8/8/2019 Classic Motivational Quotes

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/classic-motivational-quotes 1/18

Classic Motivational Quotes

I was once asked if I had any classic quotes, positive quotes, inspirational quotes...

motivational quotes...

...but I didn't, so given I like to focus on being positive, I started collecting.

These inspirational quotes currently flow in an order of sorts, from initial positive quotes and

quotes on positive thinking, through thoughts, imagination, opportunity, vision and goal setting,through motivational quotes on initial action and getting started, then persistence and

inspirational quotes on belief, money, and finally, life balance.

Life has no limitations, except the ones you make.

- Les Brown

Once you choose hope, anything's possible.

- Christopher Reeve

Thinking

If you think you are beaten, you are

If you think you dare not, you don't,

If you like to win, but you think you can't

It is almost certain you won't.

If you think you'll lose, you're lostFor out of the world we find,

Success begins with a fellow's will

It's all in the state of mind.

If you think you are outclassed, you areYou've got to think high to rise,

You've got to be sure of yourself before

You can ever win a prize.

Life's battles don't always goTo the stronger or faster man,

But soon or late the man who wins

Is the man WHO THINKS HE CAN!

8/8/2019 Classic Motivational Quotes

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/classic-motivational-quotes 2/18

- Walter D. Wintle - 1905

R emember: Success is nothing but luck. Just ask any

failure.

- Anon

Thoughts

Words and actions are the factions

that make or break our day.And thoughts are the things

from whence they all spring.

To be the best we can possibly be,

to grow, and learn in every adversity,and not lose the success that's ours to be

requires control of our thoughts explicitly.

 Never doubt the possibilities to be,

and obstacles will never become a reality.We create our own success you see

 but only with a positive mentality.

- Anon

Whether you think you can or can't, you're right.

- Henry Ford 

It Couldn’t Be Done

Somebody said that it couldn’t be done,

But, he with a chuckle replied

That "maybe it couldn’t," but he would be one

Who wouldn’t say so till he’d tried.So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin

On his face. If he worried he hid it.

He started to sing as he tackled the thing

8/8/2019 Classic Motivational Quotes

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/classic-motivational-quotes 3/18

That couldn’t be done, and he did it.

Somebody scoffed: "Oh, you’ll never do that;

At least no one has done it";

But he took off his coat and he took off his hat,And the first thing we knew he’d begun it.With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,

Without any doubting or quiddit,

He started to sing as he tackled the thingThat couldn’t be done, and he did it.

There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,

There are thousands to prophesy failure;

There are thousands to point out to you one by one,The dangers that wait to assail you.

But just buckle it in with a bit of a grin,Just take off your coat and go to it;

Just start to sing as you tackle the thing

That "couldn’t be done," and you’ll do it.

- Edgar Albert Guest - 1881-1959

What ever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it

can achieve.

- Napoleon Hill 

We become what we think about.

- Earl Nightingale

Imagination rules the world

- Napoleon Bonaparte

The only truly happy people are children and the

creative minority.

- Jean Caldwell 

8/8/2019 Classic Motivational Quotes

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/classic-motivational-quotes 4/18

An idea can turn to dust or magic, depending on the

talent that rubs against it.

- Bill Bernbach

Do not seek to follow in the footsteps of the men of old;

seek what they sought.

- Basho

I must create a system or be enslaved by another man's. I

will not reason and compare; My business is to create.

- William Blake

There is nothing so wasteful as doing with great

efficiency that which doesn't have to be done at all.

- Anon

An obstacle is often a stepping stone.

- Prescott 

R eplace the word "problem" with the word

"opportunity" in all your thoughts.

- Matthew Keith Groves

 No great man ever complains of want of opportunities.

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Three things that never come back: the spent arrow; the

spoken word; the lost opportunity.

8/8/2019 Classic Motivational Quotes

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/classic-motivational-quotes 5/18

- W.G.P.

If you learn only methods, you'll be tied to your 

methods, but if you learn principles you can devise your own methods.

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Life is "trying things to see if they work"

- Ray Bradbury

There was never a genius without a tincture of madness.

- Aristotle

We're never gonna survive unless we go a little crazy.

- Seal 

Even if you are on the right track, you'll get run over if 

you just sit there!

- Will Rogers

Inspirations never go in for long engagements; they

demand immediate marriage to action.

- Brendan Francis

We have to understand that the world can only be

grasped by action, not by contemplation.

The hand is more important than the eye... The hand is

the cutting edge of the mind.

- Jacob Bronowski

8/8/2019 Classic Motivational Quotes

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/classic-motivational-quotes 6/18

Vision without execution is delusion.

- Thomas Edison

Vision without action is daydreaming and action

without vision is a nightmare.

- Anon

If one does not know to which port one is sailing, no

wind is favourable.

