When does inspiration strike?

It's a flighty thing. Waiting to be inspired can be a test for even the most patient creative.

That's why we curated this hand-picked collection—the most inspiring snippets of wisdom we could find, from the greatest minds of the past and of today.

Here's hoping their words help you find your own creative spark.

1. On Talent

"I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious." - Albert Einstein

2. On Failure.

"There is no innovation or creativity without failure. Period." - Brene Brown

3. On Curiosity

"Curiosity about life in all of its aspects, I think, is still the secret of great creative people." - Leon Burnett

4. On Balancing Creativity and Discipline

"Creativity is a wild mind and a disciplined eye." - Dorothy Parker

5. On Inspiration

"Don't wait for inspiration. It comes while working." - Henri Matisse

6. On Mistakes

"Mistakes are a fact of life. It's the response to error that counts." - Nikki Giovanni

7. On Using Up Your Creativity

"You can't use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have." - Maya Angelou

8. On Agreeing

"If you and I always agree, one of us is redundant." - Larry Wall

9. On What You Say

"It's not just what you say that stirs people. It's the way you say it." - Bill Bernbach

10. On Uncertainty

"Creativity requires the courage to let go of certainties." - Erich Fromm

11. On the Price of Ignorance

"Whatever the cost of our libraries, the price is cheap compared to an ignorant nation." - Walter Cronkite

12. On Sharing Your Ideas

"If there is a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, you must be the one to write it." - Toni Morrison

13. On Finding Our Humanity

"My humanity is bound up in yours, for we can only be human together." - Desmond Tutu

14. On Finding Your Purpose

"The two most important days in life are the day you're born and the day you find out why." - Mark Twain

15. On Love

"There should be a course in the first grade on love." - Andy Warhol

16. On Impossibilities

"Impossible is not a fact. It's an opinion... Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing." - Muhammad Ali

17. On Imagination and Limitations

"Never be limited by other people's limited imagination" - Dr. Mae Jemison

18. On Breaking Boundaries

"Whenever I draw a circle, I immediately want to step out of it." - RB Fuller

19. On Not Quitting

"If you get tired learn to rest, not to quit." - Banksy

20. On Being Brave

"Orville Wright did not have a pilot's license." - Gordon McKenzie

21. On Keeping Your Creativity

"The creative adult is the child who survived." - Ursula Le Guin

22. On Breaking the Mold

"Creativity means breaking out of established patterns to look at things in a different way." - Edward de Bono

23. On Judging a Book By Its Cover

"I don't know about you, but I judge books by their cover every day." - Seth Godin

24. On Self-Doubt

"The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt" - Sylvia Plath

25. On Always Learning

"Learning never exhausts the mind." - Leonardo da Vinci