We all need second chances. Me, I’m on my 1000th 2nd chance right now. The key is to not get discouraged. These 64 quotes are here to help you with that.
They’re conveniently organized by GOOD, BETTER, BEST. This way, you can save time reading only the “best” ones: (of course, this is just my own opinion!) 🙂
THE BEST QUOTES:
A lifetime isn’t forever, so take the first chance, don’t wait for the second one! Because sometimes, there aren’t second chances! And if it turns out to be a mistake? So what! This is life! A whole bunch of mistakes! But if you never get a second chance at something you didn’t take a first chance at? That’s true failure. -C. JoyBell C.
Every moment of your life is a second chance. -Rick Price
I don’t buy the idea of a second chance. With hope we make a lot of chances. -Toba Beta
If you are still breathing, you have a second chance. -Oprah Winfrey
If you have made mistakes, even serious ones, there is always another chance for you. What we call failure is not the falling down but the staying down. -Mary Pickford
In case you never get a second chance: don’t be afraid! And what if you do get a second chance? You take it! -C. JoyBell C.
I’ve learned that making a ‘living’ is not the same thing as making a life. I’ve learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance. I’ve learned that you shouldn’t go through life with a catcher’s mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw some things back. -Maya Angelou
Never confuse a single defeat with a final defeat. -F. Scott Fitzgerald
Not everyone gets a second chance. If you do get one, take advantage of it because it’s a gift, and it may be something better than you had before! -Nishan Panwar
Opportunities multiply as they are seized. -Sun Tzu
Opportunity dances with those who are already on the dance floor. -H. Jackson Brown Jr.
Opportunity rarely knocks on your door. Knock rather on opportunity’s door if you ardently wish to enter. -B. C. Forbes
Take chances, make mistakes. That’s how you grow. Pain nourishes your courage. You have to fail in order to practice being brave. -Mary Tyler Moore
There’s nothing as exciting as a comeback–seeing someone with dreams, watching them fail, and then getting a second chance. -Rachel Griffiths
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
Whatever problems we had back then don’t exist anymore. It’s why we have this second chance, and we can’t throw it away. -Michelle Maddow
I have become convinced that God thoroughly enjoys fixing and saving things that are broken. That means that no matter how hurt and defeated you feel, no matter how badly you have been damaged, God can repair you. God can give anyone a second chance. -Melody Carlson
When you cannot make up your mind between two evenly balanced courses of action, choose the bolder. -W. J. Slim
THE BETTER (than good) QUOTES:
“… forgiveness is a four letter word: Love.” -Elizabeth Marx
Chance favors only those who court her. -Charles Nicolle
Every second we have a second chance to do something we haven’t done yet. That’s why it’s called a second and not a first. -Robert J. Braathe
I want the world to know that everybody deserves a second chance. -El Debarge
Let Tomorrow be your second chance to prove that you are better than today and yesterday. -Ritu Ghatourey
Life always offers us a second chance. It’s called tomorrow. So don’t give up against adverse circumstances and keep fighting. -Anurag Prakash Ray
Maybe that’s why there are grandkids, a second chance to get it right. -Terri Haynes Roach
Second chances do come your way. Like trains, they arrive and depart regularly. Recognizing the ones that matter is the trick. -Jill A. Davis
To take that second chance, we need to notice where we are and be open to the possibility of growing. -Holly Elissa Bruno
Tomorrow when I awaken, the slate will be clean, and a new day will stretch before me. God’s mercies are new every morning. -Lori Hatcher
We’re given second chances every day of our life. We don’t usually take them, but they’re there for the taking. -Andrew M. Greeley
Without failing at one thing, there won’t be an opportunity to try again, learn and grow. Life isn’t static but dynamic. Learn to embrace whatever situation you may face and strive to overcome. Believe in yourself, knowing your best is yet to come. -Kemi Sogunle
If somebody is gracious enough to give me a second chance, I won’t need a third. -Pete Rose
THE GOOD (OK) QUOTES:
[When it comes to God] We can’t run out of second chances…only time. -Robin Jones Gunn
A man deserves a second chance, but keep an eye on him. -John Wayne
A second chance doesn’t mean anything if you didn’t learn from your first. -Anurag Prakash Ray
Because this is what I believe – that second chances are stronger than secrets. You can let secrets go. But a second chance? You don’t let that pass you by. -Daisy Whitney
But second chances aren’t forever. Even miracles have an expiration date. -Robyn Schneider
