115 Powerful Stoicism Quotes on Control (Rise Above Chaos)

One of the reasons Stoic philosophy has regained popularity in recent years is the profound influence it can have on our lives by allowing us to grasp what we have control over and what we don’t. To help us understand what the Stoics mean when they talk about control, we’ve assembled 115 powerful stoicism quotes on control from our favorite Stoic philosophers, thinkers, writers, and more.

Powerful Stoicism Quotes on Control

1. “I am very happy Because I have conquered myself And not the world.” — Sri Chinmoy

2. “Sometimes letting things go is an act of far greater power than defending or hanging on.” — Eckhart Tolle

3. “You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.” — Maya Angelou

4. “It is when we lose control that we repress the emotions, not when we are in control.” — Don Miguel Ruiz

5. “Let the conversation flow at its own pace, don’t try to rush it or control it. You need to let go and be part of the conversation.” — Max Weiss

6. “The content of your character is your choice. Day by day, what you choose, what you think and what you do is who you become.” — Heraclitus

7. “Learning to live is learning to let go.” — Sogyal Rinpoche

8. “[L]et no one rule your mind or body.” — Christopher Paolini

9. “Letting go of the need to control things doesn’t mean letting go of responsibility. It means embracing life.” — Marc David

10. “Take special care that your thoughts remain unfettered. One may be a free man and yet be bound tighter than a slave.” — Christopher Paolini

11. “We suffer more in than in reality.” — Seneca

12. “While we may not be able to control all that happens to us, we can control what happens inside us.” — Benjamin Franklin

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13. “And it’d be our own, an’ nobody could can us. . . . An’ if a fren’ come along, why we’d have an extra bunk, an’ we’d say, ‘Why don’t you spen’ the night?′ An’ . . . he would.” — John Steinbeck

14. “You have power over your mind – not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.” — Marcus Aurelius

15. “Control is never achieved when sought after directly; it is the surprising result of letting go.” — James Arthur Ray

16. “Sometimes it feels like the more I wish for peace and quiet in my life, the more chaotic my life becomes.” — Bianca Scardoni

17. “It’s not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.” — Epictetus

18. “They ordered the extermination of all minds they couldn’t control.” — Tupac Shakur

19. “Let go of the need to control. Trust in the wisdom of a divine plan.” — Cheryl Richardson

20. “‘No’ is a word that must never be negotiated, because the person who chooses not to hear it is trying to control you.” — Gavin de Becker

21. “It’s not your job to change other people—and even if it were, crazy doesn’t want to be changed.” — Ryan Holiday

22. “Worrying, obsessing, and controlling are illusions. They are tricks we play on ourselves.” — Melody Beattie

23. “Creativity comes from accepting that you’re not safe, from being absolutely aware, and from letting go of control. It’s a matter of seeing everything – even when you want to shut your eyes.” — Madeleine L’Engle

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24. “Control what you can control. I can control my emotions, my attitude, my effort every day.” — Mitchell Trubisky

25. “Happiness and freedom begin with a clear understanding of one principle: Some things are within our control, and some things are not.” — Epictetus

26. “In a hierarchy, every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence.” — Laurence J. Peter

27. “There are two things a person should never be angry at, what they can help and what they cannot.” — Plato

28. “Stop trying to control. Let go of fixed plans and concepts, and the world will govern itself.” — Laozi

29. “You have no control. Who lives, who dies, who tells your story.” — Lin-Manuel Miranda

30. “Everybody’s a mad scientist, and life is their lab. We’re all trying to experiment to find a way to live, to solve problems, to fend off madness and chaos.” — David Cronenberg

31. “I am the one thing in life I can control.” — Lin-Manuel Miranda

32. “The meaning of bravery is more than the act of being strong, it is also about letting go of what you cannot control and trusting the unknown.” — Steven Cuoco

33. “Bought, did you say? All these things? Has my little spendthrift been wasting money again?” — Henrik Ibsen

34. “Enjoy what you can and ignore the rest. Let’s not waste any energy fighting things that are outside our control.” — Paulo Coelho

35. ″‘I discovered that maybe it was fate all along, that faith was just an illusion that somehow you’re in control.‘” — Amy Tan

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36. “You only have control over three things in your life – the thoughts you think, the images you visualize, and the actions your take.” — Jack Canfield

37. “You can’t really control how people hear stuff. It’s hard to remember that. I have to let go of it.” — Ben Folds

38. “I learned long ago to focus on things you can control and don’t even pay attention to things you don’t.” — Bryan Cranston

39. “To enjoy freedom we have to control ourselves.” — Virginia Woolf

40. “The only real battle in life is between hanging on and letting go.” —Shannon L. Alder

