He has achieved success who has worked well, laughed often, and loved much.
—Elbert Hubbard (1856–1915) American Writer, Publisher, Artist, Philosopher
Happily achieve instead of achieving to be happy.
—Tony Robbins (b.1960) American Self-Help Author, Entrepreneur
It was an utterly phenomenal achievement.
—David McCullough (1933–2022) American Historian
High achievers dwell on what they do well and spend very little time evaluating themselves and their performances.
—John Eliot (b.1971) American Psychologist, Academic
The individual who wants to reach the top in business must appreciate the might of the force of habit and must understand that practices are what create habits. He must be quick to break those habits that can break him and hasten to adopt those practices that will become the habits that help him achieve the success he desires.
—J. Paul Getty (1892–1976) American Business Person, Art Collector, Philanthropist
It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, and comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.
—Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919) American Head of State, Political leader, Historian, Explorer
The most effective way I know to begin with the end in mind is to develop a personal mission statement or philosophy or creed. It focused on what you want to be (character) and to do (contributions and achievements) and on the values or principles upon which being and doing are based.
—Stephen Covey (1932–2012) American Self-help Author
There can be no progress, no achievement without sacrifice.
—James Allen (1864–1912) British Philosophical Writer
The rewards are profound. Shadow-work enables us to alter our self-sabotaging behavior so that we can achieve a more self-directed life.
—Connie Zweig (b.1949) American Minister, Columnist, Psychotherapist
Mastery.- We have reached mastery when we neither mistake nor hesitate in the achievement.
—Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900) German Philosopher, Scholar, Writer
There is only one way by which you can achieve prosperity. It is to take charge of your mind.
—Eric Butterworth (1916–2003) American Spirituality Writer
Avoid fragmentation: Find your focus and seek simplicity. Purposeful living calls for elegant efficiency and economy of effort—expanding the minimum time and energy necessary to achieve desired goals.
—Dan Millman (b.1946) American Children’s Books Writer, Sportsperson
The greatest achievement was at first and for a time a dream. The oak sleeps in the acorn, the bird waits in the egg, and in the highest vision of the soul a waking angel stirs. Dreams are the seedlings of realities.
—James Lane Allen (1849–1925) American Novelist, Short Story Writer
Elevated levels of confidence are omnipresent among history’s greatest overachievers. Benjamin Franklin, one of the most famous men in the world even before he signed the Declaration of Independence once lamented about humility, “I cannot boast of much success in acquiring the reality of this virtue”.
—John Eliot (b.1971) American Psychologist, Academic
Success is achieved by development of our strengths, not by elimination of our weakness.
—Marilyn vos Savant (b.1946) American Columnist, Author, Lecture, Playwright
Your automatic creative mechanism is teleological. That is, it operates in terms of goals and end results. Once you give it a definite goal to achieve, you can depend upon its automatic guidance system to take you to that goal much better than “you” ever could by conscious thought. “You” supply the goal by thinking in terms of end results. Your automatic mechanism then supplies the means whereby.
—Maxwell Maltz (1899–1975) American Surgeon, Motivational Writer
The Way of Heaven does not compete, and yet it skillfully achieves victory. It does not speak, and yet it skillfully responds to things. It comes to you without your invitation.
—Laozi (fl.6th Century BCE) Chinese Philosopher, Sage
Jane Fonda, who divided her life into three acts, decided after her sixtieth birthday that she was now facing the final act, and came to the following conclusion: “I thought to myself, well if that’s the case and if what I’m scared of isn’t death, but getting to the end with regrets, then I’ve got to figure out what would be the things that I would regret when I got to the last act if I hadn’t done them or achieved them by then. And they were: having an intimate relationship and having made a difference”.
—Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (1934–2021) Hungarian-American Psychologist
Find the heart of it. Make the complex simple, and you can achieve mastery.
—Dan Millman (b.1946) American Children’s Books Writer, Sportsperson
Think of yourself as on the threshold of unparalleled success. A whole, clear, glorious life lies before you. Achieve! Achieve!
—Andrew Carnegie (1835–1919) Scottish-American Industrialist
There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure.
—Paulo Coelho (b.1947) Brazilian Songwriter, Novelist
Be fearless and pure; never waver in your determination or your dedication to the spiritual life. Give freely. Be self-controlled, sincere, truthful, loving, and full of the desire to serve…Learn to be detached and to take joy in renunciation. Do not get angry or harm any living creature, but be compassionate and gentle; show good will to all. Cultivate vigor, patience, will, purity; avoid malice and pride. Then, you will achieve your destiny.
—The Bhagavad Gita Hindu Scripture
We tend to view confidence as a product of accomplishment rather than part of the process that leads there. But supremely confident people were confident long before they achieved anything.
—John Eliot (b.1971) American Psychologist, Academic
To understand the heart and mind of a person, look not at what he has already achieved, but at what he aspires to.
—Kahlil Gibran (1883–1931) Lebanese-born American Philosopher, Poet, Painter, Theologian, Sculptor
The achievement of one goal should be the starting point of another.
—Alexander Graham Bell (1847–1922) Scottish-born American Inventor, Engineer, Academic
What turns ordinary people into overachievers is the way they use their minds when they are called on to perform.
—John Eliot (b.1971) American Psychologist, Academic
There is absolutely nothing that you desire that you cannot achieve.
—Abraham Hicks
He had always wanted to write Music and he could give no other identity to the thing he sought. If you want to know what it is, he told himself, listen to the first phrases of Tchaikowsky’s First Concerto, or the last movement of Rachmaninoff’s Second. Men have not found the words for it nor the deed nor the thought, but they have found the Music. Let me see that in one single act of man on earth. Let me see it made real. Let me see the answer to the promise of that Music. Not servants nor those served; not altars and immolations; but the final, the fulfilled, innocent of pain. Don’t help me or serve me, but let me see it once, because I need it. Don’t work for my happiness, my brothers – Show me yours – show me that it is possible – show me your achievement – and the knowledge will give me courage for mine.
—Ayn Rand (1905–82) Russian-born American Novelist, Philosopher
The people who have achieved more than you, in any area, are only a half step ahead of you in time. Bless them and praise their gifts, and bless and praise your own. The world would be less rich without their contributions, and it would be less rich without yours. There’s more than room for everyone; in fact, there’s a need for everyone.
—Marianne Williamson (b.1952) American Activist, Author, Lecturer
Overachievement is aimed at people who want to maximize their potential. And to do that, I insist you throw caution to the wind, ignore the pleas of parents, coaches, spouses, and bosses to be “realistic”. Realistic people do not accomplish extraordinary things because the odds against success stymie them. The best performers ignore the odds. I will show you that instead of limiting themselves to what’s probable, the best will pursue the heart-pounding, exciting, really big, difference-making dreams—so long as catching them might be possible.
—John Eliot (b.1971) American Psychologist, Academic