Viktor Frankl

"It is the very pursuit of happiness that thwarts happiness"

"The meaning of life differs from man to man, from day to day and from hour to hour"

"Freedom of will is the last of the human freedoms—one which cannot be taken away"

"A man's main concern should not be the meaning of life in general but rather the specific meaning of his own life at any given moment"

"Despair is suffering without meaning"

"When facing suffering, ask not 'what do I want from life' but 'what does life want from me'"

"Our main motivation is not to gain pleasure or to avoid pain, but to find a meaning in life"

"Love is the ultimate and highest goal to which man can aspire"

"The experiences of love, beauty, and nature can give life profound meaning"

"By the mere experience of our thoughts and feelings we find meaning beyond the ordinary"

"Suffering is eased when it serves a greater purpose"

"The last of human freedoms is one's choice of attitude in any circumstance"

"Life meaning can be discovered through creative work, through experiencing beauty, or through the attitude taken toward unavoidable suffering"

"Man's search for meaning is the primary human motivation"

"The capacity to choose one's attitude is humanity's last freedom in any circumstance"

"To live is to suffer, to survive is to find meaning in the suffering"

"Meaning can be created through accomplishment and creative endeavor"

"The will to meaning is the fundamental motivation in human nature"

"Those with strong spiritual and moral values proved most resistant to despair"

"Happiness ensues from purpose, not from pursuit of pleasure"

"The meaning of suffering lies in facing it with dignity and grace"

"Prisoners focused on future goals showed greater will to survive"

"Man's freedom is also his responsibility—to choose how to respond to his circumstances"

"Beauty can sustain the human spirit even in the darkest conditions"

"The meaning of life is found not in its length but in its depth"

"Acts of kindness and compassion retain their value even in suffering"

"Neuroses develop when the will to meaning is frustrated"

"The pursuit of power and pleasure cannot fulfill human existence as the pursuit of meaning can"

"Even in the face of death, life retains meaning through how one meets it"

"We cannot always control our circumstances, but we can always control our response to them"