Editor’s note: This article was first published in August 2021, and the job titles it gives are as of 2021 or earlier. Sheryl Sandberg left Facebook, now Meta, in 2022, and Meg Whitman left HP in 2017-2018.
Sometimes we all need a bit of inspiration, so it helps to hear a few motivational quotes, whether the business world appeals to you or you are already part of the select club of entrepreneurs who go all in. We have gathered what we consider the best quotes for entrepreneurs, said at one time or another by experts in the world of business.
35 quotes to inspire entrepreneurs in business
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In business, everyone is paid in two currencies: cash and experience. Take the experience first; the cash will come later. – Harold Geneen, former president of ITT Corporation.
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Whenever a person or a company decides that it has already succeeded, progress somehow comes to a halt. – Thomas J. Watson, former president and chief executive of IBM.
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Almost every business runs into money problems at some point. One way to delay their arrival is to stay self-funded for as long as possible. – Garrett Camp, co-founder of Uber.
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The greatest danger for most of us lies not in setting a goal too high and falling short, but in setting a goal too low and reaching it. – Michelangelo, artist.
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Doing something, even if it is not perfect, is always better than thinking about doing something perfect and never doing it. Done is better than perfect. – Sheryl Sandberg, chief operating officer of Facebook.
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Any moment is the best moment to start a company. – Ron Conway, startup investor.
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The secret of change is to focus all your energy not on fighting the old, but on building the new. – Socrates, Greek philosopher.
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If you want to build a successful business, make sure you have three things: a big market opportunity, excellent people and more than enough capital. – Richard Harroch, entrepreneur and venture capitalist.
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The secret of success in business comes down to a single step: getting started. – Mark Twain, writer.
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Waiting for perfection is never as smart as making progress. – Seth Godin, author.
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If you had to name, in just one word, the reason why the human race has not reached, and never will reach, its full potential, that word would be “meetings“. – Dave Barry, humorist.
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The price of inaction is far greater than the price of making a mistake. – Meg Whitman, CEO of HP.
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Simplicity is the key to brilliance. – Bruce Lee.
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I hated every minute of training, but I told myself: “Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.” – Muhammad Ali, world boxing champion.
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Be careful who you tell your problems to. Twenty percent of people don’t care at all, and the other 80% are probably glad you have them. – Lou Holtz, American football coach.
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You can achieve everything you want in life if you simply help a considerable number of people get what they want in life. – Zig Ziglar, motivational speaker.
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There is one absolute truth: 100% of the shots you never take at goal never go in. – Wayne Gretzky, hockey legend.
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Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what needs to be done and you will see how they surprise you with their ingenuity. – George S. Patton, US general.
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There is only one way to avoid criticism: do nothing, say nothing and be nothing. – Aristotle, Greek philosopher.
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In a world that is changing so fast, the only strategy that is guaranteed to fail is not taking risks. The biggest risk is taking no risk at all. – Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook.
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I have learned that people will forget what you said. People will also forget what you did, but they will never forget how you made them feel. – Maya Angelou, author.
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There is only one boss: the customer. And he can fire everybody in the company, from the chairman down to the janitor, simply by spending his money somewhere else. – Sam Walton, of Walmart and Sam’s Club.
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Whatever you do, be different. That was the advice my mother gave me, and I can’t think of better advice for entrepreneurs. If you are different, you will stand out. – Anita Roddick, founder of The Body Shop.
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Many of life’s failures come from people who did not realise how close they were to success when they gave up. – Thomas A. Edison.
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I don’t try to jump over 7-foot bars; I look around for one-foot (30 cm) bars that I can step over. – Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway.
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The great secret of life is that there is no great secret. Whatever your goal, you can achieve it if you are willing to work hard for it. – Oprah Winfrey, often called the queen of media.
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The first step you take does not get you straight to where you want to be, but it immediately takes you out of the place you want to leave. – Anonymous.
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Customers don’t expect you to be perfect. They expect you to fix things when they go wrong. – Donald Porter, of British Airways.
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Always deliver more than the customer expects. – Larry Page, of Google.
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In life as in business, you don’t get what you deserve; you get what you negotiate. – Author unknown.
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If you have an important point to make, don’t try to be subtle or clever. Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit it again. Then hit it a third time, a tremendous whack. – Winston Churchill, British prime minister.
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Even a good decision is the wrong one when it is made too late. – Lee Iacocca, former CEO of Chrysler.
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Take time to deliberate, but when the time for action comes, stop thinking and act. – Napoleon Bonaparte.
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If your passion is business and your business is a passion, you are going to have the love story of your life. – Michael Cullinan, director at Rapid Finance.
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Some people learn this lesson the hard way: “Never sign anything unless you can see a clear benefit for yourself.” – Author unknown.
Further reading
- 50 business quotes for entrepreneurs
- 23 quotes on leadership in business
- The 16 best quotes on negotiation and sales
- Bruce Lee’s philosophy in 10 quotes for entrepreneurs
Featured image: Brandonrush, CC0 1.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
