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Forty of my favorite inspirational quotes

I am a collector – by nature I gather things. And as I thought about what I could write here – I imagined myself in the shoes of my reader.  If nothing else I would wonder what has influenced her? What inspires her? So below I list 40 of the ideas I have collected.

I have gathered these quotes over many years – but each of them came to me at the right time – and as a result I wanted to keep them for future reference. Perhaps one will resonate with you; touch, move or inspire you at just the right moment.

1. A business that makes nothing but money is a poor business.  Henry Ford

2. A vision is not just a picture of what could be; it’s an appeal to our better selves a call to become something more. Rosabeth Kanter

3. Age is a question of mind over matter, if you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter.  Paige

4. And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.  Nietzsche

5. Be yourself… Everyone else is already taken… Anon

6. Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life. Confucius

7. Dream as if you’ll live forever, live as if you’ll die today.  James Dean

8. Happiness is the meaning and the purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence. Aristotle

9. If we are going to see real development in the world then our best investment is WOMEN.  Desmond Tutu

10. If you want to know why your people are not performing well, step up to the mirror and take a peek. Ken Blanchard

11. It’s not a faith in technology. It’s faith in people.  Steve Jobs

12. Leadership is doing what is right when no one else is watching. George Van Valkenburg

13. Most of us can read the writing on the wall; We just assume it is addressed to someone else. Ivern Ball

14. Never ask who is right, but always ask what is right. Don Soderquist

15. No snowflake in an avalanche ever feels responsible .. Voltaire

16. Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal.  Henry Ford

17.Our choices show what we truly are far more than our abilities.  JK Rowling

18. Our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world as in being able to remake ourselves.  Mahatma Ghandi

19. Passion: there is no end. There is no beginning. There is only the passion of life.  Federico Fellini

20. People will forget what you said People will forget what you did But people will never forget the way you make them feel  Maya Angelau

21. Real difficulties can be overcome; it is only the imaginary ones that are unconquerable.  Theodore Vail

22. Restlessness and discontent are the first necessities of progress.  Thomas A Edison

23. Saying thank you is more than good manners. It is good spirituality.  Alfred Painter

24. Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.  Leonardo Da Vinci

25. The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook.  William James

26. The art of great feedback delivery is so important in life and yet on the whole people avoid it.  Margie Hartley

27. The companies that look after their people are the companies that do really well. Sir Richard Branson

28. The greatest gift a father can give his children is to love their mother  Oscar Wilde

29. The greatest pleasure in life is to do what other people tell you you cannot do  Walter Bagehot

30. The source of all happiness lies in thinking of others.  Snantideva

31. The tragedy in life doesn’t lie in not reaching your goal.  The tragedy lies in having no goal to reach.  Benjamin Mays

32. The ultimate source of happiness is our mental attitude.  Dalai Lama

33. There is a fine line between getting it right and completely wrong Bill Pulver

34. To be an artist is to believe in life  Henry Moore

35. Wanting to be someone you’re not is a waste of the person you are. Kurt Cobain

36. We are continually faced by great opportunities brilliantly disguised as insoluble problems.  Lee Iacocca

37. We have more possibilities available in each moment than we realize.  Thich Nhat Hanh

38. You cannot be mad with somebody who makes you laugh, it’s that simple Jay Leno

39. You don’t stop laughing because you grow old. You grow old because you stop laughing.  Michael Pritchard

40. Your ability to relax is directly proportional to your ability to trust life. me

I do keep adding to twitter.com/naomisimson new #quotes that I find… Follow if you would like more

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Comments

  1. My colleague James Rudd sent me his collection to share too..

    It’s repetition of affirmations that lead to belief, and once that belief becomes a deep conviction, things begin to happen.
    M Ali

    Kites rise hardest against the wind, not with it.
    W Churchill

    Aerodynamically, the bumble bee shouldn’t be able to fly, but the bumble bee doesn’t know it so it goes on flying anyway.
    Mary Kay Ash

    Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting different results.
    A Einstein

    Life is like a game of cards. The hand that is dealt you represents determinism; the way you play it is free will.
    Jawaharal Nehru

    Don’t play for safety, it’s the most dangerous thing in the world.
    Hugh Walpole

    The only true wisdom is knowing that you know nothing.
    Socrates

    History begins every morning.
    Tag Heuer Advert?

    All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.
    Martin Luther King, Jr.

    An economist is an expert who will know tomorrow why the things he predicted yesterday didn’t happen today.
    Laurence J. Peter

    If a small thing has the power to make you angry, does that not indicate something about your size?
    Sydney J. Harris

    Speak when you are angry and you will make the best speech you will ever regret.
    Ambrose Bierce

    Nothing will work unless you do.
    Maya Angelou

    The harder I work the luckier I get.
    Samuel Goldwyn

    At first they laugh at you, then they argue with you, then they fight you, then you win.
    Ghandi

    You will never “find” time for anything. If you want time, you must make it.
    Charles Bruxton

    Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.
    Helen Keller

    The best way to prepare for life is to begin to live.
    Elbert Hubbard

  2. You should try creating your own affirmations as well. Enjoyed your blog article.

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