Chance is always powerful. Let your hook be always cast; in the pool where you least expect it, there will be a fish. -Ovid
Don’t think there are no second chances. Life always offers you a SECOND CHANCE… It’s called TOMORROW. -Nicholas Sparks
Every second a seeker can start over, For his life’s mistakes Are initial drafts And not the final version. -Sri Chinmoy
Everyone has a past. I have mine, you have yours, and we have ours. No matter what it takes, I will prove to you that our past, no matter how hurtful, didn’t ruin the future we could have. -Melissa Foster
Faith and doubt both are needed – not as antagonists, but working side by side – to take us around the unknown curve. -Lillian Smith
God always offers us a second chance in life. -Paulo Coelho
Having a second chance makes you want to work even harder. -Tia Mowry
I believe in second chances, but I don’t believe in third or fourth chances. -Selena Gomez
I mean, we all need a second chance sometimes. -Joel Osteen
I will forever believe in second chances and forgiveness, because if it weren’t for those two things I would and should be dead. -Dedrick D. L. Pitter
If you ever get a second chance in life for something, you’ve got to go all the way. -Lance Armstrong
Our God of Grace often gives us a second chance, but there is no second chance to harvest a ripe crop. -Kurt Von Schleicher
People aren’t always what you want them to be. Sometimes they disappoint you or let you down, but you have to give them a chance first. You can’t just meet someone and expect them to be everything you’re looking for and then be angry when they’re not every hope and aspiration you projected onto them. It’s foolish to believe that someone will be what you imagine them to be. And sometimes, when you give them a chance, they turn out to be better than you imagined. Different, but better. -Chloe Rattray
People do make mistakes and I think they should be punished. But they should be forgiven and given the opportunity for a second chance. We are human beings. -David Millar
Sometimes goodbye is a second chance. -Shinedown
Sometimes life gives you a second chance, or even two! Not always, but sometimes. It’s what you do with those second chances that counts. -Dave Wilson
Swallow your pride occasionally. It’s not fattening. -Frank Tyger
Thank God you are still alive for many have died and are dying as I speak. You still have the opportunity to change and make things right whilst those that have died wish for that second chance. -Aleksandr Sebryakov
That’s the thing about life. You don’t always get a second chance and there are no guarantees. Love is the only thing that really matters. -Linda Becker
The crisis of today is the joke of tomorrow. -H. G. Wells
There is no going back in life, no return, no second chance. I cannot call back the spoken word or the accomplished deed. -Daphne Du Maurier
There’s a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in. -Leonard Cohen
They say everyone needs a second chance. I am willing to give you one provided you are ready to accept it. -Nidhi Saini
This has been my life. I have found it worth living, and would gladly live it again if the second chance were offered me. -Burtrand Russell
Trust only movement. Life happens at the level of events, not of words. Trust movement. -Alfred Adler
We all deserve second chances, but not for the same mistake. -Thabiso Owethu Xabanisa
We all have big changes in our lives that are more or less a second chance. -Harrison Ford
We all make mistakes, everybody should be given a second-chance. -Lailah Gifty Akita
Do you regularly need “second chances”? Have you made some mistakes or failed at something that now require you to ask for a second chance? Please share your thoughts below.
Or click here for more of my quotes and sayings pages. If you want some more Second Chance Quotes, you can find a few more here, here or here.
Lastly, if you enjoyed this page of mine, could you please take 5 seconds and share it out via the social sharing buttons? It’s a small thing for you, but a HUGE thing for me. Please help me get these positive words spread out. Or do the ULTIMATE: Link to me via your blog or website. That’s the biggest compliment you could ever give. Thanks in advance. 🙂 -Shawn
I love #5: “Swallow your pride. It’s not fattening”!
I was raised in such a way as to believe that pride is very important; something not to be ruffled in any way without severe consequences for the would be ‘pride-ruffler’. That was a very nice (and low fat!) piece of humble pie served today! 🙂
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
How do you hold your head up….when others don’t give you a chance to start new…won’t consider that you have regrets and have learned from those mistakes…once you have left an impression it is seemingly impossible to change that. I had to move to get away from my reputation…trying to live with the guilt and regrets. I will try to make a new ending for myself but I can’t let go of the past.
