171+ Words of Encouragement for Motivation and Success
There is no doubt adulting is tough. Life, in general, seems to just throw everything at us, which can sometimes get us down. And these don’t necessarily have to be painful experiences either.
Even joyous occasions such as having a baby can be stressful (especially if it’s your first one!); buying a new house or even wanting to build a blogging business can bring their own challenges.
The fact is our brains are constantly being stimulated with information, and sometimes it’s hard to focus on the bigger picture. This makes it so much harder to find a quiet place and gather your thoughts.
My aim here is to help you find that inner strength to take action and keep moving forward.
Below you’ll find my top words of encouragement, favorite quotes, and sayings from all over the internet to help inspire, uplift, and overcome any struggles bringing you some positivity to break through the barrier.
Perseverance Quotes
1. “It always seems impossible until it’s done.” – Nelson Mandela
2. “It’s hard to beat a person who never gives up.” – Babe Ruth
3. “A champion is one who gets up when he can’t.” – Jack Dempsey
4. “If you are going through hell, keep going.” – Winston Churchill
5. “A winner is just a loser who tried one more time.” – George M. Moore, Jr.
6. “Every storm runs out of rain.” – Maya Angelou
7. “Success is the sum of small efforts repeated day in and day out.” – Robert Collier
8. “I am a slow walker, but I never walk back.” – Abraham Lincoln
9. “I believe in myself so much that nothing is going to stop me.” – Conor McGregor
10. “Persistence, persistence, and persistence. The power can be created and maintained through daily practice – continuous effort.” – Bruce Lee
11. “That which we persist in doing becomes easier, not that the task itself has become easier, but that our ability to perform it has improved.” – Ralph Waldo
12. “It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer.” – Albert Einstein
13. “I have not failed. I have just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” – Thomas Edison
14. “You pray for rain, you gotta deal with the mud too. That’s part of it.” – Denzel Washington
15. “Constant dripping hollows out a stone.” – Lucretius
Encouraging Quotes
1. “This too shall pass.” – Persian Sufi Poets
2. “In the middle of every difficulty lies opportunity.” – Albert Einstein
3. “Doing the best at this moment puts you in the best place for the next moment.” – Oprah Winfrey
Motivational Quotes
1. “The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, the second-best time is now.” – Chinese Proverb
2. “Either you run the day, or the day runs you.” – Jim Rohn
3. “Don’t watch the clock, do what it does. Keep going.” – Sam Levenson
4. “Expect problems and eat them for breakfast.” – Alfred A. Montapert
5. “The secret of getting ahead is getting started.” – Mark Twain
6. “Keep your eyes on the stars, and your feet on the ground.” – Theodore Roosevelt
7. “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” – Benjamin Franklin
8. “I never listened to anyone who said I can’t do something.” – Arnold Schwarzenegger
9. “Build your life or someone else will hire you to build theirs.” – Will Smith
10. “We do today what they won’t, so tomorrow we accomplish what they can’t.” – Dwayne Johnson
11. “I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.” – Bruce Lee
12. “The only thing standing between you and your goal is the B.S story you keep telling yourself as to why you can’t achieve it.” – Jordan Belfort
13. “You can’t cross the sea merely by standing and staring at the water.” – Rabindranath Tagore
14. “Be miserable. Or motivate yourself. Whatever has to be done, it’s always your choice.” – Wayne Dyer
15. “Either I will find a way, or I will make one.” – Philip Sidney
Life Quotes
1. “Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.” – Confucius
2. “Throughout life people will make you mad, disrespect you, and treat you bad. Let God deal with the things they do, cause hate in your heart will consume you too.” – Will Smith
3. “Don’t count the days, make the days count.” – Muhammad Ali
4. “You get in life what you have the courage to ask for.” – Oprah Winfrey
5. “The shoe that fits one person pinches another. There is no recipe for living that suits all cases.” – Carl Jung
6. “Make space in your life for the things that matter, for family and friends, love and generosity, fun and joy. Without this, you will burn out in mid-career and wonder where your life went.” – Jonathan Sacks
7. “Very little is needed to make a happy life. It is all within yourself, in your way of thinking.” – Marcus Aurelius
8. “The quality, not the longevity, of one’s life is what is important.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.
