40 Parenting Quotes: Insights from the World's Best Parenting Books

Be honest: have you ever felt exhausted by parenting but kept it to yourself because everyone else seems to find it so easy? In truth, raising children is the hardest thing, no matter how much love and care we give. Just know that you're not alone in this — we all have bad days, and you're just a human being. 

These best parenting quotes are a reminder for experienced and new parents that there is no such thing as a 'perfect parent.' If you love your child and care about them, you're already doing enough.

That's why we've curated a collection of powerful parenting quotes from books like 'The Whole-Brain Child' and 'It Didn't Start with You' to inspire and help you through every stage of this difficult role. Hopefully, these words of wisdom will assist you in the challenges you face and even uncover some parenting tips. 

Each quote was carefully selected from Headway's book summaries of bestsellers on raising children and parenting styles.

Top 10 parenting quotes to remember

1. "To be in your children's memories tomorrow, you have to be in their lives today." — Barbara Johnson

   Be present in your child's life and create memories with them — it's not only about buying toys and going to Disneyland.

2. "Your children will become what you are; so be what you want them to be." — David Bly

   It's true, kids mirror their parents' behavior, so be careful about what you're teaching them with your actions and attitude.

3. "Children are not a distraction from more important work. They are the most important work." — C.S. Lewis

   It's the most beautiful thing and the most important too. You don't just parent between chores and work obligations, you do it 24/7. 

4. "Too often we forget that discipline really means to teach, not to punish. A disciple is a student, not a recipient of behavioural consequences." — Daniel J. Siegel, 'The Whole-Brain Child'

   You're allowed to discipline your child, but let them learn a valuable lesson from it.

5. "We never know the love of a parent till we become parents ourselves." — Henry Ward Beecher

   Sometimes, parenting requires sacrifice, like sleepless nights or missed opportunities. However, the love parents have for their children grows bigger.

6. "There is no such thing as a perfect parent, so just be a real one." — Sue Atkins

   Stop comparing yourself to others and don't think you'd have a perfect child if you were a "perfect" parent. Perfect is boring and not authentic.

7. "It turns out that to be a different kind of parent, you don't just need a different parenting philosophy. You need a very different view of what a child actually is." — Pamela Druckerman, 'Bringing Up Bébé'

   Yes, you can try positive parenting and other parenting styles, but at the end of the day, each child is unique and has different needs and mindsets.

8. "The best way to make children good is to make them happy." — Oscar Wilde

   If you love your child, say beautiful words to your daughter or son, it brings joy to everyone around: parents, family members, and most importantly, your child.

9. "Remaining silent about family pain is rarely an effective strategy for healing it. The suffering will surface again at a later time, often expressing in the fears or symptoms of a later generation." — Mark Wolynn, 'It Didn't Start with You'

   Be honest with your child, but protect them from unnecessary generational trauma. It might hurt them, and the cycle will continue. Process the trauma and heal from it!

10. "Your child needs not only your attention but also a relationship with you." ― Kevin Leman, 'Have a New Kid by Friday'

    Parent-child relationships are much more than just supervision and checking their homework. Know your child and build relationships with them. Learn new practical steps to build strong relationships with your child by grasping the 'Have a New Kid by Friday' summary.

What are some inspirational parenting quotes?

These inspirational quotes on parenting cover themes like discipline, connection, growth, self-growth, well-being, self-esteem, humor, and more. They're a perfect, chaotic mix of words of wisdom backed by book summaries from Headway, written by industry experts. This diverse quote collection proves that parenting isn't always perfect and can sometimes be chaotic, but it’s full of love and caring.

Discipline and boundaries quotes parents should know about

1. 11"Discipline is helping a child solve a problem. Punishment is making a child suffer for having a problem." – L.R. Knost

2. "Don't worry that children never listen to you; worry that they are always watching you." – Robert Fulghum

3. "The way we talk to our children becomes their inner voice." – Peggy O'Mara

4. "If there's something about your child you don't like, they've probably seen it in action from you and are simply modeling it." ― Kevin Leman, 'Have a New Kid by Friday'

5. "Children have never been very good at listening to their elders, but they have never failed to imitate them." – James Baldwin

6. "Children who are not encouraged to do, to try, to explore, to master, and to risk failure often feel helpless and inadequate. Over-controlled by anxious, fearful parents, these children often become anxious and fearful themselves." — Susan Forward, 'Toxic Parents'

7. "The child must not invade the parents' whole universe . . . For family balance, the parents also need personal space." — Pamela Druckerman, Bringing Up Bébé.'

