Social Emotional Learning (SEL) is a transformative approach to education that goes beyond typical academic instruction and focuses on building students’ important interpersonal and intrapersonal skills. “The most important thing is to teach children how to think, not what to think,”.
To keep you motivated and devoted to social change, we’ve compiled 117 remarkable quotes about social emotional learning from leaders, activists, and changemakers who have had a long-lasting impact on the world.
These stunning quotes highlight SEL’s critical aim of building their inner capacity to negotiate complicated emotional scenery, form meaningful relationships, and cultivate personal resilience in an increasingly linked society.
Let’s Start!
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Here are Quotes about Social Emotional Learning
1. “There is no separation of mind and emotions; emotions, thinking, and learning are all linked.” — Eric Jensen
2. “SEL is not an add-on; it’s the foundation upon which successful education is built.” — Maurice J. Elia
3. “Emotions are a critical source of information for learning.” — Joseph Ledoux
4. “Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.” — Carl G Jung
5. “The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: if there is any reaction, both are transformed.” — Carl Jung
6. “When awareness is brought to an emotion, power is brought to your life.” — Tara Meyer Robson
7. “In a world filled with chaos, teaching SEL is like giving children an anchor to navigate the storms of life.” — Brené Brown
8. “CEOs are hired for their intellect and business expertise – and fired for a lack of emotional intelligence.” — Daniel Goleman
9. “Love is when you meet someone who tells you something new about yourself.” — Andre Breton
10. “Empathy and understanding are the building blocks of strong relationships and a harmonious society.” — Marc Brackett
11. “It isn’t stress that makes us fall–it’s how we respond to stressful events.” — Wayde Goodall
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12. “You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.” — Dale Carnegie
13. “SEL teaches us that our emotions are not obstacles but opportunities for growth and connection.” — RULER Approach
14. “Emotions and reason are intertwined, and both are critical to problem-solving.” — Antonio Damasio
15. “You are connected to a family, a community, a world. Use your power wisely.”
16. “When we prioritize SEL in education, we equip students with the tools they need to succeed in school and in life.” — CASEL
17. “For news of the heart, ask the face.” — West African saying
18. “Instead of resisting any emotion, the best way to dispel it is to enter it fully, embrace it and see through your resistance.” — Deepak Chopra
19. “SEL is the bridge that connects the heart and mind, fostering holistic development and well-rounded individuals.” — Unknown
20. “Let’s not forget that the little emotions are the great captains of our lives and we obey them without realizing it.” — Vincent van Gogh
21. “Happiness is not something ready-made. It comes from your own actions.” — Dalai Lama
22. “Quick to judge, quick to anger, slow to understand … prejudice, fear, and ignorance walk hand in hand.” — Peart
23. “When we teach children how to manage their emotions, we empower them to become architects of their own happiness.” — John Gottman
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24. “The only way to change someone’s mind is to connect with them from the heart.” — Rasheed Ogunlaru
25. “The essential difference between emotion and reason is that emotion leads to action while reason leads to conclusions.” — Donald Calne
26. “SEL is not just about raising test scores; it’s about raising compassionate and resilient human beings.” — Unknown
27. “In the middle of every difficulty lies opportunity.” — Albert Einstein
28. “Your intellect may be confused, but your emotions will never lie to you.” — Roger Ebert
29. “When dealing with people, remember you are not dealing with creatures of logic, but with creatures of emotion.” — Dale Carnegie
30. “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” — Maya Angelou
31. “… new studies reveal that teaching kids to be emotionally and socially competent boosts their academic achievement.” — Daniel Goleman
32. “Change happens in the boiler room of our emotions–so find out how to light their fires.” — Jeff Dewar