9. “Run if you can, walk if you can’t, crawl if you have to.” – Dean Karnazes
10. “When life is too easy for us, we must beware or we may not be ready to meet the blows which sooner or later come to everyone, rich or poor.” – Eleanor Roosevelt
11. “Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don’t lose faith.” – Steve Jobs
12. “I love life because what more is there?” – Anthony Hopkins
13. “Life is ours to be spent, not to be saved.” – D.H Lawrence
14. “So if you stay ready, you ain’t gotta get ready, and that is how I run my life.” – Will Smith
15. “The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows. It is a very mean and nasty place and it will beat you to your knees if you let it. You, me, or nobody is going to hit as hard as life. But it ain’t about how hard you hit, it is about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward, how much you can take and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done!” – Sylvester Stallone (Rocky)
Success Quotes
1. “Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.” – Albert Schweitzer
2. “There are people who make things happen, there are people who watch things happen, and there are people who wonder what happened. To be successful, you need to be a person who makes things happen.” – Jim Lovell
3. “Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can’t lose.” – Bill Gates
4. “I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed.” – Michael Jordan
5. “Success is nothing more than a few simple disciplines, practiced every day.” – Jim Rohn
6. “Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.” – Winston Churchill
7. “The number one reason people fail in life is because they listen to their friends, family, and neighbors.” – Napoleon Hill
8. “If I had six hours to chop down a tree, I’d spend the first four sharpening the axe.” – Abraham Lincoln
9. “When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.” – Lao Tzu
10. “The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me.” – Ayn Rand
11. “I find that the harder I work, the more luck I seem to have”. – Thomas Jefferson
12. “Tough times don’t last. Tough people do.” – Robert H. Schuller
13. “You don’t learn to walk by following rules. You learn by doing, and falling over.” – Richard Branson
Wisdom Quotes
1. “The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.” – Socrates
2. “Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” – Will Rogers
3. “The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short, but setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark.” – Michelangelo
4. “I’d rather regret the things I’ve done than regret the things I haven’t done.” – Lucille Ball
5. “The greater our knowledge increases the more our ignorance unfolds.” – John F. Kennedy
6. “To acquire knowledge, one must study. But to acquire wisdom, one must observe.” Marilyn vos Savant
7. “You have to know when to stop – that’s wisdom.” – Hubert de Givenchy
Business Quotes
1. “A brand for a company is like a reputation for a person. You earn reputation by trying to do things well.” – Jeff Bezos
2. “Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying where there seemed to be no hope at all.” – Dale Carnegie
3. “Do more than is required. What is the distance between someone who achieves their goals consistently and those who spend their lives and careers merely following? The extra mile.” – Gary Ryan Blair
4. “Never depend on a single income. Make investments to create a second source.” – Warren Buffet
5. “I am not afraid of an army of lions led by a sheep. I am afraid of an army of sheep led by a lion.” – Alexander the Great
6. “Good leadership consists of showing average people how to do the work of superior people.” – John D. Rockefeller
7. “Leadership is a way of thinking, a way of acting, and most importantly, a way of communicating.” – Simon Sinek
8. “Business opportunities are like buses, there’s always another one coming.” – Richard Branson
9. “There’s no shortage of remarkable ideas, what’s missing is the will to execute them.” – Seth Godin
10. “Yesterday’s home runs don’t win today’s games.” – Babe Ruth
11. “The only way around is through.” – Robert Frost
12. “Keep on going, and the chances are that you will stumble on something, perhaps when you are least expecting it. I never heard of anyone ever stumbling on something sitting down.” – Charles F. Kettering
13. “The best investment is in the tools of one’s own trade.” – Benjamin Franklin
14. “Starting a business is not for everyone. Starting a business – I’d say, number one is have a high pain threshold.” – Elon Musk
15. “Ultimately, a value exchange matters the most. No matter what, if you bring somebody value, if you make somebody laugh, if you make somebody think, if you deliver on your promise, that is always going to work out, no matter how you do that.” – Gary Vaynerchuk
16. “I believe that being successful means having a balance of success stories across the many areas of your life. You can’t truly be considered successful in your business life if your home life is in shambles.” – Zig Ziglar
17. “Luck is a dividend of sweat. The more you sweat, the luckier you get.” – Ray Kroc
18. “Big pay and little responsibility are circumstances seldom found together.” – Napoleon Hill
Inspirational Quotes
1. “I can’t change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination.” -Jimmy Dean
2. “Start by doing what’s necessary, then do the possible, and suddenly you’re doing the impossible.” – Francis of Assisi
3. “Hustle until you no longer need to introduce yourself.” – Unknown
4. “Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence.” – Vince Lombardi
5. “Believe you can and you’re halfway there.” – Theodore Roosevelt
