What is success? There are many definitions, but there are a few things most people agree on: Success is not easy, perseverance is part of the formula, and aligning your purpose with your passion is key. The following quotes are powerful and inspiring but keep in mind:
Success is different for everyone, and what success means to you today will likely change many times in your lifetime.
Look beyond the titles, the jobs, the grades, the awards and the recognition, because success is finding a peace inside yourself that no one can take away.
Success is something that you decide for yourself, not other people.
Ambition is important as long as you don’t lose sight of your purpose.
Don’t attach or be defined by superficial achievement. Find something deeper and more meaningful in life to anchor and guide you.
See success in the tiny things and pause to be grateful.
Achieving goals or attaining what success means to you can be a great motivator, just don’t let it define you.
Don’t mistake success for happiness. They may co-exist but happiness is an inside job.
30 quotes to encourage you to ponder what success means to you.
1. “Success is not final; failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.” - Winston Churchill
2. “Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.” - Helen Keller
3. “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.” - Thomas Edison
4. “The road to success and the road to failure are almost exactly the same.” - Colin R. Davis
5. “Success isn’t just about what you accomplish in your life; it’s about what you inspire others to do.” - Unknown
6. “Fall seven times and stand up eight.” - Japanese Proverb
7. “Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it.” - Henry David Thoreau
8. “Opportunities don’t happen. You create them.” - Chris Grosser
9. “There are two types of people who will tell you that you cannot make a difference in this world: those who are afraid to try and those who are afraid you will succeed.” - Ray Goforth
10. “Successful people do what unsuccessful people are not willing to do. Don’t wish it were easier; wish you were better.” - Jim Rohn
11. “Stop chasing the money and start chasing the passion.” - Tony Hsieh
12. “Success is walking from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.” - Winston Churchill
13. “If you are not willing to risk the usual, you will have to settle for the ordinary.” - Jim Rohn
14. “The ones who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones that do.” - Anonymous
15. “Do one thing every day that scares you.” - Anonymous
16. “All progress takes place outside the comfort zone.” - Michael John Bobak
17. “Don’t let the fear of losing be greater than the excitement of winning.” - Robert Kiyosaki
18. “If you really look closely, most overnight successes took a long time.” - Steve Jobs
19. “The real test is not whether you avoid this failure, because you won’t. It’s whether you let it harden or shame you into inaction, or whether you learn from it; whether you choose to persevere.” - Barack Obama
20. “The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.” - Franklin D. Roosevelt
21. “The successful warrior is the average man, with laser-like focus.” - Bruce Lee
22. “There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure.” - Colin Powell
23. “If you really want to do something, you’ll find a way. If you don’t, you’ll find an excuse.” - Jim Rohn
24. “I cannot give you the formula for success, but I can give you the formula for failure–It is: Try to please everybody.” - Herbert Bayard Swope
25. “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
26. “The difference between who you are and who you want to be is what you do.” - Unknown
27. “In order to succeed, we must first believe that we can.” - Nikos Kazantzakis
28. “You know you are on the road to success if you would do your job, and not be paid for it.” - Oprah Winfrey
29. “I failed my way to success.” - Thomas Edison
30. “Success looks different for everyone, but if you stay true to yourself and follow your calling, success will begin to be more about how you feel, than what you have or what you have achieved.” - Terrie Reeves
What does success mean to you? For me, success is when I feel that I am being intentional with my life, and putting my time and energy into making a difference in the world. When I am aligning my purpose with my passion I feel a deep sense of peace, which to me is at the center of success. Where we can sometimes get tripped up is expecting that when purpose and passion unite, the floodgates to success open. Actually, that is where the journey begins, and perseverance is key. Sometimes we are so close to achieving something extraordinary, yet we feel thousands of miles from the finish line. Pause and look closely, because you may only be an inch away. Remember, don’t miss the journey and all the tiny successes you experience along the way. What was your favorite success quote? Consider taking a moment a writing your own.
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