Dr. Mae Jemison is a renowned American astronaut and physician. In 1992, she became the first African American woman to travel to space aboard the shuttle Endeavour. Throughout her career, she has become an inspiration to countless individuals worldwide through her achievements and powerful words. Here are 20 of her most popular quotes that encapsulate her wisdom and resilience.
Dr. Mae Jemison’s Most Popular Quotes
- “Never limit yourself because of others’ limited imagination; never limit others because of your own limited imagination.”
- “The thing that I have done throughout my life is to do the best job that I can and to be me.”
- “It’s your place in the world; it’s your life. Go on and do all you can with it, and make it the life you want to live.”
- “Don’t let anyone rob you of your imagination, your creativity, or your curiosity.”
- “I want to make sure we use all our talent, not just 25 percent. Don’t let anyone rob you of your imagination.”
- “We look at the world and see what we have learned to believe is there. We have been conditioned to expect… but, as photographers, we must learn to relax our beliefs.”
- “Science is very important to me, so important that I will not let it be denigrated or misused.”
- “I’m going to be very much like God and create my own universe.”
- “Not only does God play dice, but… he sometimes throws them where they cannot be seen.”
- “You have the right to be involved. You have something important to contribute, and you have to take the risk to contribute it.”
- “It does not matter if you are not the best when you start out. But it’s imperative that you should be the best in the end.”
- “We have a right, also, to go into space for another reason – ourselves.”
- “There’s lots of stuff we don’t know: what is the universe expanding into? What was there before the Big Bang? We don’t know, so we’re just going to have to imagine it.”
- “Our dreams and stories may contain implicit aspects of our lives even without our awareness. In fact, storytelling may be a primary way in which we can linguistically communicate to others—as well as to ourselves—the sometimes hidden contents of our implicitly remembering minds.”
- “Some people say they feel very small when they think about space. I felt more expansive, very connected to the universe.”
- “The best way to make dreams come true is to wake up.”
- “Every child should be taught to believe in themselves and accept their responsibility to encourage others.”
- “I always knew I’d go to space.”
- “I was inspired by the ‘Gee Whiz’ science books: ‘Gee, this is how an internal combustion engine works! Wow! This is electricity!’
- “Yes, I do feel that we have a right to go into space.”
Dr. Jemison’s quotes continue to inspire and motivate individuals around the globe. They remind us of the importance of dreaming big, striving for greatness, and never letting others limit our potential.