Leaving is a complex and emotional experience. Whether saying goodbye to a loved one, moving to a new city, or ending a chapter in life, departure touches us deeply. It can be sad but also full of hope and new beginnings.
In this article, we’ve gathered some of the best quotes about leaving. These words capture the heartache and excitement that come with farewells. They remind us that every ending brings a new start.
Inspiring Quotes about Leaving the Past Behind
“The past is a place of reference, not a place of residence.” – Roy T. Bennett
“Don’t let yesterday take up too much of today.” – Will Rogers
“Every day is a new day, and you’ll never be able to find happiness if you don’t move on.” – Carrie Underwood
“You can’t start the next chapter of your life if you keep re-reading the last one.” – Michael McMillan
“It’s never too late to be who you might have been.” – George Eliot
“Letting go doesn’t mean that you don’t care about someone anymore. It’s just realizing that the only person you really have control over is yourself.” – Deborah Reber
“Yesterday is not ours to recover, but tomorrow is ours to win or lose.” – Lyndon B. Johnson
“The greatest step towards a life of simplicity is to learn to let go.” – Steve Maraboli
“To let go does not mean to get rid of. To let go means to let be. When we let be with compassion, things come and go on their own.” – Jack Kornfield
“Life moves on and so should we.” – Spencer Johnson
“Sometimes the hardest part isn’t letting go but rather learning to start over.” – Nicole Sobon
“The only real battle in life is between hanging on and letting go.” – Shannon L. Alder
“Holding on is believing that there’s only a past; letting go is knowing that there’s a future.” – Daphne Rose Kingma
“Letting go means to come to the realization that some people are a part of your history, but not a part of your destiny.” – Steve Maraboli
“The beautiful journey of today can only begin when we learn to let go of yesterday.” – Steve Maraboli
“You have to let go of who you were to become who you will be.” – Candace Bushnell
“Sometimes we can only find our true direction when we let the wind of change carry us.” – Mimi Novic
“In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: it goes on.” – Robert Frost
“With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts.” – Eleanor Roosevelt
“You can’t reach what’s in front of you until you let go of what’s behind you.” – Anonymous
“Some of us think holding on makes us strong, but sometimes it is letting go.” – Hermann Hesse
“Set your life on fire. Seek those who fan your flames.” – Rumi
“Don’t dwell on what went wrong. Instead, focus on what to do next. Spend your energies on moving forward toward finding the answer.” – Denis Waitley
“Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end.” – Seneca
“We must be willing to let go of the life we’ve planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us.” – Joseph Campbell
“Just remember, when you should grab something, grab it; when you should let go, let go.” – Zig Ziglar
“When you let go, you create space for something better.” – Anonymous
“You can’t move forward if you’re still hanging on.” – Sue Fitzmaurice
“The past is a stepping stone, not a millstone.” – Robert Plant
“You’ve gotta know when it’s time to turn the page.” – Tori Amos
“The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.” – Alan Watts
“You can’t control the past, but you can control where you go next.” – Kirsten Hubbard
Powerful Quotes about Leaving Home
“The ache for home lives in all of us, the safe place where we can go as we are and not be questioned.” – Maya Angelou
“Home is where one starts from.” – T.S. Eliot
“You can never go home again, but the truth is you can never leave home, so it’s all right.” – Maya Angelou
“The world is round and the place which may seem like the end may also be only the beginning.” – Ivy Baker Priest
“A man travels the world over in search of what he needs and returns home to find it.” – George Moore
“Home is not where you live, but where they understand you.” – Christian Morgenstern
“you always go back to the people that were there in the beginning.” – Unknown
“Every day is a journey, and the journey itself is home.” – Matsuo Basho
“No matter where you go, there you are.” – Confucius
“Leaving home is a necessary step they cannot avoid. Preparing to leave, learning the process, and actually doing it is at the core of growing up.” – John Lahr
“The farther away I get, the more I remember the important things in life. Home is the biggest thing of all.” – Unknown
“You leave home, you move on and you do the best you can. I got lost in this whole world and forgot who I am.” – Miranda Lambert
“Sometimes you have to leave home in order to find out what home really means.” – Unknown
“We all take different paths in life, but no matter where we go, we take a little of each other everywhere.” – Tim McGraw
“To awaken quite alone in a strange town is one of the pleasantest sensations in the world.” – Freya Stark
“The journey not the arrival matters.” – T.S. Eliot
“Where we love is home—home that our feet may leave, but not our hearts.” – Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.
