If you came here looking for short, but powerful motivational and inspirational quotes that will lift you up when you are feeling discouraged, or share a pearl of wisdom and help you achieve success in your endeavors, then you have come to the right place.

Motivational and Inspirational Quotes have a great effect on us. So much so that some times it feels like that quote, or saying was crafted with our own life situation in mind. Knowing that your current situation is not just peculiar to you is in itself alone, an inspiring factor.

Using quotes on your public speaking or oral presentation is a great way to build credibility, and to arouse interest, and inspire your audience. For those seeking some great motivational and inspirational quotes to add to their oral presentation or public speaking gig, please check out our post on how to tell a great story here.

Coupling great stories with some inspirational quotes can be a great way to deliver a memorable speech, and it’s one of the best public speaking techniques you can use, or more on that please check out this post with over 20 public speaking techniques everyone should know.

Now, let me give you what you came here for:

15 Motivational and Inspirational Quotes To Help You Thrive

For me in particular, I find unique joy in going through thoughts and opinions of others in difficult times. These thoughts help me pull through my own personal challenges with the knowledge that some other great person had already gone through these phases, pulled through and succeeded

Here are some motivational and inspirational quotes to lift you up when you are feeling down.

1.

‘It doesn’t matter who you are, where you come from. The ability to triumph begins with you. Always.” –Oprah Winfrey

The first move to progress begins with you. This is most likely the first rule in the book. To grow and succeed, no one takes the first step on behalf of another. You must first of all move, in other to progress.

2. 

‘I will love the light for it shows me the way, yet I will endure the darkness because it shows me the stars.” – Og Mandino

Nothing good comes easy. To progress, you must first have endured certain hard times whether physical, emotional, financial or psychological.

These hard times will not only prepare you for the challenges you will encounter when you progress, but it will also teach how to manage yourself in difficult times. Remember, no good thing comes easy.

3.  

    “It doesn’t matter how slow you go as long as you don’t stop.” –Confucius

Slow and steady wins the race. In life, the key to constant growth is persistence and consistency. This way, you don’t just enjoy the process of learning, but you patiently grow yourself into becoming who and what you want to be.

4.

“The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be.” –Ralph Waldo Emerson

Choose better and choose carefully, only you can decide who you turn out to be no matter the environmental conditions.

5.

The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, not to worry about the future, but to live the present moment wisely and earnestly.” –Buddha

The past is the past and the future is today. What you decide to do today shapes what will be tomorrow. So stop worrying about tomorrow because you have today to make up for tomorrow.

6.

And you ask ‘What if I fall?’ Oh but my darling, what if you fly?” – Erin Hanson

You surely can never know what the future holds if you don’t try. No harm ever came from putting an effort.

7.

“You learn more from failure than from success. Don’t let it stop you. Failure builds character.” – Unknown

When you fail, you learn from your mistakes and there is no better way to learn that from one’s errors. Stop thinking of failure as something so grave, rather as an opportunity to learn.

8.

It’s not whether you get knocked down, it’s whether you get up.” – Vince Lombardi

Life comes with hardship. The number of times you get knocked doesn’t matter, it only matters if you don’t get up. The beautiful thing is, you always get up stronger.

9.

“People who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do.” – Rob Siltanen

If you can think it, then you can achieve it. A lot of people underestimate the power of the mind. Once you have the will to do, you definitely will have a push. Don’t limit yourself to your thoughts, entertain wild imaginations, only then can you be the change you want to see.

10.

“Entrepreneurs are great at dealing with uncertainty and also very good at minimizing risk. That’s the classic entrepreneur.” – Mohnish Pabrai

Life is a risk and you can never know what it holds if you don’t get a move along. Those who are willing to do what most people won’t dare are those who reap rewards beyond anything anyone could ever imagine.

11.

“We may encounter many defeats but we must not be defeated.” – Maya Angelou

Determination and positivism is the key to progress and Maya Angelou, a renowned civil rights activist would know.

12.

“Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Wishing is not enough; we must do.” – Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe

We must work to achieve, it is not enough to know, we have to be able to put up efforts to make things possible, only then can we succeed. We must take action, we cannot succeed if we just sit and watch.

13.

“Imagine your life is perfect in every respect; what would it look like?” – Brian Tracy

Picture yourself achieving all you want. This image will give you clarity and closure of the ideal life you wish for yourself and how much work you need to put into achieving such a vision.

14.

“Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you’re right.” – Henry Ford

This quote was made by Henry Ford after a thorough reflection into his own life. Described as one of the leading figures in the automobile industry, Ford is truly someone to take a cue from.  He is still one of the wealthiest figures of the modern period.

According to him, “Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.”

15.

The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt

Franklin Roosevelt strongly states from his understanding of life and philosophy that the major factor holding us back is doubt, lack of self-belief. These are factors generated from our internal environment and sometimes, these factors are more powerful than even the external elements that may hinder the possibilities of a great future.

I hope these inspirational motivational quotes get you going and encourages you to have the needed push to kick start your day.

Fight, work and push forward to achieve your desired goal. You can not achieve that if you sit and watch. Act today.  

