Where the willingness is great, the difficulties cannot be great.
—Niccolo Machiavelli (1469–1527) Florentine Political Philosopher
Success stems from motivation, effort, and a commitment to excellence.
—Anonymous
Hope is the anchor of the soul the stimulus to action and the incentive to achievement.
—Unknown
The reason or motivation you have for making money or creating success is vital.
—T. Harv Eker (b.1954) American Motivational Speaker, Lecturer, Author
People who are unable to motivate themselves must be content with mediocrity, no matter how impressive their other talents.
—Andrew Carnegie (1835–1919) Scottish-American Industrialist
Praise does wonders for the sense of hearing.
—Anonymous
I am not sending messages with my feet. All I ever wanted was not to come up empty. I did it for the dough and the old applause.
—Fred Astaire (1899–1987) American Actor, Dancer, Singer
Be miserable. Or motivate yourself. Whatever has to be done, it’s always your choice.
—Wayne Dyer (1940–2015) American Self-Help Author
One of the reasons it has seemed so difficult for a person to change his habits, his personality, or his way of life, has been that heretofore nearly all efforts at change have been directed to the circumference of the self, so to speak, rather than to the center.
—Maxwell Maltz (1899–1975) American Surgeon, Motivational Writer
The desire of reward is one of the strongest incentives of human conduct; … the best security for the fidelity of mankind is to make their interest coincide with their duty.
—Alexander Hamilton (c.1757–1804) American Federalist Politician, Statesman
One of the strongest characteristics of genius is the power of lighting its own fire.
—John W. Foster
If you do not wish a man to do a thing, you had better get him to talk about it; for the more men talk, the more likely they are to do nothing else.
—Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881) Scottish Historian, Essayist
If someone is going down the wrong road, he doesn’t need motivation to speed him up. What he needs is education to turn him around.
—Jim Rohn (1930–2009) American Entrepreneur, Author, Motivational Speaker
Great men undertake great things because they are great; and fools because they think them easy.
—Luc de Clapiers, marquis de Vauvenargues (1715–47) French Moralist, Essayist, Writer
Am I motivated by what I really want out of life—or am I mass-motivated?
—Earl Nightingale (1921–89) American Motivational Speaker, Author
Acting was a way out at first. A way out of not knowing what to do, a way of focusing ambitions. And the ambition wasn’t for fame. The ambition was to do an interesting job.
—Harrison Ford (b.1942) American Actor
Everyone expects to go further than his father went; everyone expects to be better than he was born and every generation has one big impulse in its heart—to exceed all the other generations of the past in all the things that make life worth living.
—William Allen White (1868–1944) American Journalist, Author, Editor
The virtues and vices are all put in motion by interest.
—Francois de La Rochefoucauld (1613–80) French Writer
We all live with the objective of being happy; our lives are all different and yet the same.
—Anne Frank (1929–45) Holocaust Victim
There is nothing that fear and hope does not permit men to do.
—Luc de Clapiers, marquis de Vauvenargues (1715–47) French Moralist, Essayist, Writer
Winning isn’t everything. Wanting to is.
—Elbert Hubbard (1856–1915) American Writer, Publisher, Artist, Philosopher
Applause is the spur of noble minds, the end and aim of weak ones.
—Charles Caleb Colton (c.1780–1832) English Clergyman, Aphorist
It’s not my job to motivate players. They bring extraordinary motivation to our program. It’s my job not to de-motivate them.
—Lou Holtz (1893–1980) American Stage Performer
The best morale exists when you never hear the word mentioned. When you hear a lot of talk about it, it’s usually lousy.
—Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890–1969) American Head of State, Military Leader
I never work better than when I am inspired by anger, when I am angry, I can write, pray, and preach well, for then my whole temperament is quickened, my understanding sharpened, and all mundane vexations and temptations depart.
—Martin Luther (1483–1546) German Protestant Theologian
Hope is a vigorous principle; it is furnished with light and heat to advise and execute; it sets the head and heart to work, and animates a man to do his utmost. And thus, by perpetually pushing and assurance, it puts a difficulty out of countenance, and makes a seeming impossibility give way.
—Jeremy Collier (1650–1726) Anglican Church Historian, Clergyman
Every human action, whether it has become positive or negative, must depend on motivation.
—The 14th Dalai Lama (b.1935) Tibetan Buddhist Leader, Civil Rights Advocate, Author
My advice about acting? Speak clearly, don’t bump into people, and if you must have motivation, think of your pay packet on Friday.
—Noel Coward (1899–1973) English Dramatist, Actor, Composer
The greatest efforts of the race have always been traceable to the love of praise, as the greatest catastrophes to the love of pleasure.
—John Ruskin (1819–1900) English Writer, Art Critic
When the leader passes over all alike, not making a distinction, then the endeavors of those who are capable of exertion are entirely lost.
—The Hitopadesha Indian Collection of Fables
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