Personal relationships are the fertile soil from which all advancement, all success, all achievement in real life grows.
—Ben Stein (b.1944) American Lawyer, Writer, Economist, Humorist
Life affords no higher pleasure than that of surmounting difficulties, passing from one step of success to another, forming new wishes and seeing them gratified. He that labors in any great or laudable undertaking has his fatigues first supported by hope and afterward rewarded by joy.
—Samuel Johnson (1709–84) British Essayist
You don’t have to be a fantastic hero to do certain things—to compete. You can be just an ordinary chap, sufficiently motivated to reach challenging goals.
—Edmund Hillary (1919–2008) New Zealander Explorer, Humanitarian
Happiness lies not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort. The joy and moral stimulation of work no longer must be forgotten in the mad chase of evanescent profits. These dark days will be worth all they cost us if they teach us that our true destiny is not to be ministered unto but to minister to ourselves and to our fellow men.
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945) American Head of State, Lawyer
There is no short cut to achievement. Life requires thorough preparation — veneer isn’t worth anything.
—George Washington Carver (1864–1943) American Scientist, Botanist, Educator, Inventor
Take a look at those two open hands of yours. They are tools with which to serve, make friends, and reach out for the best in life. Open hands open the way to achievement. Put them to work today.
—Wilferd Arlan Peterson (1900–95) American Author
Let us then be up and doing,
With a heart for any fate,
Still achieving, still pursuing,
Learn to labor and to wait.
—Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–82) American Poet, Educator, Academic
Disciplining yourself to do what you know is right and important, although difficult, is the highroad to pride, self-esteem, and personal satisfaction.
—Margaret Thatcher (1925–2013) British Head of State
It is easy to hate and it is difficult to love. This is how the whole scheme of things works. All good things are difficult to achieve; and bad things are very easy to get.
—Morarji Desai (1896–1995) Indian Statesman, Nationalist Leader
Be more dedicated to making solid achievements than in running after swift but synthetic happiness.
—A. P. J. Abdul Kalam (1931–2015) Indian Head of State, Scientist
I don’t want to achieve immortality through my work; I want to achieve immortality through not dying. I don’t want to live on in the hearts of my countrymen; I want to live on in my apartment.
—Woody Allen (b.1935) American Film Actor, Director
Nothing will ever be attempted if all possible objections must first be overcome.
—Samuel Johnson (1709–84) British Essayist
Spectacular achievement is always preceded by unspectacular preparation.
—Robert H. Schuller (1926–2015) American Christian Televangelist, Author
It’s your aptitude, not just your attitude that determines your ultimate altitude.
—Zig Ziglar (1926–2012) American Author
There is, first, the desire for strength, for achievement, for adequacy, for confidence in the face of the world, and for independence and freedom. Secondly, we have what we may call the desire for reputation or prestige
—Abraham Maslow (1908–70) American Psychologist, Academic, Humanist
Someone has defined genius as intensity of purpose: the ability to do, the patience to wait… Put these together and you have genius, and you have achievement.
—Leo J. Muir
The only way around is through.
—Robert Frost (1874–1963) American Poet
Success is not measured by what you accomplish, but by the opposition you have encountered, and the courage with which you have maintained the struggle against overwhelming odds.
—Orison Swett Marden (1850–1924) American New Thought Writer, Physician, Entrepreneur
We live in deeds, not years:
In thoughts, not breaths;
In feelings, not in figures on a dial.
We should count time by heart-throbs. He most lives
Who thinks most, feels the noblest, acts the best.
—Philip James Bailey (1816–1902) English Poet
Not the maker of plans and promises, but rather the one who offers faithful service in small matters. This is the person who is most likely to achieve what is good and lasting.
—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) German Poet
If the track is tough and the hill is rough, THINKING you can just ain’t enough!
—Shel Silverstein (1930–99) American Children’s Books Writer, Poet, Short story Author, Playwright, Author, Songwriter
There is a woman at the beginning of all great things.
—Alphonse de Lamartine (1790–1869) French Poet, Politician, Historian
A man may fulfill the object of his existence by asking a question he cannot answer, and attempting a task he cannot achieve.
—Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. (1809–94) American Physician, Essayist
That some achieve great success, is proof to all that others can achieve it as well.
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–65) American Head of State
Nothing great will ever be achieved without great men, and men are great only if they are determined to be so.
—Charles de Gaulle (1890–1970) French General, Statesman
There is nothing that war has ever achieved we could not better achieve without it.
—Havelock Ellis (1859–1939) British Sexologist, Physician, Social Reformer
You can be anything you want to be, if you only believe with sufficient conviction and act in accordance with your faith; for whatever the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve.