I sort of know what you mean. It can take years and years before people see a difference in you. I think the best course of action is to change yourself so radically and improve so well that when those people see you again, they will have no choice but be impressed (or jealous?). Or if that’s too extreme, then we can just be the best we can, choose the right, and slowly show our new self….
Throughout school I was the “smart slacker” in my group. ADHD made sure of that. I’ve since overcome that title and have proven myself over and over again.
Yet the people who know me “before”, seem to have a hard letting go of who I was. I’ve had friends not call me to house-sit because they didn’t think I’d be up for it. These are the who, when I tell them yet another grad school turned me down because of my poor GPA, say, “Oh yeah, I get that.”
When I tell people who know me know they’re shocked and angered that such a bright woman could be rejected.
Why do I have to carry my past around with me and be continually judged by it when I am a very different, responsible person today?
Old friends and higher education don’t like to give second chances.
I know the feeling of needed a second chance but it is really difficult to convince someone that you’ve changed. Especially if they don’t know you…. Last year I was in university for the first time, right of high school and I failed. I wasn’t in the program I wanted to be and my support system was nil, also I had some other problems going on. Well the school kicked me out, but now I’ve been out for a year and have the chance to return. I need to write a letter to the admissions office explaining why I failed and how do I convince somebody who doesn’t know me why I failed and that they should give me a second chance? The thing I hate, is my high school marks were all A’s, except for two or three B’s, yet my one year of university has ruined my credibility. One year taking away four years?? That just doesn’t make sense to me. I think they need to consider my high school marks some, not pretend like they are non-existent.
The other time I’ve had my reputation ruined was in high school when I dated a boy nobody liked. Well I ruined my reputation over and over again and nobody really knows the truth of what happened between us and nobody really cares about the truth. Because I didn’t feel like being around people who were constantly judging me, I stopped all contact with them and anybody else from high school. They probably still have the same thoughts about me, but it no longer matters, because I’m not going to have people in my life who don’t want the best for me, or who think things about me that are untrue and aren’t very friendly.
2nd chances are only for what?
Hello Shawn,
Your wonderful quotes always inspire thoughts within me. Thank you!
Sometimes we need a second chance to prove our real worth….It is so easy to make a mistake whether it be in love, our job, within our family or our friends. Mistakes come in many forms, in what we say or do and how we think and the processes we use to implement our actions. Information we may know may not be correct, we may assume we have all the facts, or our knowledge pertaining to the matter may not be fully understood. Mistakes are so easy to make and if we hurt the people we love, then we need a second chance to rectify the problem that was created by our action. Love is a great healer and we need to forgive the person who made the mistake and give them a second chance.
There is a second opinion to this, if for instance a person has done grievous bodily harm through lack of self control or because they were under the influence of drugs or drink, this process takes a long time to heal. Yes, this too needs to be forgiven otherwise the hurt can eat you away. We humans need to be set free to be able to live and love and go on with our lives once again. Very hard to think about giving that person a second chance, the law will have to decide this matter.
Wishing you a wonderful day, Lee
Never confuse a single defeat with a final defeat. -F. Scott Fitzgerald
i like this the most
Hi Lee, I have been hurt due to someone’s actions and since then him and I have decided to start the relationship completely over. I think I really needed to hear your words. I have been going back and forth on second chances and if people really do change. Since we have started over his actions have continued to show me that he is trying. Our relationship evolved really quickly and I think we were both under a lot of stress with all the life changes we were going through. I am not sure if this path is the right one that I am on but I do trust God and I believe this is exactly where I need to be. Him and I feel very connected to each other and I think his past actions were caused by a lot of confusion and I also had confusion and doubt as well. We are taking things slow and taking things one day at time. I truly believe in my heart that this man was brought into my life. I knew it the first time I looked into his eyes. I am filled with hope, faith and I trust God in all areas of my life. I feel very blessed for everything I have in my life and the people that continue to walk with me in this life time. Thank you for sharing and I also believe God talks to us by what people say. You have given me hope and a since of peace that YES we all need second chances. You have a wonderful blessed day!
The work of relationship is the most difficult work you will ever do. It is also the most important. Rumi
I envy people who are fortunate enough to get a second chance. My past haunts me daily.