Jim Rohn (1930–2009) was an American motivational speaker and author. His rags-to-riches story played a large part in his success in the self-help industry.
Born on a farm in Yakima, Washington, Rohn was a protégé of the self-help speaker John Earl Shoaff, who was also a vice-president of sales in a nutritional supplement enterprise called AbundaVita. Rohn joined AbundaVita, grew prosperous, and spun his rags-to-riches story into a famous personal development philosophy lecture called “Idaho farm boy makes it to Beverly Hills.” This lecture evolved into a series of “Adventures in Achievement” live seminars and personal development workshops that Rohn delivered for over 40 years.
Rohn mentored other self-help speakers and authors, including Tony Robbins, Mark Victor Hansen, Jack Canfield, Brian Tracy, and T. Harv Eker.
Rohn’s notable publications include Five Major Pieces to the Life Puzzle (1991,) 7 Strategies for Wealth & Happiness (1996,) and the collection of essays The World is Yours (2019.)
More: Wikipedia • READ: Works by Jim Rohn
For every promise, there is a price to pay. If the promise is clear, the price is easy.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Value, Promises
Whoever renders service to many puts himself in line for
greatness great wealth, great return,
great satisfaction, great reputation, and great joy.
—Jim Rohn
If you are not willing to risk the unusual, you will have to settle for the ordinary.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Risk
Without a sense of urgency, desire loses its value.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Desire, Desires
Success is neither magical nor mysterious. Success is the natural consequence of consistently applying the basic fundamentals.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Success & Failure, Success
The amount you give isn’t important. What matters is what that amount represents in terms of your life.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Giving
We get paid for bringing value to the market place.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Value
You must learn to translate wisdom and strong feelings into labor.
—Jim Rohn
You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: People
The more you know the less you need to say.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Conversation
Let others lead small lives, but not you. Let others argue over small things, but not you. Let others cry over small hurts, but not you. Let others leave their future in someone else’s hands, but not you.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Future, Living, Mediocrity
The goal of effective communication should be for listeners to say, “Me, too!” versus “So what?”
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Communication
The major value in life is not what you get. The major value in life is what you become.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Value
Take time to gather up the past so that you will be able to draw from your experience and invest them in the future.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Experience
Ideas can be life-changing. Sometimes all you need to open the door is just one more good idea.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Ideas
Confronting and overcoming challenges is an exhilarating experience. It does something to feed the soul and the mind. It makes you more than you were before. It strengthens the mental muscles and enables you to become better prepared for the next challenge.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Determination
Give whatever you are doing and whoever you are with the gift of your attention.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Attitude, Attention, Concentration
Attitude is your acceptance of the natural laws, or your rejection of the natural laws.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Attitude
If you don’t like how something is going for you, change it. If something isn’t enough, change it. If something doesn’t suit you, change it. If something doesn’t please you, change it. You don’t ever have to be the same after today. If you don’t like your present address change it – you’re not a tree!
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Change
If you want to see change, you have to change. If you want your people to get better, you have to get better.
—Jim Rohn
If you wish to find, you must search. Rarely does a good idea interrupt you.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Ideas
Don’t wish it were easier. Wish you were better.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Attitude, Hope, Better
Attitude is greatly shaped by influence and association.
—Jim Rohn
A good objective of leadership is to help those who are doing poorly to do well and to help those who are doing well to do even better.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Leaders, Helpfulness, Leadership
Whoever renders service to many puts himself in line for greatness—great wealth, great return, great satisfaction, great reputation, and great joy.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Reputation, Service, Satisfaction, Greatness, Sacrifice, Giving
Asking is the beginning of receiving. Make sure you don’t go to the ocean with a teaspoon. At least take a bucket so the kids won’t laugh at you.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Questions
Effective communication is 20% what you know and 80% how you feel about what you know.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Communication
You don’t get paid for the hour. You get paid for the value you bring to the hour.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Money
You must take personal responsibility.
You cannot change the circumstances, the seasons,
or the wind, but you can change yourself.
That is something you have charge of.
You don’t have charge of the constellations,
but you do have charge of whether you read,
develop new skills, and take new classes.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Win, Change, Responsibility, Persona
The most important question to ask on the job is not “What am I getting?” The most important question to ask on the job is “What am I becoming?”
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Work
We must learn to help those who deserve it, not just those who need it. Life responds to deserve not need.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Helpfulness
Work harder on yourself than you do on your job.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Jobs, Work
We must all wage an intense, lifelong battle against the constant downward pull. If we relax, the bugs and weeds of negativity will move into the garden and take away everything of value.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Doing Your Best
Managers help people see themselves as they are; Leaders help people to see themselves better than they are.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Leadership
Labor gives birth to ideas.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Ideas
Character isn’t something you were born with and can’t change, like your fingerprints. It’s something you weren’t born with and must take responsibility for forming.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Character
You cannot take the mild approach to the weeds in your mental garden. You have got to hate weeds enough to kill them. Weeds are not something you handle; weeds are something you devastate.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Being True to Yourself
Every life form seems to strive to its maximum except human beings. How tall will a tree grow? As tall as it possibly can. Human beings, on the other hand, have been given the dignity of choice. You can choose to be all or you can choose to be less. Why not stretch up to the full measure of the challenge and see what all you can do?
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Growth, Life, Courage
What you become directly influences what you get.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Self-improvement, Progress
Success is nothing more than a few simple disciplines, practiced every day.
—Jim Rohn
Topics: Success & Failure, Discipline
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