33. “We can improve our relationships with others by leaps and bounds if we become encouragers instead of critics.” — Joyce Meyer
34. “How you react emotionally is a choice in any situation.” — Judith Orloff
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35. “The purpose of education is not just to impart knowledge but to nurture empathy, resilience, and emotional well-being.” — Linda Lantieri
36. “When a man is prey to his emotions, he is not his own master.” — Benedict de Spinoza
37. “The sign of an intelligent people is their ability to control their emotions by the application of reason.” — Marya Mannes
38. “We are dangerous when we are not conscious of our responsibility for how we behave, think, and feel.” — Marshall B. Rosenberg
39. “Judgments and opinions are debatable, feelings are not.” — Myron Doc Downing
40. “Your emotions are the slaves to your thoughts, and you are the slave to your emotions.” — Elizabeth Gilbert
41. “Never react emotionally to criticism. Analyze yourself to determine whether it is justified. If it is, correct yourself. Otherwise, go on about your business.” — Norman Vincent Peale
42. “When our emotional health is in a bad state, so is our level of self-esteem. We have to slow down and deal with what is troubling us, so that we can enjoy the simple joy of being happy and at peace with ourselves.” — Jess C. Scott
43. “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” — Maya Angelou
44. “The strength of character and emotional intelligence to face your failures and learn from them are at the core of success.” — Robert Kiyosaki
45. “Emotion can be the enemy, if you give into your emotion, you lose yourself. You must be at one with your emotions, because the body always follows the mind.” — Bruce Lee
46. “To increase your effectiveness, make your emotions subordinate to your commitments.” — Brian Koslow
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47. “One of the most sincere forms of respect is actually listening to what another has to say.” — Bryant H. McGill
48. “The emotions of man are stirred more quickly than man’s intelligence.” — Oscar Wilde
49. “The highest form of knowledge is empathy, for it requires us to suspend our egos and live in another’s world,” — Plato
50. “Always, emotional freedom involves choosing where you put your attention.” — Judith Orloff
51. “Tenderness and kindness are not signs of weakness and despair, but manifestations of strength and resolution.” — Kahlil Gibran
52. “The best way to predict the future is to create it.” — Peter Drucker
53. “Never make a permanent decision based on a temporary emotion.” — Anonymous
54. “Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone … just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had.” — F. Scott Fitzgerald
55. “Any person capable of angering you becomes your master.” — Epictetus
56. “Leadership is all about emotional intelligence. Management is taught, while leadership is experienced.” — Rajeev Suri
57. “Emotion, which is suffering, ceases to be suffering as soon as we have a clear picture of it.” — Benedict Spinoza
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58. “Man is, at one and the same time, a solitary being and a social being.” — Albert Einstein
59. “If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.” — Dalai Lama
60. “For beautiful eyes, look for the good in others; for beautiful lips, speak only words of kindness; and for poise, walk with the knowledge that you are never alone.” — Audrey Hepburn
61. “Emotional intelligence is a key that can unlock the door to a more compassionate and understanding world.” — Daniel Goleman
62. “Listening is a magnetic and strange thing, a creative force. The friends who listen to us are the ones we move toward. When we are listened to, it creates us, makes us unfold and expand.” — Karl A. Menniger
63. “Social support tends to alleviate the effects of stress.” — J.B. Cohen
64. “IQ gets you hired. EQ gets you promoted.” — Unknown
65. “It is not the consciousness of men that determines their being, but, on the contrary, their social being that determines their consciousness.” — Karl Marx
66. “Encourage, lift and strengthen one another. For the positive energy spread to one will be felt by us all. For we are connected, one and all.” — Deborah Day
67. “How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” — Unknown
68. “Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.” — Stephen R. Covey
69. “Be The Peace You Wish To See In The World!” — Martin Luther King, Jr.