—Napoleon Hill (1883–1970) American Author, Journalist, Attorney, Lecturer
Our chief want in life is somebody who will make us do what we can.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
It’s not the having, it’s the getting.
—Elizabeth Taylor (b.1932) English Actor, Activist
The only way to discover the limits of the possible
is to go beyond them to the impossible.
—Arthur C. Clarke (1917–2008) British Scientist, Science-fiction Writer
If you want to be successful, find someone who has achieved the results you want and copy what they do and you’ll achieve the same results.
—Tony Robbins (b.1960) American Self-Help Author, Entrepreneur
If you fear making anyone mad, then you ultimately probe for the lowest common denominator of human achievement.
—Jimmy Carter (b.1924) American Head of State, Military Leader
Hope sees the invisible, feels the intangible and achieves the impossible.
—Unknown
It was an utterly phenomenal achievement.
—David McCullough (b.1933) American Historian
The world of achievement has always belonged to the optimist.
—J. Harold Wilkins
Achievement seems to be connected with action. Successful men and women keep moving. They make mistakes, but they don’t quit.
—Conrad Hilton (1887–1979) American Business Person
So much to do, so little done, such things to be.
—Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809–92) British Poet
Finish every day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be cumbered with your old nonsense. This day is all that is good and fair. It is too dear, with its hopes and invitations, to waste a moment on yesterdays.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
Where I was born and where and how I have lived is unimportant. It is what I have done with where I have been that should be of interest.
—Georgia O’Keeffe (1887–1986) American Painter
It is time for us all to stand and cheer for the doer, the achiever — the one who recognizes the challenge and does something about it.
—Vince Lombardi, Jr. (1913–70) American Football Player, Coach
All great achievements require time.
—David J. Schwartz (1927–87) American Self-help Author
Achievement is not always success while reputed failure often is. It is honest endeavor, persistent effort to do the best possible under any and all circumstances.
—Orison Swett Marden (1850–1924) American New Thought Writer, Physician, Entrepreneur
Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.
—Robert F. Kennedy (1925–68) American Politician, Civil Rights Activist
The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short; but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark.
—Michelangelo (1475–1564) Italian Painter, Sculptor, Architect, Poet, Engineer
If you can speak what you will never hear, if you can write what you will never read, you have done rare things.
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–62) American Philosopher
I am always doing things I can’t do, that’s how I get to do them.
—Pablo Picasso (1881–1973) Spanish Painter, Sculptor, Artist
Hell begins on the day when God grants us a clear vision of all that we might have achieved, of all the gifts which we might have wasted, of all that we might have done which we did not do.
—Gian Carlo Menotti (1911–2007) Italian-born American Composer
Virtually nothing comes out right the first time. Failures, repeated failures, are finger posts on the road to achievement. The only time you don’t want to fail is the last time you try something … One fails forward toward success.
—Charles F. Kettering (1876–1958) American Inventor, Entrepreneur, Businessperson
Don’t mistake activity for achievement.
—John Wooden (1910–2010) American Sportsperson
Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement; nothing can be done without hope.
—Helen Keller (1880–1968) American Author
Great things are not accomplished by those who yield to trends and fads and popular opinion.
—Charles Kuralt (1934–97) American Journalist, TV Personality
I determined never to stop until I had come to the end and achieved my purpose.
—David Livingstone (1813–73) Scottish Missionary, Explorer
The only worthwhile achievements of man are those which are socially useful.
—Alfred Adler (1870–1937) Austrian Psychiatrist
Having once decided to achieve a certain task, achieve it at all costs of tedium and distaste. The gain in self-confidence of having accomplished a tiresome labor is immense.
—Arnold Bennett (1867–1931) British Novelist, Playwright, Critic
The mathematics of high achievement–
Begin with a dream.
DIVIDE the problems and conquer them one by one.
MULTIPLY the exciting possibilities in your mind.
SUBTRACT all the negative thoughts to get started.
ADD enthusiasm and determination.
And the RESULT will be the attainment of your goal.
—Anonymous
All successful employers are stalking men who will do the unusual, men who think, men who attract attention by performing more than is expected of them.
—Charles M. Schwab (1862–1939) American Businessperson
It is the easiest thing in the world to obey God when He commands us to do what we like, and to trust Him when the path is all sunshine. The real victory of faith is to trust God in the dark, and through the dark.
—Theodore L. Cuyler (1822–1909) American Presbyterian Clergyman, Writer
The greatest things are accomplished by individual people, not by committees or companies.
—Alfred A. Montapert (1906–97) American Engineer, Philosopher
The journey is the reward.
—Chinese Proverb
To achieve great things, two things are needed; a plan, and not quite enough time.
—Leonard Bernstein (1918–90) American Composer, Conductor