41. “Life comes with many challenges. The ones that should not scare us are the ones we can take on and take control of.” — Angelina Jolie

42. “I decided to focus on the things I could control and let go of the things that were out of my hands. That lesson has provided me with great relief; it has brought great things into my life.” — Raul Castillo

43. “It is not the demands of the job that cause the most stress, but the degree of control workers feel they have throughout their day.” — Simon Sinek

44. “What we can’t understand we call nonsense. What we can’t read we call gibberish.” — Chuck Palahniuk

45. “You have absolute control over but one thing, and that is your thoughts.” — Napoleon Hill

46. “Don’t worry about what you can’t control. Our focus and energy needs to be on the things we can control. Attitude, effort, focus- these are the things we can control…” — Tim Tebow

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47. “Freedom is the only worthy goal in life. It is won by disregarding things that lie beyond our control.” — Epictetus

48. “Freedom is control in your own life.” — Willie Nelson

49. “Face your fear, empty yourself, trust your own voice, let go of control, have faith in outcomes, connect with a larger purpose, derive meaning from the struggle.” — Kano Jigoro

50. “You control what you can control—your image, the way you conduct yourself, the way you let men talk to and approach you—and use that to get the relationship you want.” — Steve Harvey

51. “Life is to be lived, not controlled.” — Ralph Ellison

52. “The rage rises again, and I don’t even want to control it. But what can I do about it? What can I do to avenge my brother, or even try to save the others?” — Victoria Aveyard

53. “The practice of love offers no place of safety. We risk loss, hurt, pain. We risk being acted upon by forces outside our control.” — Bell Hooks

54. “Really, at the end of the day, the only thing you can control is yourself; the only person you can truly educate is yourself. You have to redefine what beauty is to you so you can’t be affected by what people are saying.” — Rupi Kaur

55. “The creative process requires chaos before form emerges.” — Marilyn Ferguson

56. “Anything that causes you to overreact or under react can control you, and often does.” — David Allen

57. “No one has ever been able to control his thinking, although people may tell the story of how they have. I don’t let go of my thoughts-I meet them with understanding. Then they let go of me.” — Byron Katie

58. “Why worry about things you can’t control when you can keep yourself busy controlling the things that depend on you?” — John C. Maxwell

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59. “You see, control can never be a means to any practical end…It can never be a means to anything but more control…” — William S. Burroughs

60. “The creative process is a process of surrender, not control.” — Julia Cameron

61. “Concern should drive us into action and not into a depression. No man is free who cannot control himself.” — Pythagoras

62. “We are not inviting—we are guarded. Most of our energy is spent trying to hide our true selves, and control our worlds to have some sense of security.” — John Eldredge

63. “Radical acceptance rests on letting go of the illusion of control and a willingness to notice and accept things as they are right now, without judging.” — Marsha M. Linehan

64. “There’s got to be order for my comedy to work, because chaos in the midst of chaos isn’t funny, but chaos in the midst of order is.” — Steve Martin

65. “No man is free who is not master of himself.” — Epictetus

66. “You have power over your mind — not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.” — Marcus Aurelius

67. “You can control two things: your work ethic and your attitude about anything.” — Ali Krieger

68. “If you focus on what you can’t control, you’re a little crazy inside, angry and depressed. If you focus most of the time on what you don’t have instead of what you do have, you’re going to be extremely unhappy.” — Tony Robbins

69. “You may not be able to control other people . . . but you can control how you react to them and their actions. This is an easy thing to say but much more difficult to do.” — Napoleon Hill

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70. “Just keep in mind: the more we value things outside our control, the less control we have.” — Epictetus

71. “I bring peace into moments of chaos.” — Johnathan Lockwood Huie

72. “It is true for all of us that when an emotionally painful event occurs, and we tell ourselves it is our fault, we are actually saying that we have control of it: if we change, the pain will stop.” — Robin Norwood

73. “It’s only when caterpillarness is done that one becomes a butterfly. That again is part of this paradox. You cannot rip away caterpillarness. The whole trip occurs in an unfolding process of which we have no control.” — Ram Dass

74. “The art of letting go is simply about personal empowerment. Realizing what you’re in charge of, realizing what you control, and more importantly, what you don’t control.” — Steve Maraboli

75. “He wanted to keep the birds in his power.” — Ted Hughes

76. “You can’t control the world, but when you control your thoughts, you bring order.” — Bernie Siegel

77. “All genius is a conquering of chaos and mystery.” — Otto Weininger

78. “My mouth is sore. My throat is sore. But it’s my soreness. I have control.” — Andy Weir