“Sometimes the hardest part isn’t letting go but rather learning to start over.” – Nicole Sobon
“Home is where the heart is, even if you can’t remember which box you packed it in.” – Unknown
“We wander for distraction, but we travel for fulfillment.” – Hilaire Belloc
“Leaving home in a sense involves a kind of second birth in which we give birth to ourselves.” – Robert Neelly Bellah
“The great affair, the love affair with life, is to live as variously as possible, to groom one’s curiosity like a high-spirited thoroughbred, climb aboard, and gallop over the thick, sun-struck hills every day.” – Diane Ackerman
“The best journeys in life are those that answer questions you never thought to ask.” – Rick Ridgeway
“Moving on is not about never looking back. It takes a conscious effort to detach from the past and embrace the future with open arms.” – Unknown
“Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” – Dr. Seuss
“Nothing is ever really lost to us as long as we remember it.” – L.M. Montgomery
“We travel, some of us forever, to seek other states, other lives, other souls.” – Anaïs Nin
“Parting is such sweet sorrow, that I shall say good night till it be morrow.” – William Shakespeare
“There are far better things ahead than any we leave behind.” – C.S. Lewis
“To move, to breathe, to fly, to float, to gain all while you give, to roam the roads of lands remote, to travel is to live.” – Hans Christian Andersen
“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.” – Steve Jobs
Comforting Quotes about Leaving a Job
“The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.” – Alan Watts
“Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” – Dr. Seuss
“Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end.” – Seneca
“Farewell is not forever, it’s just another step in the journey.” – Unknown
“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.” – Albert Einstein
“Sometimes the most productive thing you can do is relax.” – Mark Black
“When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long and regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us.” – Alexander Graham Bell
“Courage is the power to let go of the familiar.” – Raymond Lindquist
“If you’re brave enough to say goodbye, life will reward you with a new hello.” – Paulo Coelho
“Don’t be dismayed by good-byes. A farewell is necessary before you can meet again. And meeting again, after moments or lifetimes, is certain for those who are friends.” – Richard Bach
“Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.” – Albert Schweitzer
“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” – Lao Tzu
“Change is the only constant in life, and those who adapt will thrive.” – Heraclitus
“Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending.” – Carl Bard
“The best way to predict the future is to create it.” – Peter Drucker
“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” – C.S. Lewis
“The horizon leans forward, offering you space to place new steps of change.” – Maya Angelou
“Change is painful, but nothing is as painful as staying stuck somewhere you don’t belong.” – Mandy Hale
“Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass; it’s about learning how to dance in the rain.” – Vivian Greene
“A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt
“The risk of a wrong decision is preferable to the terror of indecision.” – Maimonides
“Great is the art of beginning, but greater is the art of ending.” – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
“We must be willing to let go of the life we planned so as to have the life that is waiting for us.” – Joseph Campbell
“It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.” – E.E. Cummings
“By changing nothing, nothing changes.” – Tony Robbins
“Wherever you go, go with all your heart.” – Confucius
“Let yourself move to the next chapter in life when the time comes. Don’t remain stuck on the same page.” – Unknown
“Ending something can be bittersweet, but it opens up the space for new beginnings.” – Unknown
“Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.” – George Bernard Shaw
“You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. What you’ll discover will be wonderful. What you’ll discover is yourself.” – Alan Alda
“Gratitude turns what we have into enough, and more.” – Melody Beattie
“Don’t be afraid to give up the good to go for the great.” – John D. Rockefeller
Heartfelt Quotes about Leaving Friends
“Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” – Dr. Seuss
“Goodbyes are not forever. Goodbyes are not the end. They simply mean I’ll miss you until we meet again.” – Unknown
“How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.” – A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh
“Friendship is the golden thread that ties the heart of all the world.” – John Evelyn
“True friends don’t say goodbye, they just take extended leaves of absences from each other.” – Unknown
“What we call the beginning is often the end. And to make an end is to make a beginning. The end is where we start from.” – T.S. Eliot