- Seneca

R eal knowledge is to know the extent of one's

ignorance.

- Confucius

Once you have a clear picture of your priorities – that is

values, goals, and high leverage activities – organize

around them.

- Dr. Stephen Covey

Cause Change & Lead

Accept Change & Survive

Resist Change & Die

- Ray Noorda , Chairman, Novell 

Begin it Now

Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to

draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of 

8/8/2019 Classic Motivational Quotes

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/classic-motivational-quotes 7/18

initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth,the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid

 plans:

That the moment one definitely commits oneself, thenProvidence moves too.

All sorts of things occur to help one that would never 

otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events

issues from the decision, raising in one's favour all

manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings andmaterial assistance, which no man could have dreamed

would have come his way.

Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it.

Boldness has Genius, Power and Magic in it.

Begin it now.

- Goethe

Eighty percent of success is showing up.

- Woody Allen

Press On

 Nothing in the world can take the place of perseverance.

Talent will not;

 Nothing is more common than unsuccessful people withtalent.

Genius will not;

Unrewarded genius is almost legendary;

Education will not;The world is full of educated derelicts.

Perseverance and Determination alone are omnipotent.

8/8/2019 Classic Motivational Quotes

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/classic-motivational-quotes 8/18

- US President Calvin Coolidge

Don’t Quit!

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,

When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,

When the funds are low, and the debts are high,

And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,When care is pressing you down a bit,

Rest if you must, but don't you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,

As every one of us sometimes learns,And many a failure turns about,

when he might have won had he stuck it out;Don't give up though the pace seems slow,

You may succeed with another blow.

Success is failure turned inside out,

The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,

And you never can tell how close you are,It may be near when it seems so far;

So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit,

It's when things seem worst, thatYou Must Not Quit.

- C. W. Longenecker 

Success is how high you bounce when you hit bottom.

- General George S. Patton

Winners never quit and quitters never win.

- Anon

I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career.

I’ve lost almost 300 games.

8/8/2019 Classic Motivational Quotes

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/classic-motivational-quotes 9/18

Twenty six times, I’ve been trusted to take the gamewinning shot and missed.

I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life.

And that is why I succeed.

- Michael Jordan

 Never Give Up

- Winston Churchill 

If an individual sets an achievable goal and never gives

up, they will either achieve their goal, or die trying.

If a civilisation sets an achievable goal and never gives

up, they will achieve their goal.

What shall we do?

- Matthew Keith Groves

Winners

Winners take chances like everyone else,They fear failing, but they refuse to let fear control them.

Winners don’t give up,

When life gets tough, they hang in until the going gets better 

Winners are flexible.

They realise there is more than one way and they are

willing to try others.

Winners know they are not perfect.They respect their weaknesses while making the most of 

their strengths.

Winners fall, but they don’t stay down.They stubbornly refuse to let a fall keep them from

climbing.

8/8/2019 Classic Motivational Quotes

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/classic-motivational-quotes 10/18

Winners don’t blame fate for their failures, Nor luck for their successes.

Winners accept responsibility for their lives.

Winners are positive thinkers who see good in all things.

From the ordinary, they make the extraordinary.

Winners believe in the path they have chosen even whenit’s hard,

Even when others can’t see where they are going.

Winners are patient.

They know a goal is only as worthy as the effort that’srequired to achieve it.

Winners are people like you.

They make this world a better place to be.

- Nancye Sims

This 'telephone' has too many shortcomings to be

seriously considered as a means of communication.

The device is inherently of no value too us.

- Western Union internal memo 1876 

You say this is a computer for ordinary people? Why

would an ordinary person want a computer?

- Hewlett Packard executive to Steve Wozniak regarding 

 Apple prototype

Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be bent out of 

shape.

- Anon

In the confrontation between the stream and the rock, the

stream always wins - not through strength,

8/8/2019 Classic Motivational Quotes

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/classic-motivational-quotes 11/18

 but through persistence.

- Buddha

Who dares wins

- Winston Churchill 

Leap, and the net will appear.

- Julia Margaret Cameron (1815-1879)

The best way to predict the future is to invent it.

- Alan Curtis Kay , Developer of Object Oriented  Programming and the Windowing Graphical User 

 Interface

Trust in yourself. Your perceptions are often far more

accurate than you are willing to believe.

- Claudia Black 

Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work.

- Aristotle

If you worry about yesterday's failures, then today’s

successes will be few.

- Anon

Sometimes we stare so long at a door that is closing, that

we see too late the one that is open.

- Alexander Graham Bell 

8/8/2019 Classic Motivational Quotes

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/classic-motivational-quotes 12/18

R ather the pain of discipline, than the pain of regret.

- Bob Andrews

Things do not change; we change.

