The world around us is full of inspiration, regardless if we’re trying to figure out the perfect ending to that novel we’ve been writing for two years, to decide on the perfect name for our new baby girl, or to get motivated to leave a dead-end job and push forward into new directions. Though some of the greatest quotes in history have come from the world’s greatest orators and thinkers, such as Martin Luther King, Jr., Lao-Tzu, and Frederick Douglass, we can find inspiration in even the most unlikely of places and from the most unlikely of sources.
This list presents quotes to inspire you for whatever you need a little boost for. Some of them come from the most evil people in history, and some come from people we think to be dumb or stupid. They’re also here to make you think; just because somebody may be known as a dunce or has done terrible things, does it make them incapable of brilliance? Let us know if you’re surprised or shocked by any of these sources while finding some nuggets of inspiration to make you think about the world differently from our list of 25 Quotes From Unlikely Sources That Are Actually Quite Inspirational.

Audrey Hepburn
“Nothing is impossible. The word itself says, ‘I’m possible!'”
Saddam Hussein
“Remember that God has enabled you to become an example of love, forgiveness, and brotherly co-existence. I call on you not to hate because hate does not leave a space for a person to be fair, and it makes you blind and closes all doors of thinking and keeps away one from balanced thinking and making the right choice.”
Mike Tyson
“A man that’s a friend of everyone is an enemy to himself.”
Carter Chambers, from The Bucket List
“You know, the ancient Egyptians had a beautiful belief about death. When their souls got to the entrance to heaven, the guards asked two questions. Their answers determined whether they were able to enter or not. ‘Have you found joy in your life?’ ‘Has your life brought joy to others?’”
Chuck Norris
“A lot of people give up just before they’re about to make it. You know, you never know when that next obstacle is going to be the last one.”
General George S. Patton
“If everyone is thinking alike, then somebody isn’t thinking.”
Attila the Hun
“It takes less courage to criticize the decisions of others than to stand by your own.”
Milton Berle
“If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door.”
Idi Amin
“If we knew the meaning to everything that is happening to us, then there would be no meaning.”
Bob Marley
“The truth is, everyone is going to hurt you. You just got to find the ones worth suffering for.”
Woody Allen
“If you’re not failing now and again, it’s a sign you’re not doing anything innovative.”
Joseph Goebbels
“Faith moves mountains, but only knowledge moves them to the right place.”
Mike Tyson
“Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.”
Sherlock Holmes
“It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data. Insensibly one begins to twist facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts.”
Megan Fox
“When you stop chasing the wrong things, you give the right things a chance to catch you.”
Barbie, from Toy Story 3
“Authority should derive from the consent of the governed, not from the threat of force.”
Kim Il-Sung
“Peace secured by slavish submission is not peace.”
Looking for more unusual quotes? Here are 25 Quotes By Infamous Leaders And Dictators.
Mary J. Blige
“No matter what people’s opinions may be, they’re only just that – people’s opinions. You have to believe in your heart what you know to be true about yourself. And let that be that.”
George Clooney
“You never really learn much from hearing yourself talk.”
Edna Mode, from The Incredibles
“I never look back darling; it distracts from the now.”
Captain Jack Sparrow
“The problem is not the problem. The problem is your attitude about the problem.”
Butters, from South Park
“Well yeah, and I’m sad, but at the same time I’m really happy that something could make me feel that sad. It’s like, it makes me feel alive, you know? It makes me feel human. And the only way I could feel this sad now is if I felt something really good before. So I have to take the bad with the good, so I guess what I’m feeling is like a, beautiful sadness. I guess that sounds stupid.”
Mewtwo
“I see now that the circumstances of one’s birth are irrelevant. It is what you do with the gift of life that determines who you are.”
Marilyn Monroe
“If I’d observed all the rules, I’d never have got anywhere.”
Walt Disney
“Whatever you do, do it well. Do it so well that when people see you do it, they will want to come back and see you do it again, and they will want to bring others and show them how well you do what you do.”
Would you like to hear more inspirational quotes? Check out 25 Sun Tzu Quotes To Help You Succeed In Everything.