How do you keep yourself determined during the work day (and your career progress)? Maybe you have one of those ’90s faded motivational posters reminding you about persistence and leadership, with an eagle on display.
In the meantime, we wanted to share 55 more quotes every professional should know, and live by, each work day.
1. Go the extra mile. It’s not crowded.
2. Without ambition one starts nothing. Without work one finishes nothing. The prize will not be sent to you. You have to win it. Ralph Waldo Emerson
3. Nobody counts the number of ads you run; they just remember the impression you make. Bill Bernbach
4. Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land amount the stars. Les Brown
5. Excellence is not a skill. It is an attitude. Ralph Marston
6. Many hands make light work. John Heywood
7. There is no telling how many miles you will have to run while chasing a dream.
8. Worry is a misuse of imagination. Dan Zadra
9. It’s often the last key in the bunch that opens the lock.
10. Don’t be busy, be productive.
11. The only thing you’ll regret in life are the risks you didn’t take.
12. Consistency is more important than perfection.
13. In every success story, you will find someone who has made a courageous decision. Peter F. Drucker
14. A ship is always safe at shore but that is not what it’s built for.
15. I’m convinced that about half of what separates the successful entrepreneurs from the non-successful ones is pure perseverance. Steve Jobs
16. We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then is not an act but a habit. Aristotle
17. Try, try try, and keep on trying is the rule that must be followed to become an expert in anything. W. Clement Stone
18. Play by the rules, but be ferocious. Phil Knight
19. In order to become the 1% you have to do what the other 99% won’t.
20. Successful people do what unsuccessful people are not willing to do. Don’t wish it were easier; wish you were better. Jim Rohn
21. Continuous improvement is better than delayed perfection. Mark Twain
22. Success isn’t always about greatness. It’s about consistency. Consistent hard work leads to success. Greatness will come. W. Clement Stone
23. Water cuts through rock, not because of its strength, but because of its persistence.
24. Take care of the minutes and the hours will take care of themselves. Lord Chesterfield
25. Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better. Samuel Beckett
26. Networking is an investment in your business. It takes time and when done correctly, can yield great results for years to come. Diane Helbig
27. Whatever consumes your mind, controls your life.
28. Great things take time.
29. No one who achieves success does so without acknowledging the help of others. The wise and confident acknowledge this help with gratitude.
30. Appreciation is a wonderful thing. It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well. Voltaire
31. Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal. Henry Ford
32. Success isn’t a result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire. Arnold H. Glasow
33. You must have long-range goals to keep you from being frustrated by short-range failures. Charles C. Noble
34. If not now, when?
35. A goal without a plan is just a wish.
36. Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.
37. Do something today that your future self will thank you for.
38. Dare to be honest and fear no labor. Robert Burns
39. Life’s problems wouldn’t be called “hurdles” if there wasn’t a way to get over them.
40. 80% of success is showing up. Woody Allen
41. The best angle from which to approach any problem is the try-angle.
42. When solving problems, dig at the roots instead of just hacking at the leaves. Anthony J. D’Angelo, The College Blue Book
43. Don’t live down to expectations. Go out there and do something remarkable. Wendy Wasserstein
44. Wheresoever you go, go with all your heart. Kongzi
45. The man who has done his best has done everything. Charles M. Schwab
46. Business opportunities are like buses, there’s always another one coming. Richard Branson
47. If you take a risk and it doesn’t go as planned, welcome to the club. Fran Hauser, Startup Investor, Advisor, and Author
48. Don’t say anything online that you wouldn’t want plastered on a billboard with your face on it. Erin Bury
49. Great things take time.
50. Your ability to communicate is an important tool in your pursuit of your goals, whether it is with your family, your co-workers, or your clients and customers. Les Brown
51. Through perseverance many people win success out of what seemed destined to be certain failure. Benjamin Disraeli
52. Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t, you’re right. Henry Ford
53. I never lose. I either win or I learn. Nelson Mandela
54. If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader. John Quincy Adams
55. Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined. Henry David Thoreau