Beyoncé Knowles is a global pop culture icon with few equals and little need for an introduction. Having first risen to stardom as the front woman for Destiny’s Child, Beyoncé’s fame and fortunes soared after she launched her solo career and swiftly set to smashing record after record. Her third solo album, I Am… Sasha Fierce (2008), nabbed her a record-setting six Grammy Awards in 2010, and spurred her to attain her coveted independence by taking over management of her own career.

With 100 million solo records sold worldwide, Beyoncé is one of the top selling music artists in history. She holds 22 Grammy Awards and is the most nominated woman in the history of the awards. With 24 MTV Video Music Awards, she is the most awarded artist in their history, too. She has been named the most powerful female in the entertainment industry by Forbes magazine, the Top Radio Songs Artist and Top Female Artist of the 2000s by Billboard, and the Top Certified Artist in America during the 2000s by the Recording Industry Association of America. And in 2014, Beyoncé attained a new summit steeped in its own special symbolism by becoming the highest paid black musician in history.

Beyoncé’s impact reaches beyond her music, as she consistently uses her platform to inspire countless fans with her messages of empowerment. In 2014, Beyoncé was named by Time magazine as one of the top 100 most influential people in the world for a second year running.

Here are our Top 18 Most Empowering Beyoncé Quotes.

Top 18 Most Empowering Beyoncé Quotes

If everything was perfect, you would never learn and you would never grow.

When I’m not feeling my best I ask myself, ‘What are you gonna do about it?’ I use the negativity to fuel the transformation into a better me.

We need to reshape our own perception of how we view ourselves. We have to step up as women and take the lead.

I can never be safe; I always try and go against the grain. As soon as I accomplish one thing, I just set a higher goal. That’s how I’ve gotten to where I am.

The most alluring thing a woman can have is confidence.

empowering Beyoncé quotes - The most alluring thing a woman can have is confidence

The reality is: sometimes you lose. And you’re never too good to lose. You’re never too big to lose. You’re never too smart to lose. It happens.

We all have our purpose, we all have our strengths.

I truly believe that women should be financially independent from their men. And let’s face it, money gives men the power to run the show. It gives men the power to define value. They define what’s sexy. And men define what’s feminine. It’s ridiculous.

Be healthy and take care of yourself, but be happy with the beautiful things that make you, you.

Most empowering Beyoncé quotes - Be healthy and take care of yourself but be happy with the beautiful things that make you you

A true diva is graceful, and talented, and strong, and fearless and brave and someone with humility.

We all have our imperfections. But I’m human, and you know, it’s important to concentrate on other qualities besides outer beauty.

Your self-worth is determined by you. You don’t have to depend on someone telling you who you are.

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I felt like it was time to set up my future, so I set a goal. My goal was independence.

We have to teach our boys the rules of equality and respect, so that as they grow up gender equality becomes a natural way of life. And we have to teach our girls that they can reach as high as humanly possible. 

Most empowering Beyoncé quotes: We havw to teach our girls that they can reach as high as is humanly possible

I always try to be myself. Ever since I was an introverted kid, I’d get on stage and be able to break out of my shell.

It is so liberating to really know what I want, what truly makes me happy, what I will not tolerate. I have learned that it is no one else’s job to take care of me but me.

I embrace mistakes. They make you who you are.

When you love and accept yourself, when you know who really cares about you, and when you learn from your mistakes, then you stop caring about what people who don’t know you think.

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Thank God I found the good in goodbye!

Don’t try to lessen yourself for the world; let the world catch up to you.

I know I’m stronger in the songs than I really am. Sometimes I need to hear it myself. We all need to hear those empowering songs to remind us.

Any other woman who has to go to work and pick up the kids and make dinner – that’s way harder than what I have to do.

I don’t have to prove anything to anyone, I only have to follow my heart and concentrate on what I want to say to the world. I run my world.

Women have to take the time to focus on our mental health — take time for self, for the spiritual, without feeling guilty or selfish.

I don’t like to gamble, but if there’s one thing I’m willing to bet on, it’s myself.

Power is not given to you. You have to take it.