“A farewell is necessary before we can meet again, and meeting again, after moments or a lifetime, is certain for those who are friends.” – Richard Bach
“You have been my friend. That in itself is a tremendous thing.” – E.B. White, Charlotte’s Web
“Though miles may lie between us, we are never far apart, for friendship doesn’t count miles, it’s measured by the heart.” – Unknown
“Don’t be dismayed at goodbyes. A farewell is necessary before you can meet again. And meeting again, after moments or a lifetime, is certain for those who are friends.” – Richard Bach
“Good friends never say goodbye. They simply say ‘See you soon.'” – Unknown
“Farewell, my friend, until we meet again some other day, some other place.” – Unknown
“We laughed until we had to cry, we loved right down to our last goodbye, we were the best.” – St. Elmo’s Fire
“The reason it hurts so much to separate is because our souls are connected.” – Nicholas Sparks, The Notebook
“You and I
Motivational Quotes about Leaving Comfort Zones
- “Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.” – Neale Donald Walsch
“The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” – Arthur C. Clarke
“Do not be too timid and squeamish about your actions. All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make, the better.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
“If you want something you’ve never had, you must be willing to do something you’ve never done.” – Thomas Jefferson
“Move out of your comfort zone. You can only grow if you are willing to feel awkward and uncomfortable when you try something new.” – Brian Tracy
“Stepping out of your comfort zone is the first step towards success.” – Anonymous
“we only regret the chances we didn’t take.” – Lewis Carroll
“A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for.” – John A. Shedd
“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” – Wayne Gretzky
“Don’t be afraid to give up the good to go for the great.” – John D. Rockefeller
“To achieve something you have never achieved before, you must do something you have never done before.” – Anonymous
“The secret of getting ahead is getting started.” – Mark Twain
“The biggest risk is not taking any risk.” – Mark Zuckerberg
“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
“The comfort zone is the great enemy of courage and confidence.” – Brian Tracy
“Change is the end result of all true learning.” – Leo Buscaglia
“If it doesn’t challenge you, it won’t change you.” – Fred DeVito
“You cannot swim for new horizons until you have the courage to lose sight of the shore.” – William Faulkner
“Take the leap. It’s worth it.” – Anonymous
“You can choose courage or you can choose comfort, but you cannot choose both.” – Brené Brown
“Stop being afraid of what could go wrong, and start being excited about what could go right.” – Tony Robbins
“Get comfortable with being uncomfortable!” – Jillian Michaels
“Adventure may hurt you but monotony will kill you.” – Anonymous
“If you want to fly, you have to give up what weighs you down.” – Roy T. Bennett
“Great things never came from comfort zones.” – Neil Strauss
“Everything you’ve ever wanted is on the other side of fear.” – George Addair
“Your life does not get better by chance, it gets better by change.” – Jim Rohn
“Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will.” – Suzy Kassem
“You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. What you’ll discover will be wonderful. What you’ll discover is yourself.” – Alan Alda
“It is not the strongest or the most intelligent who will survive, but those who can best manage change.” – Charles Darwin
“Don’t let the fear of losing be greater than the excitement of winning.” – Robert Kiyosaki
Touching Quotes about Leaving Family
“The ache for home lives in all of us, the safe place where we can go as we are and not be questioned.” – Maya Angelou
“How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.” – A.A. Milne, Winnie the Pooh
“You will never be completely at home again, because part of your heart will always be elsewhere.” – Miriam Adeney
“The pain of parting is nothing to the joy of meeting again.” – Charles Dickens
“Family means no one gets left behind or forgotten.” – David Ogden Stiers, Lilo & Stitch
“Leaving a family is hard, but it’s even harder to stay when you know it’s time to move on to new horizons.” – Original
“Home is where your heart is, and sometimes your heart has to move on.” – Original
“Goodbyes are not forever, are not the end; it simply means I’ll miss you until we meet again.” – Unknown
“We may not have it all together, but together we have it all.” – Unknown
“Saying goodbye doesn’t mean anything. It’s the time we spent together that matters, not how we left it.” – Trey Parker
“A happy family is but an earlier heaven.” – George Bernard Shaw
“The love in our family flows strong and deep, leaving us memories to treasure and keep.” – Unknown
“Family is not an important thing. It’s everything.” – Michael J. Fox
