First Sayings and Quotes

Below you will find our collection of inspirational, wise, and humorous old first quotes, first sayings, and first proverbs, collected over the years from a variety of sources.

The first wealth is health. Ralph Waldo Emerson
The first dish pleaseth all. George Herbert
First be best, then be first. John Wooden
The first human who hurled an insult instead of a stone was the founder of civilization. Sigmund Freud
The first step toward change is awareness. The second step is acceptance. Nathaniel Branden
We call first truths those we discover after all the others. Albert Camus
The first and greatest victory is to conquer yourself; to be conquered by yourself is of all things most shameful and vile. Plato
First learn the meaning of what you say, and then speak. Epictetus
The first principle is that you must not fool yourself and you are the easiest person to fool. Richard P. Feynman
One of the first signs of the beginning of understanding is the wish to die. Franz Kafka
The first step to getting the things you want out of life is this: Decide what you want. Ben Stein
You must take the first step. The first steps will take some effort, maybe pain. But after that, everything that has to be done is real-life movement. Ben Stein
The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide that you are not going to stay where you are. Chauncey Depew
Be first and be lonely. Ginni Rometty
First thought, best thought. Allen Ginsberg
The first cut is the deepest. Rod Stewart
The first quality that is needed is audacity. Winston Churchill
After the first blush of sin comes its indifference. Henry David Thoreau
The first requisite of a good citizen in this republic of ours is that he shall be able and willing to pull his own weight. Theodore Roosevelt
The first requisite of civilization is that of justice. Sigmund Freud
The first idea the child must acquire is that of the difference between good and evil. Maria Montessori
The first forty years of life give us the text; the next thirty supply the commentary on it. Arthur Schopenhauer
One of the first conditions of happiness is that the link between Man and Nature shall not be broken. Leo Tolstoy
Our first responsibility in the midst of violence is to prevent it from destroying us. Henri Nouwen
The first step in the evolution of ethics is a sense of solidarity with other human beings. Albert Schweitzer
The first precept was never to accept a thing as true until I knew it as such without a single doubt. Rene Descartes
The first man gets the oyster, the second man gets the shell. Andrew Carnegie
The very first step towards success in any occupation is to become interested in it. William Osler
At first, dreams seem impossible, then improbable, and eventually inevitable. Christopher Reeve
We first make our habits, and then our habits make us. John Dryden
If you first fortify yourself with the true knowledge of the Universal Self, and then live in the midst of wealth and worldliness, surely they will in no way affect you. Ramakrishna
The first ingredient in conversation is truth, the next good sense, the third good humor, and the fourth wit. William Temple
The first thing anyone can do, about any issue, is get informed. Adora Svitak
The first step toward success is taken when you refuse to be a captive of the environment in which you first find yourself. Mark Caine
First be a good animal. Ralph Waldo Emerson
The first method for estimating the intelligence of a ruler is to look at the men he has around him. Niccolo Machiavelli
The first reaction to truth is hatred. Tertullian
The first thing that strikes a visitor to Paris is a taxi. Fred A. Allen
The first responsibility of a leader is to define reality. The last is to say thank you. In between, the leader is a servant. Max De Pree
The first sentence of a book is a handshake, perhaps an embrace. Jhumpa Lahiri
The first law of ecology is that everything is related to everything else. Barry Commoner