11 Motivational and Inspirational Quotes (Life quotes, success quotes, and positive thinking quotes to inspire your day)

Most times, we get so drawn into the negativity arising from our environment. In these circumstances, people waver.

First of all, we have the optimist who feels they can pull through all situations and also the pessimists who most likely fets to see the impossible elements of a positive outcome in any given situation.

I have compiled quotes which to me are the best life quotes to push you through positive thinking in other to achieve your goals. These quotes not only help you see the brighter angle to life but also give you the desired success boost you need to begin a positive outlook on life.

Here are Eleven (11) quotes about positivity from well-known people who have faced failure and success, who despite certain odds and challenges stayed positive. Use their words to get you going on your own good vibes:

1.

“The most important thing is to look ahead. The past is your anchor.” Maxime Lagacé

The past can only teach you lessons; it is not in any way a basis from which you base your future. Move past it, learn whatever lessons you can from it and look ahead.

2.

“Miracles happen to those who believe in them.” Bernhard Berenson

Only what you believe in can work for you. Believe in your own success, let that belief become a motivational factor to work and success shall be yours.

3.

“Victory is in having done your best. If you’ve done your best, you’ve won.” Billy Bowerman

At the least, try and try again. In that sense, you have won because you gave it your best shot.

In life, you are in no competition with anybody except yourself. Once you have put in your best, then you have won. Think this way and you will live life at your own dictate with a positive outlook.

4.

“Once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, you’ll start having positive results.”  Willie Nelson

This is simple logic; positive thinking is a morale booster. It gives you the zeal to do more and do better while harboring negative thoughts can only resign you to lower expectation and output making you have minimal or bare input to work.

5.

“I always like to look on the optimistic side of life, but I am realistic enough to know that life is a complex matter.”— Walt Disney

Coming from someone who went ahead to build a multimillion-dollar company, this quote is most definitely golden. No matter the challenges you may encounter in life, nothing beats an optimistic mindset.

6.

You can’t make positive choices for the rest of your life without an environment that makes those choices easy, natural, and enjoyable.”— Deepak Chopra

Your mind is the most important environment. However, when you fill-up the mind with negativity, pessimism, and low expectations, your ability to make positive choices in such a dark environment becomes redundant.  So pitch your life in line to make positive choices by creating an appositive internal environment.

7.

“In every day, there are 1,440 minutes. That means we have 1,440 daily opportunities to make a positive impact.” — Les Brown

Think about this. It’s actually never too late to start and never too late to try again.

8.

“Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn’t learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn’t learn a little, at least we didn’t get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn’t die; so let us all be thankful.” — Buddha

Always remain positive and be thankful for what you have the opportunity to learn today because tomorrow will be another great day to apply what you have learned to your advantage.

9.

“In order to carry a positive action we must develop here a positive vision.”— Dalai Lama

Dream on, do not allow the negative energy of life drown you. Swim upward with positive thoughts and positive thinking. Surround yourself with great people, who will help you build the right mindset to fulfill your life goals.

10.

“Don’t be afraid to give up the good and go for the great”. John D Rockefeller

To simply put, if you are not willing to risk the usual, you will have to settle for the ordinary.

11.

“Would you like me to give you a formula for success? It’s quite simple, really: double your rate of failure. You are thinking of failure as an enemy of success. But it isn’t at all. You can be discouraged by failure or you can learn from it, so go ahead and make mistakes. Make all you can, because remember that’s where you will find success.” Thomas J Watson

 This last quote says it all, failure is not something that should be feared; instead, see it as an opportunity to learn.

CONCLUSION

Motivational and Inspirational quotes are an amazing proof of the fact that we are all connected somehow, through this journey we call life. People who came thousands of years before us have also faced self-doubt, fear, and stumbled on their way to achieving success, on their way to learning more about themselves and their purpose in this world.

I am a big fan of History, and the one thing that fascinates me more is learning about the successes and failures of those who came before us, those who overcame hardships that we now face and left a piece of advice for us. It’s only wise to take heed to these teachings and lift our selves up and inspire ourselves to reach higher heights.

For those of you who are reading this article to get some inspirational quotes, life quotes, success quotes or positive thinking quotes to add to your public speaking gig, or oral presentation, please help yourselves, but always give credit where credit is due.

REFERENCES & FURTHER READING

Brian Tracy, 26 Motivational Quotes for Success. http://briantracy.com/blog/personal-success/26-motivational-quotes-for-success/ . Accessed on 07/10/2019.

Adunola Adeshola, 27 Motivational Quotes For Every Millennial In The Middle Of A Career Change. https://www.forbes.com/sites/adunolaadeshola/2019/07/09/27-motivational-quotes-for-every-millennial-in-the-middle-of-a-career-change/#24f8fd524ea8 . Accessed on 07/10/2019.

Lydia Sweatt,  17 Motivational Quotes to Inspire You to Be Successful. https://www.success.com/17-motivational-quotes-to-inspire-you-to-be-successful/ . Accessed on 07/10/2019.

Brian Tracy, 56 Inspirational Motivational Quotes About Success And Life . https://www.briantracy.com/blog/personal-success/26-motivational-quotes-for-success/ . Accessed on 07/10/2019.