So often in business (and really, in life) we look to the experience and expertise of others.
We want to learn from those who’ve gone before us in order to avoid their mistakes and chase after the things that worked for them.
Especially in times of doubt.
I rounded up 50 quotes from successful business owners and shared them on the blog a couple years ago, and I’ve referred back to them regularly.
So I thought it was about time to round up some more.
If you need a little extra motivation and encouragement, these quotes from successful business people who’ve gone before us should do the trick.
To help keep you inspired while on the go, I've created iPhone lock screens for some of these quotes. You can download them in the Library!
Leadership
"Don't tell people how to do things, tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results." - George S. Patton
"No person will make a great business who wants to do it all himself or get all the credit." - Andrew Carnegie
"Train people well enough so they can leave, treat them well enough so they don't want to." - Richard Branson
"The way to get things done is not to mind who gets the credit for doing them." - Benjamin Jowett
"Successful people do what unsuccessful people are not willing to do. Don't wish it were easier; wish you were better." - Jim Rohn
"Be stubborn on the long-term vision but flexible on the details." - Jeff Bezos
“I try not to make any decisions that I’m not excited about.” - Jake Nickell
“A person who is quietly confident makes the best leader.” - Fred Wilson
“Leadership is doing what is right when no one is watching.” – George Van Valkenburg
“To waken interest and kindle enthusiasm is the sure way to teach easily and successfully.” – Tryon Edwards
“Hire character. Train skill.” – Peter Schutz
“People are definitely a company’s greatest asset. It doesn’t make any difference whether the product is cars or cosmetics. A company is only as good as the people it keeps.” – Mary Kay Ash
“100% of customers are people. 100% of employees are people. If you don’t understand people, you don’t understand business.” – Simon Sinek
Productivity
"Begin somewhere; you cannot build a reputation on what you intend to do." - Liz Smith
"Dig your well before you're thirsty." - Seth Godin
"Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely." - Auguste Rodin
"There are no traffic jams along the extra mile." - Roger Staubach
"Either you run the day or the day runs you." - Jim Rohn
"Well done is better than well said." - Benjamin Franklin
"It's not the load that breaks you down, it's the way you carry it." - Lena Horne
"Make every detail perfect, and limit the number of details to perfect." - Jack Dorsey
"We think, mistakenly, that success is the result of the amount of time we put in at work, instead of the quality of time." - Arianna Huffington
"The essential question is not, 'How busy are you?' but 'What are you busy at?” - Oprah Winfrey
"There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all." - Peter Drucker
“It’s not about ideas. It’s about making ideas happen.” - Scott Belsky
“Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.” – Theodore Roosevelt
“A business that makes nothing but money is a poor business.” – Henry Ford
“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.” – John Quincy
“The true entrepreneur is a doer, not a dreamer.” – Nolan Bushnell
“Do not call procrastination laziness. Call it fear.” – Julia Cameron
“You can’t climb the ladder of success with your hands in your pockets.” – Arnold Schwarzenegger
Creativity
“An essential aspect of creativity is not being afraid to fail.” - Edwin Land
"If you make art, you'll have critics. It's easier to critique a thing than it is to make a thing." - Marie Forleo
"If I would have asked people what they wanted, they would have said a faster horse.” - Henry Ford
“Don’t worry about people stealing your design work. Worry about the day they stop.” - Jeffrey Zeldman
“When you find an idea that you just can’t stop thinking about, that’s probably a good one to pursue.” - Josh James
“Build your own dreams, or someone else will hire you to build theirs.” – Farrah Gray
“The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle.” – Steve Jobs
“One day your life will flash before your eyes. Make sure it’s worth watching.” – Gerard Way
Perseverance
"All progress takes place outside the comfort zone." - Michael John Bobak
"The secret of success is to do the common thing uncommonly well." - John D. Rockefeller Jr.
"Success is not final; failure is not fatal. It is the courage to continue that counts." - Winston S. Churchill
"The first one gets the oyster the second one gets the shell." - Andrew Carnegie
“Don’t worry about failure; you only have to be right once.” - Drew Houston
“The last 10% it takes to launch something takes as much energy as the first 90%.” - Rob Kalin
“Diligence is the mother of good luck.” - Benjamin Franklin
“The competitor to be feared is one who never bothers about you at all, but goes on making his own business better all the time.” – Henry Ford
"If you really want to do something, you'll find a way. If you don't, you'll find an excuse." - Jim Rohn
“The start is what stops most people.” – Don Shula
“Two things define you. Your patience when you have nothing and your attitude when you have everything.” – Unknown
“Failure defeats losers, failure inspires winners.” – Robert T. Kiyosaki
Which of these quotes was your favorite? Do you have any other favorite quotes that didn’t make this list? If so, what are they?