“Farewell is like the end, but in my heart is the memory and there you will always be.” – Unknown
“Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” – Dr. Seuss
“The best part of having a family is the people you leave behind who will never let you go.” – Original
“The bond that links your true family is not one of blood, but of respect and joy in each other’s life.” – Richard Bach
“If ever there is a tomorrow when we’re not together, there is something you must always remember: you are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.” – A.A. Milne
“You leave home to seek your fortune and, when you get it, you go home and share it with your family.” – Anita Baker
“Home is people. Not a place. If you go back there after the people are gone, then all you can see is what is not there anymore.” – Robin Hobb
“The family is one of nature’s masterpieces.” – George Santayana
“We may leave the family home, but the family never leaves us.” – Original
“It is not the goodbye that hurts, but the flashbacks that follow.” – Unknown
“Sometimes you have to leave the family you love to find the family you need.” – Original
“A man travels the world over in search of what he needs and returns home to find it.” – George Moore
“To us, family means putting your arms around each other and being there.” – Barbara Bush
“Family is the compass that guides us. They are the inspiration to reach great heights, and our comfort when we occasionally falter.” – Brad Henry
“The hardest part of leaving is knowing that you still belong there, even if you can’t be there.” – Original
“Love your family. Spend time, be kind, and serve one another. Make no room for regrets. Tomorrow is not promised and today is short.” – Unknown
“In every conceivable manner, the family is a link to our past, bridge to our future.” – Alex Haley
“Goodbyes are never easy, pictures never carry your warmth, and memories will always pierce the heart.” – Unknown
“The strength of a family, like the strength of an army, lies in its loyalty to each other.” – Mario Puzo
Thought-Provoking Quotes about Leaving for Adventure
“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.” – Saint Augustine
“Adventure is worthwhile.” – Aesop
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – H. Jackson Brown Jr.
“Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.” – Henry David Thoreau
“To travel is to live.” – Hans Christian Andersen
“Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.” – Neale Donald Walsch
“Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore.” – André Gide
“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
“It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.” – Ernest Hemingway
“There’s the whole world at your feet.” – Mary Poppins
“The biggest adventure you can take is to live the life of your dreams.” – Oprah Winfrey
“Travel far enough, you meet yourself.” – David Mitchell
“Adventure is not outside man; it is within.” – George Eliot
“Not all those who wander are lost.” – J.R.R. Tolkien
“To travel is to take a journey into yourself.” – Danny Kaye
“Leave the road, take the trails.” – Pythagoras
“Adventure may hurt you, but monotony will kill you.” – Anonymous
“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.” – Helen Keller
“Live with no excuses and travel with no regrets.” – Oscar Wilde
“Take only memories, leave only footprints.” – Chief Seattle
“Sometimes the wrong train takes you to the right station.” – Paulo Coelho
“Remember that happiness is a way of travel – not a destination.” – Roy M. Goodman
“Fill your life with experiences, not things. Have stories to tell, not stuff to show.” – Anonymous
“Wherever you go, go with all your heart.” – Confucius
“We travel not to escape life, but for life not to escape us.” – Anonymous
“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” – Lao Tzu
“To awaken alone in a strange town is one of the pleasantest sensations in the world.” – Freya Stark
“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.” – Marcel Proust
“Adventure beckons us to step out of the ordinary and into the extraordinary.” – Anonymous
“The journey not the arrival matters.” – T.S. Eliot
“There are no foreign lands. It is the traveler only who is foreign.” – Robert Louis Stevenson
“I haven’t been everywhere, but it’s on my list.” – Susan Sontag
Last Words
Leaving can be hard, but the right words can offer comfort and guidance. These quotes remind us that goodbyes are a natural part of life. They help us see endings not as loss, but as chances for new beginnings. Whether we’re moving cities, changing jobs, or ending relationships, these quotes can provide the strength and perspective we need.
We hope that this collection of quotes about leaving has touched you in some way. They hold powerful messages that speak to the heart. Turn to these quotes whenever you need a reminder that leaving isn’t just about saying goodbye. It’s about opening the door to new opportunities and experiences.