6. “It is never too late to be what you might have been.” – George Eliot
7. “If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door.” – Milton Berle
8. “Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.” – Buddha
9. “Change your thoughts and you change your world.” – Norman Vincent Peale
10. “I believe every human has a finite number of heartbeats. I don’t intend to waste any of mine.” – Neil Armstrong
11. “Shoot for the moon and if you miss you will still be among the stars.” – Les Brown
12. “Turn your face to the sun and the shadows fall behind you.” – Unknown
13. “What great thing would you attempt if you knew you could not fail?” – Robert H. Schuller
14. “Ideas shape the course of history.” – John Maynard Keynes
15. “The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.” – Michael Altshuler
16. “Be yourself; everyone else is taken.” – Oscar Wilde
17. “Intelligence is the ability to adapt to change.” – Stephen Hawking
18. “Do not pray for an easy life; pray for the strength to endure a difficult one.” – Bruce Lee
19. “Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile because it happened.” – Dr. Seuss
20. “Sometimes when you’re in a dark place, you think you’ve been buried when you’ve actually been planted. You will bring forth life!” – Christine Caine
21. “When one door of happiness closes, another opens, but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has been opened for us.” – Helen Keller
Thoughtful Quotes
1. “A very interesting theory makes no sense at all.” – Groucho Marx
2. “An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind.” – Mahatma Gandhi
3. “Anyone who has never made a mistake, has never tried something new.” – Albert Einstein
4. “Despite your best efforts, not everyone wants to be helped. Make a difference where you can and be at peace with the rest.” – Gary Hopkins
5. “Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.” – William Arthur Ward
6. “It is not the strongest of species that survives, nor the most intelligent. It is the one that is most adaptable.” – Charles Darwin
7. “It’s not what happens to you, but how you react that matters.” – Epictetus
8. “No matter how bad things are, you can always make things worse.” – Randy Pausch
9. “Some people grumble that roses have thorns; I am grateful that thorns have roses.” – Alphonse Karr
10. “The first and final thing you have to do in this world is to last it and not be smashed by it.” – Ernest Hemingway
11. “Empty your mind. Be formless, shapeless, like water. You put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into a bottle, it becomes the bottle. You put it into a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend.” – Bruce Lee
12. “The quieter you become, the more you can hear.” – Baba Ramdas
13. “Today was good. Today was fun. Tomorrow is another one.” – Dr. Seuss
14. “When someone tells me ‘no’, it doesn’t mean I can’t do it, it simply means I can’t do it with them.” – Karen E. Quinones Miller
15. “You cannot step into the same river twice, for other waters are continually flowing on.” – Heraclitus
16. “You can’t understand where someone’s going unless you understand where they’ve been.” – Jerry B. Jenkins
17. “Living well is the best revenge.” – George Herbert
18. “Some days seem to fit together like a stained glass window. A hundred little pieces of different color and mood that, when combined, create a complete picture.” – Maggie Stiefvater
19. “Stop the habit of wishful thinking and start the habit of thoughtful wishes.” – Mary Martin
20. “I know for sure that everything will work out. No matter how crazy or bleak the situation is, it will work out. Everything passes, good and bad.” – Xosha Roquemore
21. “No one has ever become poor by giving.” – Anne Frank
22. “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” – Margaret Mead
23. “There’s nothing wrong with enjoying looking at the surface of the ocean itself, except that when you finally see what goes on underwater, you realize that you’ve been missing the whole point of the ocean. Staying on the surface all the time is like going to the circus and staring at the outside of the tent.” – Dave Barry
Powerful Quotes
1. “Truth is powerful and it prevails.” – Sojourner Truth
2. “Knowledge is power.” – Francis Bacon
3. “Silence is the ultimate weapon of power.” – Charles de Gaulle
4. “A crown is merely a hat that lets the rain in.” – Frederick the Great
5. “Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.” – Stephen Covey
6. “I start early and I stay late, day after day, year after year, it took me 17 years and 144 days to become an overnight success.” – Lionel Messi
7. “Don’t practice until you get it right. Practice until you can’t get it wrong.” – Unknown
8. “If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said ‘faster horses’.” – Henry Ford
9. “Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.” – Albert Einstein
10. “A tiger doesn’t lose sleep over the opinion of sheep.” – Shahir Zag
11. “Somewhere in the world someone is training when you are not. When you race him, he will win.” – Tom Fleming
12. “If you always put a limit on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them.” – Bruce Lee
13. “Integrity is doing the right thing, even when no one is watching.” – C.S. Lewis
14. “Today I do what others won’t so that tomorrow I can accomplish what others can’t.” – Jerry Rice
15. “Know the rules well, so you can break them effectively.” – Dalai Lama
16. “People do not decide to become extraordinary. They decide to accomplish extraordinary things.” Sir Edmund Hillary
17. “A moment in time is the strangest and most powerful object in the known universe.” – Khalid Masood
18. “Knowledge is strength. Ignorance is the kiss of death.” – Suzy Kassem
Love Quotes
