59 Ryan Holiday Quotes: Best Lines on Obstacles & Ego

The Best Ryan Holiday Quotes on Turning Obstacles Into Opportunities

These ryan holiday quotes on obstacles come straight from his breakout 2014 book — short, sharp reminders that adversity is raw material.

1. The obstacle in the path becomes the path. Never forget, within every obstacle is an opportunity to improve our condition. — Ryan Holiday
2. There is no good or bad without us, there is only perception. There is the event itself and the story we tell ourselves about what it means. — Ryan Holiday
3. Focusing exclusively on what is in our power magnifies and enhances our power. — Ryan Holiday
4. Whatever we face, we have a choice: Will we be blocked by obstacles, or will we advance through and over them? — Ryan Holiday
5. Our perceptions determine, to an incredibly large degree, what we are and are not capable of. In many ways, they determine reality itself. When we believe in the obstacle more than in the goal, which will inevitably triumph? — Ryan Holiday
6. There is always a countermove, always an escape or a way through, so there is no reason to get worked up. — Ryan Holiday
7. It’s okay to be discouraged. It’s not okay to quit. — Ryan Holiday
8. You’ll have far better luck toughening yourself up, than you ever will trying to take the teeth out of a world that is, at best, indifferent to your existence. — Ryan Holiday
9. What is up to us? Our emotions. Our judgments. Our creativity. Our attitude. Our perspective. Our desires. Our decisions. Our determination. — Ryan Holiday
10. Where the head goes, the body follows. Perception precedes action. Right action follows the right perspective. — Ryan Holiday
11. When you worry, ask yourself, “What am I choosing to see right now?” — Ryan Holiday
12. Bad luck is actually a chance for us to make up some time. — Ryan Holiday
13. Being trapped is just a position, not a fate. — Ryan Holiday
14. True will is quiet humility, resilience, and flexibility. — Ryan Holiday
15. We decide what we make of each and every situation. — Ryan Holiday
16. Focus on the moment, not the monsters that may or may not be up ahead. — Ryan Holiday
17. Obstacles are actually opportunities to test ourselves, try new things, and, ultimately, to triumph. — Ryan Holiday
18. Lessons come hard only if you are deaf to them. — Ryan Holiday
19. Failure shows us the way by showing us what isn’t the way. — Ryan Holiday
20. We must be willing to roll the dice and lose. — Ryan Holiday
21. Doing new things invariably means obstacles. A new path is by definition uncleared. — Ryan Holiday
22. Obstacles illuminate new options. — Ryan Holiday

Ryan Holiday Quotes on Ego: Humility, Mastery and Success

From Ego Is the Enemy, these lines show why ryan holiday quotes on ego keep getting shared by founders, athletes and leaders.

1. Impressing people is utterly different from being truly impressive. — Ryan Holiday
2. Ego is the enemy of what you want and of what you have. — Ryan Holiday
3. Not to aspire or seek out of ego. To have success without ego. To push through failure with strength, not ego. — Ryan Holiday
4. Whatever is next for us, we can be sure of one thing we’ll want to avoid. Ego. It makes all the steps hard, but failure is the one it will make permanent. — Ryan Holiday
5. Those who have subdued their ego understand that it doesn’t degrade you when others treat you poorly; it degrades them. — Ryan Holiday
6. Self-deception, delusions of grandeur — these aren’t just annoying personality traits. Ego is more than just off-putting and obnoxious. Instead, it’s the sworn enemy of our ability to learn and grow. — Ryan Holiday
7. Your ego is the enemy — it blocks us from improving by telling us that we don’t need to improve. — Ryan Holiday
8. Ego is there at the root of almost every conceivable problem and obstacle, from why we can’t win to why we need to win all the time and at the expense of others. — Ryan Holiday
9. It’s okay to be Goliath, but always act like David. — Attributed to Ryan Holiday

Ryan Holiday Quotes on Stillness: Presence, Calm and Clarity

Calm is a superpower in these ryan holiday quotes from Stillness Is the Key — presence, clarity and the discipline to slow down.