Read or listen to the key points of our 'Bringing Up Bébé' summary, and learn more about the wisdom of French parenting.

Love and connection quotes for seasoned and new parents

1. 18"I've learned that people will forget what you said... but people will never forget how you made them feel." – Maya Angelou

2. "Children spell love T-I-M-E." – Sue Atkins

3. "Teaching, like parenting, is fundamentally about love." – Bill Ayers

4. "When you acknowledge your child's emotions, you teach them to trust their feelings and to feel loved." – Peggy O'Mara

5. "Children are the hands by which we take hold of heaven." – Henry Ward Beecher

6. "Children are the living messages we send to a time we will not see." — Neil Postman

7. "I sustain myself with the love of family." – Maya Angelou

8. "You don't have to try too hard to have fun with your preschooler. Just being with you is paradise for him." — Daniel J. Siegel, 'The Whole-Brain Child'

Headway's summary of 'The Whole-Brain Child' breaks down key strategies for nurturing emotional intelligence in everyday moments.

Best parenting quotes on growth and resilience

1. 26"Denial is the lid on our emotional pressure cooker: the longer we leave it on, the more pressure we build up. Sooner or later, that pressure is bound to pop the lid, and we have an emotional crisis." — Susan Forward, 'Toxic Parents'

2. "It's not our job to toughen our children up to face a cruel and heartless world. It's our job to raise children who will make the world less cruel and heartless." – L.R. Knost

3. "It's not only children who grow. Parents do too." – Joyce Maynard

4. "Children must be taught how to think, not what to think." – Margaret Mead

5. "Behind every young child who believes in themselves is a parent who believed first." – Matthew Jacobson

6. "Each day of our lives, we make deposits in the memory banks of our children." – Charles R. Swindoll

7. "The emotions, traits, and behaviors we reject in our parents will likely live on in us. It's our unconscious way of loving them, a way to bring them back into our lives." — Mark Wolynn, 'It Didn't Start with You'

Explore how family trauma works and finally break the cycle with our 'It Didn't Start with You' summary.

Humor and light-heartedness quotes for parents to know

1. 33"It will be a great day when our schools have all the money they need and the air force has to hold a bake sale to buy a bomber." – Robert Fulghum

2. "Patience is the ability to idle your motor when you feel like stripping your gears." – Barbara Johnson

3. "Having one child makes you a parent; having two, you are a referee." – David Frost

4. "People who say they sleep like a baby usually don't have one." – Leo J. Burke

5. "The quickest way for a parent to get a child's attention is to sit down and look comfortable." – Lane Olinghouse

6. "You can learn many things from children. How much patience you have, for instance." – Franklin P. Jones

7. "Parenting without a sense of humor is like being an accountant who sucks at math." – Amber Dusick

8. "Many of the time-honored [parenting] techniques that have been passed down from generation to generation are, quite simply, bad advice masquerading as wisdom." — Susan Forward, 'Toxic Parents'

Discover more about toxic parents and how not to become one by reading or listening to the 'Toxic Parents' summary.

Grow as a parent with Headway parenting book summaries!

Raising the next generation is no joke, and it's okay for parents not to have all the answers right away. Yes, children are the greatest gifts, but they can be the greatest challenges, too. Headway, being one of the best parenting apps, has a book library of summaries that can accompany you on your parenting journey. 

You don't have a lot of free time, which is understandable. That's why we offer the best parenting book summaries in a bite-sized format. At any time of day, you can read or listen to parenting advice from professionals, like Kevin Leman, Daniel J. Siegel, Pamela Druckerman, Mark Wollyn, Susan Forward, and many others. Download the Headway app now and learn more parenting tips and insights, one step at a time.