Culture and Lifestyle Quotes and Sayings The 15 All-Time Best Dolly Parton Quotes To Live By Forever and Ever, Amen Have a giggle, and take notes. By Southern Living Editors Updated on January 20, 2023 Share Tweet Pin Email Trending Videos Photo: Getty Images/Andrew Putler / Staff When it comes to doling out razor-sharp quips that make us laugh, and then make us think, and then make us want to be better, Dolly Parton is unrivaled. She's a country music star and trailblazer of many charges (including her nonprofit book program, Dolly Parton's Imagination Library) by trade — and an inspirational lifestyle guru always. We've regaled many of our Tennessee queen's notable quotes before, such as her thoughts on beauty, those on faith and family, and others on success. However, some deserve all the praise and then some. Here are Dolly Parton's all-time best quotes to live by. 01 of 15 Dolly Parton Southern Living "Storms make trees take deeper roots." – Dolly Parton 02 of 15 Dolly Parton Southern Living "The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain." – Dolly Parton 03 of 15 Dolly Parton Southern Living "Find out who you are. And do it on purpose." – Dolly Parton 04 of 15 Dolly Parton Southern Living "Every single diet I ever fell off of was because of potatoes and gravy of some sort." – Dolly Parton 05 of 15 Dolly Parton Southern Living "I make a point to appreciate all the little things in my life. I go out and smell the air after a good, hard rain. These small actions help remind me that there are so many great, glorious pieces of good in the world." – Dolly Parton 06 of 15 Dolly Parton Southern Living "If you see someone without a smile today, give 'em yours." – Dolly Parton 07 of 15 Dolly Parton Southern Living "People say, 'how you stay looking so young?' I say, well, good lighting, good doctors, and good makeup." – Dolly Parton 08 of 15 Dolly Parton Southern Living "I'm not offended by dumb blonde jokes because I know that I'm not dumb. I also know that I'm not a blonde." – Dolly Parton 09 of 15 Dolly Parton Southern Living "If you don't like the road you're walking, start paving another one." – Dolly Parton 10 of 15 Dolly Parton Southern Living "You'd be surprised how much it costs to look this cheap!" – Dolly Parton 11 of 15 Dolly Parton Southern Living "My weaknesses have always been food and men—in that order." – Dolly Parton 12 of 15 Dolly Parton Southern Living "When I wake up, I expect things to be good. If they're not, then I try to set about trying to make them as good as I can 'cause I know I'm gonna have to live that day anyway. So why not try to make the most of it if you can?" – Dolly Parton 13 of 15 Dolly Parton Southern Living "I've had heartaches, headaches, toothaches, earaches, and I've had a few pains in the ass, but I've survived to tell about it." – Dolly Parton 14 of 15 Dolly Parton Southern Living "I have a strict policy that nobody cries alone in my presence." – Dolly Parton 15 of 15 Dolly Parton Southern Living "You can wish your life away. But if you're going to dream, you're going to have to get out and, like I always say, you have to put some wings on them dreams, and some feet and fingers and some hands. They gotta get into some stuff. You can't just sit around and think of all the things you want to do. You've got to think of what you want to do, and then you've got to get out and make that happen." – Dolly Parton Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit