35 Best John F. Kennedy Quotes 2024 : For Leadership And Life

1. “There are risks and costs to action. But they are far less than the long-range risks of comfortable inaction.” —  John F. Kennedy

2. “It is an unfortunate fact that we can secure peace only by preparing for war.” —  John F. Kennedy

3. “The unity of freedom has never relied on uniformity of opinion.” —  John F. Kennedy

4. “The one unchangeable certainty is that nothing is unchangeable or certain.” —  John F. Kennedy

5. “As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.” —  John F. Kennedy

6. “Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.” —  John F. Kennedy

7. “We must use time as a tool, not as a couch.” —  John F. Kennedy

8. “The greater our knowledge increases the more our ignorance unfolds.” —  John F. Kennedy

9. “A child miseducated (sic) is a child lost.” —  John F. Kennedy

10. “Forgive your enemies, but never forget their names.” —  John F. Kennedy

11. “Mankind must put an end to war before war puts an end to mankind.” —  John F. Kennedy

12. “Those who dare to fail miserably can achieve greatly.” —  John F. Kennedy

13. “Ask not what your country can do for you… ask what you can do for your country.” —  John F. Kennedy

14. “A nation reveals itself not only by the men it produces but also by the men it honours, the men it remembers.” —  John F. Kennedy

15. “Our problems are man-made; therefore, they may be solved by man. No problem of human destiny is beyond human beings.” —  John F. Kennedy

16. “Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate.” —  John F. Kennedy

17. “Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.” —  John F. Kennedy

18. “If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.” —  John F. Kennedy

19. “The ignorance of one voter in a democracy impairs the security of all.” —  John F. Kennedy

20. “Peace is a daily, a weekly, a monthly process, gradually changing opinions, slowly eroding old barriers, quietly building new structures.” —  John F. Kennedy

21. “There is always inequality in life. Some men are killed in a war and some men are wounded and some men never leave the country. Life is unfair.” —  John F. Kennedy

22. “The goal of education is the advancement of knowledge and the dissemination of truth.” —  John F. Kennedy

23. “Things do not happen. Things are made to happen.” —  John F. Kennedy

24. “Efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and direction.” —  John F. Kennedy

25. “A man may die, nations may rise and fall, but an idea lives on.” —  John F. Kennedy

26. “When power leads man toward arrogance, poetry reminds him of his limitations. When power narrows the area of man’s concern, poetry reminds him of the richness and diversity of existence. When power corrupts, poetry cleanses.” —  John F. Kennedy

27. “Conformity is the jailer of freedom and the enemy of growth.” —  John F. Kennedy

28. “Our progress as a nation can be no swifter than our progress in education. The human mind is our fundamental resource.” —  John F. Kennedy

29. “The courage of life is often a less dramatic spectacle than the courage of a final moment; but it is no less a magnificent mixture of triumph and tragedy.” —  John F. Kennedy

30. “The supreme reality of our time is the vulnerability of this planet.” —  John F. Kennedy

31. “In giving rights to others which belong to them, we give rights to ourselves and to our country.” —  John F. Kennedy

32. “Victory has a thousand fathers, but defeat is an orphan.” —  John F. Kennedy

33. “World peace, like community peace, does not require that each man love his neighbour – it requires only that they live together with mutual tolerance, submitting their disputes to a just and peaceful settlement.” —  John F. Kennedy

34. “The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining.” —  John F. Kennedy

35. “The great enemy of truth is very often not the lie – deliberate, contrived and dishonest – but the myth – persistent, persuasive, and unrealistic. Too often we hold fast to the clichés of our forebears. We subject all facts to a prefabricated set of interpretations. We enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought.” —  John F. Kennedy

36.“That is the question of the New Frontier. That is the choice our nation must make—a choice that lies not merely between two men or two parties, but between the public interest and private comfort—between national greatness and national decline—between the fresh air of progress and the stale, dank atmosphere of “normalcy”—between determined dedication and creeping mediocrity. All mankind waits upon our decision. A whole world looks to see what we will do. We cannot fail their trust, we cannot fail to try.” —  John F. Kennedy

37. “I have seen in many places housing which has been developed under government influences, but I have never seen any projects in which governments have played their part which have fountains and statues and grass and trees, which are as important to the concept of the home as the roof itself.” —  John F. Kennedy

38. “In serving his vision of the truth, the artist best serves his nation.” —  John F. Kennedy

39. “Our goal is not the victory of might but the vindication of right…not peace at the expense of freedom, but both peace and freedom, here in this hemisphere, and, we hope, around the world. God willing, that goal will be achieved.” —  John F. Kennedy

40. “This country cannot afford to be materially rich and spiritually poor.” —  John F. Kennedy