1. Stillness is what aims the archer’s arrow. It inspires new ideas. It sharpens perspective and illuminates connections. — Ryan Holiday
2. Be present. And if you’ve had trouble with this in the past? That’s okay. That’s the nice thing about the present. It keeps showing up to give you a second chance. — Ryan Holiday
3. Being present demands all of us. It’s not nothing. It may be the hardest thing in the world. — Ryan Holiday
4. Stillness is not an excuse to withdraw from the affairs of the world. Quite the opposite — it’s a tool to let you do more good for more people. — Ryan Holiday
5. Build a life that you don’t need to escape from. — Ryan Holiday
6. There is no greatness in the future. Or clarity. Or insight. Or happiness. Or peace. There is only this moment. — Ryan Holiday
7. The less energy we waste regretting the past or worrying about the future, the more energy we will have for what’s in front of us. — Ryan Holiday
8. Confidence is the freedom to set your own standards and unshackle yourself from the need to prove yourself. — Ryan Holiday
9. Confident people know what matters. They know when to ignore other people’s opinions. — Ryan Holiday
10. If true peace and clarity are what you seek in this life — and by the way, they are what you deserve — know that you will find them nearby and not far away. — Ryan Holiday
11. People who are driven by anger are not happy. They are not still. They get in their own way. — Ryan Holiday
12. Leisure is not the absence of activity, it is activity. You have to do it for you. — Ryan Holiday
13. We must be disciplined about our discipline and moderate in our moderation. — Ryan Holiday
14. This is what the best journals look like. They aren’t for the reader. They are for the writer. To slow the mind down. To wage peace with oneself. — Ryan Holiday
15. No one has less serenity than the person who does not know what is right or wrong. — Ryan Holiday
16. Mental stillness will be short-lived if our hearts are on fire, or our souls ache with emptiness. — Ryan Holiday

Ryan Holiday Quotes on Daily Discipline and Self-Control

Drawn from his daily writings, these ryan holiday quotes reward small, steady habits — progress over perfection, every single day.

1. Think progress, not perfection. — Ryan Holiday
2. A French journalist once told me that love is best spelled T-I-M-E. — Ryan Holiday
3. We would never let another person jerk us around the way we let our impulses do. — Ryan Holiday
4. Anger is not impressive or tough — it’s a mistake. It’s weakness. — Ryan Holiday
5. The more things we desire and the more we have to do to earn or attain those achievements, the less we actually enjoy our lives — and the less free we are. — Ryan Holiday
6. Money only marginally changes life. It doesn’t solve the problems that people without it seem to think it will. — Ryan Holiday
7. Getting worked up, getting excited, nervously pacing — these intense, pained, and anxious moments show us at our most futile and servile. — Ryan Holiday
8. We will not simply think our way to peace. We’ve got to move and live our way there. — Ryan Holiday

Short Ryan Holiday Quotes to Remember

The shortest ryan holiday quotes hit the hardest. Save these for the days you need them most.

1. The obstacle is the way. — Ryan Holiday
2. Ego is the enemy. — Ryan Holiday
3. Stillness is the key. — Ryan Holiday
4. Focus on what you can control, let go of what you can’t. — Attributed to Ryan Holiday

Frequently Asked Questions About Ryan Holiday Quotes

Who is Ryan Holiday?

Ryan Holiday is an American author born in 1987 who brought ancient Stoicism to a modern audience. His books include The Obstacle Is the Way (2014), Ego Is the Enemy (2016), Stillness Is the Key (2019) and The Daily Stoic (2016).

What is The Obstacle Is the Way about?

The book teaches that adversity can be turned into advantage through three disciplines: perception, action and will. It builds on Marcus Aurelius’s line, “The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.”

What does “ego is the enemy” mean?

In Holiday’s words, “Ego is the enemy of what you want and of what you have.” Ego blocks learning, poisons success and makes failure permanent — humility is the antidote.

What is Ryan Holiday’s most famous book?

The Obstacle Is the Way is his breakout and most-quoted book, though The Daily Stoic and Ego Is the Enemy are equally popular with readers.

Editor’s Picks: The Best Ryan Holiday Quotes

More Ryan Holiday Quotes to Explore

• Marcus Aurelius quotes — the Stoic emperor Holiday draws on most
• Epictetus quotes — the Stoic teacher behind the dichotomy of control
• Stoic quotes — ancient wisdom for modern life
• mindset quotes — rewire how you see every obstacle
• strength quotes — quiet resilience for hard days
• focus quotes — protect your attention like an asset
• discipline quotes — small habits, compounding results
• consistency quotes — show up even when motivation fades
• perseverance quotes — keep going when quitting feels easy
• patience quotes — the long game always wins
• simplicity quotes — clear the noise, keep the signal
• Aristotle quotes — the original philosopher of character