Quotes from Iyanla Vanzant

I've seen the good, the bad, and the ugly. Lived it and I'm still here to talk about it and help someone else if I can.

Whether at work, at home or in public, we have been trained to believe that who we are at the core of our being is often unacceptable. As a result, we work diligently to live up to - and sometimes down to - what others have made us out to be, whether or not it is an accurate reflection of who we are.

In the process of planning and having a wedding, I forgot there would actually be a marriage, a union of minds, bodies, souls, and issues that would come together as soon as the ceremony was over.

You're never healing the level you're on. You're always healing the level you came from. For example, you know things today that you didn't know in your first marriage.

One thing that prevents a man from being a good father is he hasn't completed being a boy.

A stable and nurturing childhood is essential for the healthy psycho-emotional and spiritual development of a human being. While we may understand what is supposed to happen to us physically, we must begin to better understand what happens to children mentally, emotionally and spiritually as a result of the families into which they are born.

Everyone has something that blocks us from the full experience and expression of our nobility.

I've always told the truth. I think that's been part of the foundation of my career. I don't put myself above people. I don't put myself different than people. And I, for one, know that none of us is immune.

Acceptance means that you know, regardless of what happened, that there is something bigger than you at work. It also means you know that you are okay and that you will continue to be okay.

When you are in alignment with the desires of your heart, things have a way of working out.

Everybody's got a 'thing.' Some 'things' are nice and quiet. Some 'things' have fangs and claws. Some 'things' stink and have slobber everywhere.

One of the most important relationships we have is the relationship we have with our mothers.

One of the most important relationships we have is the relationship we have with out mothers.

Sitting alone, listening to the sound of your breath, the beating of your heart is a reminder that you are sacred and blessed.

Pain is pain, hurt is hurt, fear is fear, anger is anger, and it has no color.

I had no preconceived idea what fame would be like, because I never thought I would be famous. I just wanted to do my work. Hell, I just wanted to pay my rent on time.

What looks like a failure teaches us what not to do, what does not work. We have lessons to learn from our experiences.

You work for God Incorporated.

I'm okay, you're okay. Now let's go to work.

Anger simply means that your personal power - your personal space, your personal sense of being - has been violated

Don't hold yourself back because you're afraid or because you've been hurt...acknowle dge your fear, accept it, and walk through it with confidence.

You're demonstrating a courage that most people can't even fathom: giving it all away in order to have yourself

Everything that happens to you is a reflection of what you believe about yourself. We cannot outperform our level of self-esteem. We cannot draw to ourselves more than we think we are worth.

You can accept or reject the way you are treated by other people, but until you heal the wounds of your past, you will continue to bleed. You can bandage the bleeding with food, with alcohol, with drugs, with work, with cigarettes, with sex, but eventually, it will all ooze through and stain your life. You must find the strength to open the wounds, stick your hands inside, pull out the core of the pain that is holding you in your past, the memories, and make peace with them