The 50 Best Prepper Quotes – Survival Motivation
This post has been updated from our original Best Prepper Quotes post that was first published in 2016. We’re at fifty quotes now and will continue to update as we find more inspirational survival quotes.
Sometimes it is hard to stay motivated in the face of adversity. Adversity for preppers comes in the form of complacency, cynicism, and excuses. Beating this adversity and staying motivated is just as important now as when SHTF (See the last quote below). Motivation can be just as important as a tool or a skill. We have all seen motivational posters that are supposed to inspire us to achieve our ‘potential’.
Many cynics doubt their effectiveness, and from this cynicism, a whole slew of pretty funny “demotivational” posters have sprung up. Whether or not you are the type to typically find inspiration in a few words and a picture, we challenge you to take a look at the 50 best prepper quotes we could find and not take something away.
Contents (Jump to a Section)
1. Theodore Roosevelt
Good old Teddy has a ton of quotes attributed to him. The 26th president of the United States was a man of many words and big actions.
This example is not one of his more well-known quotes, but it hits a chord with preppers since he is bluntly advocating the importance of being prepared.
2. Carl Sagan
Carl Sagan was an American astronomer with a ton of quotable sayings. His love of discovery and learning was infectious. He dazzled a whole generation with his book and series Cosmos about the vastness and wonder of space.
This quote is an example of how fragile and rare life is in our universe. As preppers, one of our goals is to sustain it as best we can on our tiny little blue ball of a planet.
3. Alexander Graham Bell
A Scottish-born scientist, engineer, and inventor is most known for his invention that nobody can peel their eyes from these days, it seems. This quote is not one of his more known since he has a large catalog of quotes attributed to him.
Bell had many other inventions besides the telephone, including a wireless version called the photophone, the metal detector, and hydrofoils.
4. Abraham Lincoln
Of course, another president made the list! Abraham Lincoln has a storied history with axes, starting to use them at a young age to build cabins. He used one not a week before he was assassinated, as well, demonstrating to young soldiers how to split wood.
Truthfully, if I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I would get the chainsaw and have a little over seven hours to enjoy a cold beverage afterward. The quote does show the importance of preparing, though, which we can all appreciate.
5. Stephen King
The great horror author writes for a living, so there are sure to be some good quotes. This is one of the more popular prepper quotes that helps ‘clear the air’ for many preppers.
Some who do not understand the importance of being prepared for emergencies try to say that preppers look forward to SHTF and wish it would happen. This quote helps us beat that twisted logic and shows that being prepared for the worst is not the same as hoping for the worst.
6. Louis Pasteur
This renowned French chemist and microbiologist kept busy by discovering fermentation, the principles of vaccination, and inventing pasteurization.
A great runner-up quote for Pasteur would be “My strength lies solely in my tenacity.” As far as prepper quotes go, this one is hard to beat.
7. Gen. George S. Patton
The general was an Olympian in his early years and busting up Nazis in his later years. This quote highlights the importance of looking at past events to see how others have coped.
Learning from our past is an important step to not repeating the same mistakes and not being caught off guard multiple times.
8. Benjamin Franklin
If Benjamin Franklin had his way, the turkey would be the United States’ bird instead of the bald eagle. We expect Thanksgiving would have looked much different.
This quote is a favorite among preppers and is fairly straightforward in how it presents the alternative to prepping in black and white.
9. Ezra Taft Benson
Benson was a farmer, government official, and president of the LDS church. He has written many books on the government and Mormonism, providing a large amount of quotable material.
This quote is concise and catchy, showing Benson’s wit and eye for writing.
10. John F. Kennedy
Another US president with a great analogy. Prep before the SHTF- do not wait until disasters and emergencies are on your doorstep.
11. Vince Lombardi
He never had a losing season and knew how to motivate any group to achieve more than the sum of its parts. With a Super Bowl trophy named after him, Mr. Lombardi is considered one of the best – if not the best – coaches in American sports.
12. Howard Ruff
Howard Ruff was a long-time advocate of preparedness. He was more than just a proponent of bullion and numismatic coins, as he gave us this solid quote that leans on his LDS beliefs.
13. Henry Ford
When you work towards a goal, the journey itself can be rewarding too. Henry Ford laid down this knowledge nugget in this great quote that applies to prepping figuratively and survival literally.
14. Bear Grylls
Survival quotes don’t get much better than the master survivalist himself, Bear Grylls. He’s still all over the TV with tons of survival shows. He’s also pretty entrepreneurial, with a Gerber partnership with plenty of Bear Grylls-branded survival gear.
He is a pretty consistent target for survival memes, though, since he drank his own urine on one of his TV shows to demonstrate how it can partially rehydrate you in an emergency, and embodies his quote below.
15. Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee may be known by most as a martial arts movie star, but he took studying and practicing to the next level. Repetition and training are especially important when you are creating a survival plan. Don’t worry about every possible situation; stick to the basics to be the best prepared.
16. Marcus Aurelius
The Roman emperor was well-versed in Stoicism and provided plenty of prepper quotes that focus on the importance of preparedness to lead a ‘good life’.
One of our favorites likens life to a wrestling match rather than a performance stage- typical Romans!
17. The Bible
Psalms give us plenty of inspirational hymns, and Proverbs give us some great… well.. proverbs! There are plenty to choose from on the topic of preparedness, but this one is straightforward and to the point.
18. Bob Knight
Psalms give us plenty of inspirational hymns, and Proverbs give us some great… well.. proverbs! There are plenty to choose from on the topic of preparedness, but this one is straightforward and to the point.