- Thoreau

When you're through changing, you're through.

- Bruce Barton

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not

an act, but a habit.

- Aristotle

Invest Your Time Before You Invest Your Money

- Anon

Test Your Strategy Before You Risk Your Money

- Matthew Keith Groves

Don't focus on how to spend less money,

Focus on how to make more money.

- Lyndon Forman

R emember the Golden Rule - He who has the gold

makes the rules!

- Lyndon Forman

8/8/2019 Classic Motivational Quotes

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/classic-motivational-quotes 13/18

Life is...

Life is an opportunity, benefit from it.

Life is beauty, admire it.Life is bliss, taste it.

Life is a dream, realize it.

Life is a challenge, meet it.

Life is a duty, complete it.Life is a game, play it.

Life is a promise, fulfil it.

Life is a sorrow, overcome it.Life is a song, sing it.

Life is a struggle, accept it.

Life is a tragedy, confront it.

Life is an adventure, dare it.Life is luck, make it.

Life is too precious, do not destroy it.

Life is life, fight for it.

- Mother Teresa

Life isn't a dress rehearsal

- Kerry Packer 

In Life’s Garden

Count your garden by the flowers,

never by the leaves that fall.

Count your days by the golden hours,

don't remember the clouds at all.

Count your nights by the stars,

not by shadows.

Count your life with smiles not tears,

and with joy through all your life.

Count your age by friends not years.

8/8/2019 Classic Motivational Quotes

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/classic-motivational-quotes 14/18

- Anon

Just for Today

I will live through the next 12 hours and try not to tackle

all of life's problems at once.

I will improve my mind, I will learn something that

requires effort and concentration.

I will be agreeable. I will look my best, speak in a wellmodulated voice, and be courteous and considerate.

I will not find fault with a friend, relative or colleague. I

will not try to change or improve anyone but myself.

I will have a programme. I might not follow it exactly, but I will have it. I will save myself from two enemies:

hurry and indecision.

I will do a good turn and keep it a secret. If anyone finds

out, it will not count.

I will do two things I don't want to do, just for theexercise.

I will believe in myself. I will give my best to the world

and feel confident that the world will give it's best to me.

- Anon

A child who lives with Criticism

Learns to condemn

A child who lives with Hostility

Learns to fight

A child who lives with ridiculeLearns to be shy

A child who lives with shame

Learns to feel guilty

8/8/2019 Classic Motivational Quotes

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/classic-motivational-quotes 15/18

A child who lives with toleranceLearns to be patient

A child who lives with encouragement

Learns confidence

A child who lives with PraiseLearns to appreciate

A child who lives with fairness

Learns justice

A child who lives with security

Learns faith

A child who lives with approvalLearns to like their self 

A child who lives with acceptance & friendship

Learns to find love in the world

- Dorothy Law Nolte - (modified - non-sexist version!)

Take Time

Take Time to Think,It is the source of power.

Take time to Play,

It is the source of perpetual youth.

Take time to Read,It is the foundation of wisdom.

Take time to Love and to Be Loved,

It is a present.

Take time to Be Friendly,It is the road to happiness.

Take time to Laugh,

It is the music of the soul.

8/8/2019 Classic Motivational Quotes

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/classic-motivational-quotes 16/18

Take time to Give,It is too short a day to be selfish.

Take time to Work,

It is the price of success.

Take time to Do Charity,It is the key to heaven.

- Anon

Live and work but do not forget to play, to have fun in

life and really enjoy it.

- Eileen Caddy

Friendship

Alliance

Affinity

R apport

- Matthew Keith Groves

What is a friend? A single soul dwelling in two bodies.

- Aristotle

A Smile

There's something you may give,To a friend and a stranger too;

It seems that when you give it,

It's given back to you.

This present is worth a million,

8/8/2019 Classic Motivational Quotes

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/classic-motivational-quotes 17/18

But doesn't cost a dime;

It's lasting in effect,

But doesn't take much time,

This simple little gesture

Can make the day worthwhile;

It's just as good as sunshine;It's what we call a smile.

- Jill Wolf 

Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the

intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body,

 but rather to skid in sideways at the last minute,

champagne in one hand, strawberries in the other,

 body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming"WOO HOO - That was Fun!”

- Anon

I expect to pass through this world but once.

Any good, therefore, that I can do, or any kindness that I

can show to any human being, let me do it now.

Let me not defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass thisway again.

- Stephen Krebbet, 1793-1855

Work like you don't need the money,

Dance like nobody's watching,Love like you've never been hurt,

Sing like nobody's listening,

And Live like it's Heaven on Earth.

- First line by Satchel Paige , the rest by Mark Twain

8/8/2019 Classic Motivational Quotes

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/classic-motivational-quotes 18/18

These are excellent too. Check them out: