As a freelancer or entrepreneur, starting your business is like planting a seed. It takes plenty of time and money. Then you have to nurture it without knowing when the tree will finally take root and provide for you in return. It could be tough but when your gig starts to flourish, it makes all the hard work and dedication worth it.
Related Post: 50 Inspirational Quotes by Highly Successful Entrepreneurs
Undoubtedly, there will be times on that road from launch to success where you will have difficulty. When this happens, one of the best things you can lean on is expert advice and quotations from other successful startup founders and titans of industry who have been through even more than you have and have lived through it. The experience of a seasoned entrepreneur is extremely valuable for you on the road to success and no matter how the times have changed, the wisdom in their motivational quotes remain evergreen.
Here are 50 of the most motivational quotes from respected CEOs, founders, business tycoons and role models that will help you to stay in the right direction and tap into their wealth of experience for motivation whenever you need it the most.
50.
If you are not willing to risk the unusual, you will have to settle for the ordinary.
— Jim Rohn, American entrepreneur, author and motivational speaker
49.
Don’t get distracted. Never tell yourself that you need to be the biggest brand in the whole world. Start by working on what you need at the present moment and then what you need to do tomorrow. So, set yourself manageable targets.
— Jas Bagniewski, founder and CEO of Eve Mattress.
48.
Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence.
— Helen Keller, American author
47.
Look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see, and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious.
— Stephen Hawking
46.
Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work.
— Aristotle
45.
People Who Are Crazy Enough To Think They Can Change The World, Are The Ones Who Do.
— Rob Siltanen, The Creator of "Think Different" Apple Campaign
44.
If You Are Working On Something That You Really Care About, You Don’t Have To Be Pushed. The Vision Pulls You.
— Steve Jobs
43.
There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure.
— Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist
42.
Entrepreneurs Are Great At Dealing With Uncertainty And Also Very Good At Minimizing Risk. That’s The Classic Entrepreneur.
— Mohnish Pabrai
41.
We Generate Fears While We Sit. We Overcome Them By Action.
— Henry Link, American psychologist
40.
Do not let arrogance go to your head and despair to your heart; do not let compliments go to your head and criticisms to your heart; do not let success go to your head and failure to your heart.
— Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart
39.
Whether You Think You Can Or Think You Can’t, You’re Right.
— Henry Ford
38.
Develop An ‘Attitude Of Gratitude’. Say Thank You To Everyone You Meet For Everything They Do For You.
— Brian Tracy, Canadian-American motivational public speaker
37.
Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.
— Winston S. Churchill
36.
You Are Never Too Old To Set Another Goal Or To Dream A New Dream.
— C.S. Lewis
35.
I Think Goals Should Never Be Easy, They Should Force You To Work, Even If They Are Uncomfortable At The Time.
— Michael Phelps
34.
You Don’t Have To Be Great To Start, But You Have To Start To Be Great.
— Zig Ziglar, American author and motivational speaker
33.
Take up one idea. Make that one idea your life--think of it, dream of it, live on that idea. Let the brain, muscles, nerves, every part of your body, be full of that idea, and just leave every other idea alone. This is the way to success.
— Swami Vivekananda, Indian Hindu monk
32.
Opportunities don't happen, you create them.
— Chris Grosser, Owner Advisor in Tesla, Inc.
31.
A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks others have thrown at him.
— David Brinkley, American newscaster for NBC and ABC
30.
I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.
— Thomas A. Edison
29.
Whenever you see a successful person you only see the public glories, never the private sacrifices to reach them.
— Vaibhav Shah, Founder and CEO of Techuz InfoWeb
28.
Fake It Until You Make It! Act As If You Had All The Confidence You Require Until It Becomes Your Reality.
— Brian Tracy
27.
There are two types of people who will tell you that you cannot make a difference in this world: those who are afraid to try and those who are afraid you will succeed.
— Ray Goforth
26.
Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day-in and day-out.
— Robert Collier, American author
25.
You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something--your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.
— Steve Jobs
24.
The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary.
— Vidal Sassoon, British-American hairstylist, businessman, and philanthropist
23.
The number one reason people fail in life is because they listen to their friends, family, and neighbors.
— Napoleon Hill
22.
A real entrepreneur is somebody who has no safety net underneath them.
— Henry Kravis, American businessman, investor, and philanthropist
21.
In my experience, there is only one motivation, and that is desire. No reasons or principle contain it or stand against it.
— Jane Smiley, American Pulitzer Prize winner novelist
20.
A goal is not always meant to be reached; it often serves simply as something to aim at.
— Bruce Lee
19.
You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.
— Maya Angelou
18.
I always did something I was a little not ready to do. I think that’s how you grow. When there’s that moment of, ‘Wow, I’m not really sure I can do this,’ and you push through those moments, that’s when you have a breakthrough.
— Marissa Mayer, American businesswoman and investor
17.
It is not true that people stop pursuing dreams because they grow old. They grow old because they stop pursuing dreams.
— Gabriel García Márquez
16.
You don’t always win, but every time you lose, you get better.
— Ian Somerhalder, American actor, model, activist and director
15.
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
— Chinese Proverb
14.
Be patient with yourself. Self-growth is tender, it's holy ground. There's no greater investment.
— Stephen Covey, American educator, author and keynote speaker
13.
Don’t take life too seriously, you’ll never get out alive.
— Elbert Hubbard, American writer, publisher, artist, and philosopher
12.
Don’t be intimidated by what you don’t know. That can be your greatest strength and ensure that you do things differently from everyone else.
— Sara Blakely, American billionaire businesswoman, and founder of Spanx
11.
All progress takes place outside the comfort zone.
— Michael John Bobak, Contemporary digital artist
10.
When in doubt, bootstrap. Using your own personal resources is the easiest way to start a business. You don’t have to convince investors about the merits of your idea. You just have to convince yourself.
— Ryan Holmes, Canadian computer programmer and internet entrepreneur
9.
Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning.
— Bill Gates
8.
The cover-your-butt mentality of the workplace will get you only so far. The follow-your-gut mentality of the entrepreneur has the potential to take you anywhere you want to go or run you right out of business – but it’s a whole lot more fun, don’t you think?
— Bill Rancic, American entrepreneur
7.
Don’t worry about failure; you only have to be right once.
— Drew Houston, Co-founder and CEO of Dropbox
6.
No matter how much experience you have, how many degrees you have, or how well known you have become — there is always something new to learn. Don’t rest on your past experiences. If you do nothing to improve your skills, you won’t stay where you are.
— Laura Spencer, American actress
5.
Someday is Not a Day in the Week
— Sam Horn, Author of 8 Bestselling Books from New York Publishers
4.
My son is now an ‘entrepreneur’. That’s what you’re called when you don’t have a job.
— Ted Turner, American entrepreneur, the founder of the news network – CNN
3.
Every day I get up and look through the Forbes list of the richest people in America. If I’m not there, I go to work.
— Robert Orben, famous American comedy writer
2.
The elevator to success is out of order. You’ll have to use the stairs, one step at a time.
— Joe Girard, American salesman, best-selling author and inspirational speaker
1.
People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing – that’s why we recommend it daily.
— Zig Ziglar