19. Sun Tzu
The writer of The Art of War has plenty to say on tactical advantages, but preparation and planning are themes he constantly stresses.
It usually does end up being much easier to plan than to react, and you get much better results.
20. Charles Darwin
Adaptation has always been key to Darwinism, and he buttons up this belief in this quote. Luckily, as humans, we have the resourcefulness to help us quickly adapt as long as we plan, prepare, and understand the threat.
More Prepper Quotes
While we don’t showcase these with graphics, these prepper quotes are just as good and worth noting.
- “Two is one, one is none” – we have a whole guide on this one.
- “Better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it.” – Franz Kafka
- “The government is not your friend.” – Ronald Reagan
- “Better to be a warrior in a garden, than a gardener in a war.” – Miyamoto Musashi
- “If you think you can or if you think you can’t, you’re right.” – Henry Ford
- “Where one can live, one can live well.” – Marcus Aurelius
- “Definition of an optimist: a Man who has never had much experience.” – Don Marquis
- “Sometimes paranoia is just having all the facts.” – William S. Burroughs
- “What we think or what we know, or what we believe is, in the end, of little consequence. The only consequence is what we do.” – John Rushin
- “Patience and time do more than strength or passion.” – Jean de La Fontaine
- “Whatever you do, you are going to regret it.” – Soren Kirkegaard
- “Every journey has a secret destination of which the traveler is unaware.” – Martin Buber
- “Growing your own food is like printing your own money.” – Ron Finley
- “And that’s why you want a high-quality fire extinguisher right in the kitchen.” – Tim Allen
- “In our society, growing food yourself has become the most radical of acts. It is truly the only effective protest, the one that can and will overturn the powers that be. By the process of directly working in harmony with nature, we do the one thing most essential to change the world. We change ourselves.” – Jules Daerves
- “The more you know, the less you carry.” – Mors Kochanski (a bushcraft legend)
- “Preparation through education is less costly than learning through tragedy.” – Max Mayfield, National Hurricane Center Director
- “Preparedness, when properly pursued, is a way of life, not a sudden, spectacular program.” – Spencer W. Kimball
- “We cannot stop natural disasters, but we can arm ourselves with knowledge: so many lives wouldn’t have to be lost if there were enough disaster preparedness.” – Petra Nemcova
- “Be Prepared… the meaning of the motto is that a scout must prepare himself by previous thinking out and practicing how to act on any accident or emergency so that he is never taken by surprise.” – Robert Baden-Powell
- “A goal without a plan is just a wish.” – Larry Elder
- “Few people have any next, they live from hand to mouth without a plan, and are always at the end of their line.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
- “Do not pray for an easy life, pray for the strength to endure a difficult one.” – Bruce Lee
- “Water, water, everywhere, nor any drop to drink.” – Samuel Taylor Coleridge, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
- “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” – Benjamin Franklin, 1735
- “There is no such thing as luck. There is only adequate or inadequate preparation to cope with a statistical universe.” – Robert A. Heinlein
- “Life has two rules: #1 Never quit, #2 Always remember rule 1.” – Unknown
- “Even a mushroom cloud has a silver lining.” – Unknown
- “Adversity is a fact of life. It can’t be controlled. What we can control is how we react to it.” – Unknown
- “The true test of a person’s character is how they stand during the test of adversity.” – Unknown
Quotes by Preppers
There are plenty of non-famous people out there making their mark as preppers. If you’re looking for some motivation or insight in a quote from our community, here are some of the best quotes from preppers.
- “Planning is the best way to ensure your survival.” – Nate Polson, aka Canadian Prepper (from our best prepper YouTube channel list)
- “Prepare for the worst and put the odds in your favor.” – Kris at City Prepping (also from our top prepper YouTube list)
- “Preppers are friends, neighbors, family, and coworkers that happen to have a plan for the future.” – Sean Gold, aka TruePrepper (What is Prepping?)
- “Stay survived” – Coby Coonradt & Cam Hardy, aka The Casual Preppers (from our best prepper podcast list)
- “Building food storage isn’t selfish, paranoid, or hoarding- it’s taking responsibility and looking after the needs of your family.” – Des, Muthaprepper (from our best Instagram preppers list)
Get a Quote from a Prepper
If you need a quote about a specific situation from a prepper, I’d be happy to help. Reach out through the many ways to contact us and let us know what subject you need a quote on.
We’ve contributed quotes, preparedness advice, and more to our readers and subscribers, students, researchers, and journalists for publications of all sizes. Whether you just need a line about prepping or an in-depth interview, reach out to us, and we’ll get back to you quickly.
The Final Word
We hope you saw some new prepper quotes from this updated list that you haven’t seen before. There is a mountain of prepping quotes out there, so reply with any that you think we left out that stir you to tackle that next project.
Also, feel free to share, print, or pin any of these quotes or images to motivate yourself or people you are close to. If you’re just getting started with prepping, we’ve got you covered. If you want to learn more, we can tell you all about it:
- What is Prepping and What is a Prepper?
- How to Start Prepping | Prepper 101
- Home Survival Kit List | 53 Essentials
Keep exploring, stay prepared, and be safe.
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They left out my favorite, “It is better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it”
“A prudent man foresees the difficulties ahead and prepares for them; the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences.” – God (Pr 22:3)
I’d rather be a warrior in a garden, then a gardener in a war.
…than…
My favourite was always from Robert a Heilein. Have Spacesuit, will travel, chpt 2. “There’s no such thing as luck. Only adequate or inadequate preparation ….
Cheers
Even a Mushroom Cloud has a silver lining.