79. “I’m not in control of my muse. My muse does all the work.” — Ray Bradbury

80. “Control the things you can control. As for the rest – God bless it all.” — Chuck Palahniuk

81. “All you gotta do is chill out … Let go of control and chill out … Let it be, Trust.” — Esther Hicks

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82. “To others gardening is a form of creative abandon. To me it is a way of exerting control upon my surroundings.” — Lucy Foley

83. “You can’t control how other people see you or think of you. But you have to be comfortable with that.” — Helen Mirren

84. “…do not be afraid when the stars collide towards the darkness, because sometimes the most beautiful things begin in chaos.” — Robert M. Drake

85. “Your clutch is on his life, and you cause him to die daily a living death; and still he knows you not.” — Nathaniel Hawthorne

86. “If you can’t do anything about it, don’t worry about it.” — Jeanne Calment

87. “I think for you; that’s enough for you. If I want you, I know where to find you; I don’t want you to find me.” — Charles Dickens

88. “Chaos in the world brings uneasiness, but it allows the opportunity for creativity and growth.” — Tom Barett

89. “I used to gloat over Mark, thinking how utterly he was mine to ruin as I pleased, financially, morally, whatever way would give me most satisfaction.” — A. A. Milne

90. “Your reputation is in the hands of others. That’s what the reputation is. You can’t control that. The only thing you can control is your character.” —Wayne Dyer

91. “We can have peace if we let go of wanting to change the past and wanting to control the future.” — Lester Levenson

92. “No one saves us but ourselves. No one can and no one may. We ourselves must walk the path.” — Buddha

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93. “The highest possible stage in moral culture is when we recognize that we ought to control our thoughts.” — Charles Darwin

94. “Human beings are not reasonable creatures. Instead of being ruled by logic, we are ruled by emotions. The world would be a happier place if the opposite were true.” — Nicola Yoon

95. “I cannot always control what goes on outside. But I can always control what goes on inside.” — Wayne Dyer

96. “We have no control over the reality that in this world we will have trouble, but we have control over whether we decide to allow our hearts to be troubled.” — Erwin Raphael McManus

97. “When we have disorderly lives, it makes it difficult for our minds to be orderly and for us to be at ease with disorder.” — Joan Halifax

98. “Your subconscious never sleeps. It is always on the job. It controls all your vital functions. Forgive yourself and every one else before you go to sleep, and healing will take place much more rapidly.” — Joseph Murphy

99. “I’m letting God write my love story because once upon a time, I took control of it and it didn’t work well.” — Nikki Gil

100. “A man’s emotions are what define him, control is the hallmark of true strength. To lack feeling is to be dead, but to act on every feeling is to be a child.” — Brandon Sanderson

101. “Rash judgements or loud voices rarely capture the complexity of the challenge, bring healing or solve the problem.” — Francis Campbell

102. “At the end of the day, you can’t control the results; you can only control your effort level and your focus.” — Ben Zobrist

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103. “Fear is how they control you. There’s so much in the world you don’t have to be afraid of, if you would only open your eyes.” — Leigh Bardugo

104. “You cannot always control what goes on outside. But you can always control what goes on inside.” — Wayne Dyer

105. “Anger is not impressive or tough— it’s a mistake. It’s weakness. Depending on what you’re doing, it might even be a trap that someone laid for you.” — Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman

106. “The Fates guide the person who accepts them and hinder the person who resists them.” — Cleanthes

107. “Don’t worry about what you can’t control. Our focus and energy needs to be on the things we can control. Attitude, effort, focus- these are the things we can control…” — Tim Tebow

108. “When I finally learned to let go of having to totally control everything around me and let my life unfold, I was stunned by the results. How could I have ever thought I could outsmart the Universe?” — Geri Larkin

109. “Take control of your consistent emotions and begin to consciously and deliberately reshape your daily experience of life.” — Tony Robbins

110. “An angry man opens his mouth and shuts his eyes.” — Cato The Elder

111. “To enjoy good health, to bring true happiness to one’s family, to bring peace to all, one must first discipline and control one’s own mind. If a man can control his mind he can find the way to Enlightenment, and all wisdom and virtue will naturally come to him.” — Buddha

112. “Take a limitation and turn it into an opportunity. Take an opportunity and turn it into an adventure… ” — Jo Franz

113. “You learned to run from what you feel, and that’s why you have nightmares. To deny is to invite madness. To accept is to control.” — Megan Chance

114. “You shouldn’t give circumstances the power to rouse anger, for they don’t care at all.” — Marcus Aurelius

115. “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” — Viktor Frankl

I hope you enjoyed these powerful stoicism quotes on control, if you like please write in the comment section below, which one was your favorite.

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