new beginning.” – Germany Kent
- “Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end.” – Seneca
- “Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
- “When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be. When I let go of what I have, I receive what I need.” – Lao Tzu
- “Every time you thought you couldn’t keep moving forward, you did. Take a moment to appreciate your strength.” – Karen Salmansohn
- “There is no passion to be found playing small—in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.” – Nelson Mandela
- “Moving on will show you a lot about who you are, what you truly want, & what you have no desire to waste your time on.” – April Mae Monterrosa
- “You are allowed to let go of all those that do not set you free anymore.” – Dhiman
- “You’ve got to make a conscious choice every day to shed the old—whatever ‘the old' means for you.” – Sarah Ban Breathnach
- “Letting go doesn’t mean giving up, it means moving on.” – Toni Sorenson
- “The curtain has fallen on the past, the performance has gone dark and the actors have moved on. Applaud the show, but don’t stay in the dark, hoping for a reprisal that will never come. It’s time to get up and move toward the next act, the one that stars YOU.” – Toni Sorenson
The curtain has fallen on the past, the performance has gone dark and the actors have moved on. Applaud the show, but don’t stay in the dark, hoping for a reprisal that will never come. It’s time to get up and move toward the next act, the one that stars YOU.” – Toni Sorenson
- “I demolish my bridges behind me…then there is no choice but to move forward.” – Fridtjof Nansen
- “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
- “We must be willing to let go of the life we’ve planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us.” – Joseph Campbell
- “I’m choosing happiness over suffering, I know I am. I’m making space for the unknown future to fill up my life with yet-to-come surprises.” – Elizabeth Gilbert
- “Don't stay in the harbour and miss the greatness of the sea. Just because everyone else is anchored, doesn't mean you have to be.” – Joyce Rachelle
- “No, this is not the beginning of a new chapter in my life; this is the beginning of a new book! That first book is already closed, ended, and tossed into the seas; this new book is newly opened, has just begun! Look, it is the first page! And it is a beautiful one!” – C. JoyBell C.
- “It’s so empowering to say, ‘This isn’t serving me,’ and walk away in peace.” – Unknown
- “You can’t expect to move forward if your emergency break is on.” – Angela Cecilia
- “But there's a whole world waiting, still, and there are good things in it.” – Lois Lowry
- “New beginnings are often disguised as painful endings.” – Lao Tzu
- “The only real battle in life is between hanging on and letting go.” – Shannon L. Alder
- “Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.” – Jim Rohn
- “We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things because we’re curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.” – Walt Disney
- “The universe is not short on wake-up calls. We’re just quick to hit the snooze button.” – Brené Brown
- “If you are busy focusing on the falling bricks, you will never realize that they are truly stepping stones you need to cross over to the next phase of your life.” – Kemi Sogunle
- “There are things that we never want to let go of, people we never want to leave behind. But keep in mind that letting go isn’t the end of the world, it’s the beginning of a new life.” – Unknown
- “Change can be scary, but you know what’s scarier? Allowing fear to stop you from growing, evolving, and progressing.” – Mandy Hale
- “I’m going to keep showing up as my best self and stay focused on my own path. That’s how I know I’ll win.” – BossBabe
- “I really believe in, ‘Move on, live and let live, forgive and forget.” – Kate Winslet
- “You really don’t have to burn any bridges to let go… You don’t have to destroy anything. You can just decide to cross over and move on.” – Marta Mrotek
- “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
- “Be messy and complicated and afraid and show up anyways.” – Glennon Doyle
- “Getting over a painful experience is much like crossing monkey bars. You have to let go at some point in order to move forward.” – Unknown
- “Moving on is not about forgetting the past; it’s about learning from it. Find the message in the mess…Cry. Forgive. Learn. That’s moving on.” – Steve Maraboli
- “Letting go is hard but being free is beautiful.” – Wilder Poetry
- “Life goes by fast. Enjoy it. Calm down. It’s all funny.” – Joan Rivers
- “Why let go of yesterday? Because yesterday has already let go of you.” – Steve Maraboli
- “The truth is, unless you let go, unless you forgive yourself, unless you forgive the situation, unless you realize that the situation is over, you cannot move forward.” – Steve Maraboli
- “Dare to live by letting go.” – Tom Althouse
- “Sometimes your only available transportation is a leap of faith.” – Margaret Shepard
- “There are far better things ahead than any we leave behind.” – C.S. Lewis
Final Thoughts on Moving On
Choosing to move forward with your life is never easy. For whilst your current situation might not be right, it does bring comfort in familiarity. And that in itself is hard to let go of.
But that doesn’t mean you should stay, or live in hope that things will go back to how they were. The truth is, they won’t. And deep down, you know that too.
You have a world of opportunities ahead of you. Take them. And focus on all the good that’s yet to come.
And if you want more inspirational quotes, be sure to check out these blog posts:
- 57 Starting Over Quotes to Help You Move On
- 67 Priority Quotes on How to Identify What’s Truly Important
- 75 Keep Pushing Quotes So You Can Move Forward
Finally, if you want to use these quotes to make a lasting change to your life, then check out and recite these 57 affirmations for success.
Rebel Jones has been writing from a young age. She first used poetry to organise words – the rhythm and flow brought peace to her chaos. But as she developed (both as a person and as a writer), she embraced her offbeat thought process and found her own style and tone. Writing is definitely her happy place and one that she’s happy to share with the world.