1. “‘Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.” – Alfred Lord Tennyson
2. “Treasure the love you receive above all. It will survive long after your good health has vanished.” – Og Mandino
3. “Love doesn’t make the world go ’round. Love is what makes the ride worthwhile.” – Franklin P. Jones
4. “Love isn’t something you find. Love is something that finds you.” – Loretta Young
5. “Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
6. “Love is a lot like a backache, it doesn’t show up on X-rays, but you know it’s there.” – George Burns
7. “Love does not consist of gazing at each other, but in looking together in the same direction.” – Antoine de Saint-Exupery
8. “I saw that you were perfect, and so I loved you. Then I saw that you were not perfect and I loved you even more.” – Angelita Lim
9. “To be brave is to love someone unconditionally, without expecting anything in return.” – Madonna
10. “You know it’s love when all you want is that person to be happy, even if you’re not part of their happiness.” – Julia Roberts
11. “All you need is love” – Paul McCartney
12. “I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they’re right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together.” – Marilyn Monroe
13. “We love because it’s the only true adventure.” – Nikki Giovanni
14. “Love has no age, no limit, and no death.” – John Galsworthy
Destiny Quotes
1. “Our destiny is not written for us, but by us.” – Barack Obama
2. “A person often meets his destiny on the road he took to avoid it.” – Jean de La Fontaine
3. “You will never fulfill your destiny doing work you despise.” – John C. Maxwell
4. “Decisions decide destiny, there is no action without decision.” – Tony Robbins
5. “Other people and their opinions hold no power in defining our destiny.” – Oprah Winfrey
Aviation and Travel Quotes
This post on sayings wouldn’t be complete without some of my favorite quotes from famous aviators and travel. The best thing about these is that they can definitely be applied to life as well.
1. “A mile of highway will only take you a mile, but a mile of runway will take you anywhere.” – Unknown
2. “When everything seems to be going against you, remember that an airplane takes off against the wind, not with it.” – Henry Ford
3. “There are old pilots and there are bold pilots. However, there are no old, bold pilots.” – Unknown
4. “Truly superior pilots are those who use their superior judgment to avoid those situations where they have to use their superior skills.” – Frank Borman
5. “The Wright brothers flew right through the smokescreen of impossibility.” – Charles Kettering
What are some words of encouragement for work?
A few words of encouragement for work could be, “No matter how difficult the task appears, remember that you have the ability to accomplish great work. Even if you stumble, remember that we always bounce back stronger. Keep up the good work!”.
Can you provide some encouraging words to inspire someone facing challenges?
Sure, here are some words that might help, “Remember, no matter what comes your way, know you’re stronger than the obstacles facing you. Always remember that you’ve already faced many challenges and overcame them, this is just another period of your life that will eventually pass and you’ll look back on it and be so glad you didn’t give up”.
What are some words of encouragement to help someone who is feeling down?
Here’s one of my favorites, “Don’t forget the strength within you. Even if you can’t dance well, who cares if you can’t dance. Remain positive, and embrace the positive vibes, you’re going to bounce back from this. You’ve got all the strength you need within you.”
What are the right words I can use to encourage someone?
There’s no one-size-fits-all, but a genuine expression such as, “You matter. What you’re going through is tough, but remember you’re not alone. We’re here to help in any way we can. You’re appreciated, and I’m so proud of the way you’re handling this situation” can be influential.
Can you share some right words of encouragement for those managing personal and professional life?
Absolutely, here’s a powerful quote to go by, “It’s truly inspirational how you’re juggling all aspects of your life. Even when you face struggles, remember you’re doing excellent. Keep spreading those positive vibes, balance is key and you’re mastering it”.
What are some words of encouragement and strength?
One that has gotten me through tough times is, “You’re stronger than you think. Life will throw challenges your way, but remember how much you’ve overcome already. You’ve got the resilience to get through this and the support and encouragement of those who love you”.
What are some positive words to boost someone’s morale?
Morale boosting is so important. Here’s one I have lived by for a long time.
“Don’t let the hardships discourage you. Each step, even a tiny one, takes you closer to your goals. Remember, most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all”.
Could you suggest words of endearment that can comfort a friend who needs encouragement?
Of course, you could try saying to them: “When you’re feeling low, remember the love and support that surrounds you. Even in your struggles, we see the light that you are. Let us know how we can help, we’re always here for you”.
Final Words of Encouragement
In a world that often seems filled with challenges and uncertainties, the power from words of encouragement cannot be overstated. We’ve explored the profound impact that these simple yet meaningful words can have on individuals and communities alike.
From boosting confidence to fostering resilience, words of encouragement serve as a beacon of hope, lighting the way through even the darkest of times.