Startups are undeniably hard. It’s a risk but it’s worth it. You are better off trying to build your dream career than everyone else who isn’t trying. Even if you fail, you gave it your best shot.
If you have chosen entrepreneurship as a career path, you will face challenges. But obstacles are always the way to a long-term goal. Nobody said it would be easy.
Remember, failure is not sign of permanent trouble, but merely as a sidestep on the path to success. You’ll suck at most things in the beginning. It takes time, persistence, and patience to create your most amazing work. Keep on trying.
So if you’re looking for serious motivation to combat your daily struggles of launching a business, these are timeless quotes to get you through your startup journey.
1. “Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.” — Harriet Tubman
2. “What do you need to start a business? Three simple things: know your product better than anyone, know your customer, and have a burning desire to succeed.” — Dave Thomas, founder of Wendy’s
3. “Don’t be a lone wolf. Lean on the experience and smarts of your teammates, investors, and mentors to help solve the tough problems and take advantage of the opportunities.” — Seth Bannon, founder and CEO of Amicus
4. Be undeniably good. No marketing effort or social media buzzword can be a substitute for that. — Anthony Volodkin, Founder of Hype Machine
5. A good idea is worthless without impeccable execution and a commitment to iterate. — Zach Klein, co-founder of DIY
6. “Don’t limit yourself. Many people limit themselves to what they think they can do. You can go as far as your mind lets you. What you believe, remember, you can achieve.” — Mary Kay Ash, founder of Mary Kay Cosmetics
7. You need three things to create a successful startup: 1. hire exceptionally great people. 2. make something customers actually want. 3. spend only on the priorities and maximize profitability. — Paul Graham, Founder of Y Combinator
8. You have chosen the wrong path if it’s not fun. And you are probably not taking enough risk if it’s not hard and rocky sometimes. — Mark Benioff, Founder of SalesForce
9. “We need to accept that we won’t always make the right decisions, that we’ll screw up royally sometimes — understanding that failure is not the opposite of success, it’s party of success.” — Arianna Huffington, Founder of Huffington Post
10. “If you’re not making mistakes, then you’re not making decisions.” — Muki Regunathan, Founder and CEO of Pepper Square.
11. “Embrace what you don’t know, especially in the beginning, because what you don’t know can become your greatest asset. It ensures that you will absolutely be doing things different from everybody else.” —Sara Blakely, SPANX founder
12. “Don’t take too much advice. Most people who have a lot of advice to give — with a few exceptions — generalize whatever they did. Don’t over-analyze everything. I myself have been guilty of over-thinking problems. Just build things and find out if they work.” — Ben Silbermann, Pinterest founder
13. “There’s lots of bad reasons to start a company. But there’s only one good, legitimate reason, and I think you know what it is: it’s to change the world.” — Phil Libin, Evernote Executive Chairman
14. “You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.” — Steve Jobs
15. “Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.’ You won’t believe what you can accomplish by attempting the impossible with the courage to repeatedly fail better.” —Timothy Ferriss, The 4 Hour Workweek
16. “Focus is scary—until you realize that it only means turning your back on markets you could never have anyway. Sharp focus on jobs that customers are trying to get done holds the promise of greatly improving the odds of success in new-product development.” — Clayton M. Christensen of “The Innovator’s Solution”
17. “Remind your team about your Mission and why it matters. Say it over email, Say it in meetings, Say it all the time, Say it with meaning and passion” — Ryan Carson, CEO of Treehouse
18. “Every startup should address a real and demonstrated need in the world – if you build a solution to a problem lots of people have, it’s so easy to sell your product to the world.” — Kevin Systrom, CEO of Instagram