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70. “We are social beings and our brains grow in a social environment.” — Eric Jensen
71. “As social beings we live with our eyes upon our reflection, but have no assurance of the tranquillity of the waters in which we see it.” — Charles Horton Cooley
72. “Wisdom is the reward you get for a lifetime of listening when you’d have preferred to talk.” — Doug Larson
73. “People are social beings and want interaction and social learning is the primary form of learning, just as word of mouth advertising is the highest form of advertising.” — Stephen Covey
74. “The most powerful element in advertising is the truth.” — William Bernbach
75. “We cannot think of ourselves save as to some extent social being. Hence, we cannot separate the idea of ourselves and our own good from our idea of others and their good.” — John Dewey
76. “Don’t compromise yourself. You’re all you’ve got.” — Janis Joplin
77. “A lot of people use collaborative technologies badly, then abandon them. They aren’t ‘plug-and-play.’ The invisible part is the social skill necessary to use them.” — Howard Rheingold
78. “Wisdom tends to grow in proportion to one’s awareness of one’s ignorance.” — Anthony de Mello
79. “Man is known to be a selfish, as well as a social being.” — James Madison
80. “The only person you should try to be better than is the person you were yesterday.” — Matty Mullins
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81. “It’s all about being a part of something in the community, socializing with people who share interests and coming together to help improve the world we live in.” — Zach Braff
82. “Socializing is more positive than being alone; that’s why meetings are so popular. People don’t like being alone. That would be, however, an important skill to learn…” — Mihaly Csikszentmihaly
83. “Your energy introduces you before you even speak.” — Unknown
84. “Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others.” — Jack Welch
85. “If your emotional abilities aren’t in hand, if you don’t have self-awareness, if you are not able to manage your distressing emotions, if you can’t have empathy and have effective relationships, then no matter how smart you are, you are not going to get very far.” — Daniel Goleman
86. “People say, ‘What is the sense of our small effort?’ They cannot see that we must lay one brick at a time, take one step at a time.” — Dorothy Day
87. “Today it’s important to be present, be relevant and add value.” — Nick Besbeas
88. “Emotions are a critical source of information for learning.” — Joseph LeDoux
89. “Empathy is seeing with the eyes of another, listening with the ears of another, and feeling with the heart of another.” — Alfred Adler
90. “Less is more. Keeping it simple takes time and effort.” — Jeff Bullas
91. “Well-being cannot exist just in your own head. Well-being is a combination of feeling good as well as actually having meaning, good relationships and accomplishment.” — Martin Seligman
92. “Content Marketing is not simply a campaign or a tactic, it’s a commitment.” — Valerie Uhlir
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93. “The only way to change someone’s mind is to connect with them from the heart.” — Rasheed Ogunlaru
94. “Getting the like is easy. It’s a light action. Anything else requires trust.” — Jon Loomer
95. “Emotions are enmeshed in the neural networks of reason.” — Antonio Dumasio
96. “Any person capable of angering you becomes your master.” — Epictetus
97. “You cannot buy engagement. You have to build engagement.” — Tara-Nicholle Nelson
98. “The quality of our relationships determines the quality of our lives.” — Esther Perel
99. “The greatest ability in business is to get along with others and influence their actions.” — John Hancock
100. “Give them quality. That is the best kind of advertising.” — Milton Hershey
101. “Evidence is presented that the mass suppression of emotion throughout the civilized world has stifled our growth emotionally, leading us down a path of emotional ignorance.” — Wayne Payne
102. “Believe you can and you’re halfway there.” — Theodore Roosevelt
103. “Individual liberty is allowed to man only to a certain extent. He cannot forget that he is a social being and his individual liberty has to be curtailed at every step.” — Mahatma Gandhi
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104. “In a high-IQ job pool, soft skills like discipline, drive, and empathy mark those who emerge as outstanding.” — Daniel Goleman
105. “The press is the best instrument for enlightening the mind of man, and improving him as a rational, moral and social being.” — Thomas Jefferson
106. “In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing. The worst thing you can do is nothing.” — Theodore Roosevelt
107. “Satire exists for the purpose of killing the social being [for the sake of] the true individual, the real human being.” — D. H. Lawrence
108. “When awareness is brought to an emotion, power is brought to your life.” — Tara Meyer Robson
109. “No one cares how much you know, until they know how much you care.” — Theodore Roosevelt
110. “You deserve to be happy. You deserve to live a life that lights you up. Don’t ever forget that.” — Coco Calla
111. “We don’t know where we’re going, we don’t know what’s going to happen, but no one can take away from you what you put in your own mind.” — Edith Eger
112. “The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.” — Nelson Mandela
113. “Those who move forward with a happy spirit will find that things always work out.” — Gordon B. Hinkley
114. “Revenge has no more quenching effect on emotions than salt water has on thirst.” — Walter Weckler
115. “I believe you learn social skills by mixing with people.” — Joe Morgan
116. “You have the power within you to rise about whatever is currently seeking to bring you down.”
117. “Empathy is about finding echoes of another person in yourself.” — Mohsin Hamid
I hope you enjoyed these 117 quotes about social emotional learning, if you like please tell me in the comment section below, which one was your favorite!
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