Reading and reflecting on inspiring life quotes, learning what famous people have said, and applying it to oneself is a form of self-growth. By introspection, people become stronger, more understanding, and more tolerant.
Quotations are not simply aphorisms to put on a poster and hang on the wall. Comparing a quotation to the life of the person who said it or wrote it gives context and meaning to the words. If taken to heart, it can change a person's attitude in life or help in reaching a goal.
The quotes that follow are from modern and historical famous and influential people. Whether the people lived long ago, or are alive today, they are role models. These quotes motivate and inspire people to do more, achieve goals and improve their lives.
The quotations in this article are all themed toward success. They reveal what success means, finding opportunities leading to success, the hard work behind accomplishments, and the attitudes and qualities of successful people.
Quotations About Success
When people think of success, they tend to think of huge accomplishments. Yet, success can include smaller day-to-day things, such as sticking to a healthy living plan, or reaching a personal goal.
- "The secret of success is constancy of purpose." ~Benjamin Disraeli
- "Self-trust is the first secret of success." ~Ralph Waldo Emerson
Quotes on How to Find Opportunity
Waiting for opportunities to happen doesn't usually work. The following quotes show that opportunity comes to people who work hard to find them. Opportunities are available for everyone who wants them.
- "If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door." ~Milton Berle
- "Wherever we look upon this earth, the opportunities take shape within the problems." ~Nelson A. Rockefeller
Quotes on Risk Taking
Usually risk taking is considered a bad thing. Yet risk takers are the ones who achieve success in life. People who are afraid to take risks don't accomplish anything. Sam Walton and Dale Carnegie both stepped outside of the box to create something new with their lives.
- "High expectations are the key to everything." ~Sam Walton
- "Take a chance! All life is a chance. The man who goes furthest is generally the one who is willing to do and dare." ~Dale Carnegie, from Dale Carnegie’s Scrapbook
Leadership Quotations
True leaders are not bossy, and the best leaders do not lord it over others. Leaders that people respect and admire do the things mentioned in these two quotes.
- "Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity." ~General George S. Patton Jr.
- "Let him that would move the world, first move himself." ~Socrates
Quotations to Inspire to Action and Perseverance
People talk about all the things they want to do, and often, that is as far as they get. Taking action is the first hurdle, sticking to it is the second, larger hurdle. Great figures in history have proven that perseverance pays off.
- "Well done is better than well said." ~Benjamin Franklin
- "By perseverance the snail reached the ark." ~Charles Haddon Spurgeon
- "Let me tell you the secret that has led me to my goal. My strength lies solely in my tenacity." ~Louis Pasteur
Quotes About Honesty and Morality
Honesty and morality never go out of style. People appreciate others they can trust. It is up to society to maintain high standards of honesty and morality; however, it begins on a personal level, as these quotes point out.
- "The time is always right to do what is right." ~Reverend Martin Luther King Jr.
- "Moral excellence comes about as a result of habit. We become just by doing just acts, temperate by doing temperate acts, brave by doing brave acts." ~Aristotle
Quotes on Having Manners and Humility
The icing on the cake of inspiration is manners and humility. Successful people often exemplify these traits. Oprah Winfrey, Will Smith, Halle Berry, and Laura Bush all show that success can go hand in hand with manners and humility.
- "Manners are a sensitive awareness of the feelings of others. If you have that awareness, you have good manners, no matter what fork you use." ~Emily Post
- "Politeness is to human nature what warmth is to wax." ~Arthur Schopenhauer
- "Even on the most exalted throne in the world we are only sitting on our own bottom." ~Michel de Montaigne
In closing, having a dream in life leads to success and satisfaction. Whether the dream is a personal one, or one involving many people, dreams are integral to human nature and give people something to reach for. They are the basis for successes in life as the wisdom of this poem reveals.
Quote From the Poem Dreams, by Langston Hughes
"Hold fast to dreams/For if dreams die/Life is a broken-winged bird/That cannot fly." ~Langston Hughes
For more quotes, wit, and wisdom for every day, visit Bartlett’s Quotations.
Suzanne Pitner - Suzanne Pitner is a teacher and published writer. A member of RWA and YARWA, she writes fiction as Suzanne Lilly.
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