88 motivational quotes for work to inspire you

Let’s face it — staying motivated at work isn’t always easy. Even the most driven among us can hit a wall now and then. Maybe you’re tackling a tricky new project, navigating a less-than-smooth team dynamic, or just wondering if you’ve answered the same email for the tenth time today. We get it.

Sometimes, a shift in perspective is all it takes to spark momentum. And sometimes, that spark comes in the form of a few well-placed words. So, we’ve rounded up 88 of the best motivational quotes to help you refocus, recharge, and reconnect with what really matters. Take what you need, leave the rest — and head back into your day with a little more fuel in the tank.

Motivational quotes on passion

Feeling disconnected at work? You’re not alone. These quotes won’t rewrite your job, but they might just reignite your purpose — and your perspective.

1. “The game has its ups and downs, but you can never lose focus of your individual goals and you can’t let yourself be beat because of lack of effort.” 一 Michael Jordan
2. “Without leaps of imagination, or dreaming, we lose the excitement of possibilities. Dreaming, after all, is a form of planning.” 一 Gloria Steinem
3. “Things don’t have to change the world to be important.” 一 Steve Jobs
4. “Life is to be lived. If you have to support yourself, you had bloody well better find some way that is going to be interesting. And you don’t do that by sitting around.” 一 Katherine Hepburn
5. “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” 一 Eleanor Roosevelt
6. “Let him that would move the world first move himself.” 一 Socrates
7. “Far and away the best prize that life has to offer is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.” 一 Theodore Roosevelt
8. “With realization of one’s own potential and self-confidence in one’s ability, one can build a better world.” 一 the 14th Dalai Lama
9. “Discontent is the first necessity of progress.” 一 Thomas Edison
10. “He who has a why to live can bear almost any how.” 一 Friedrich Nietzsche
11. “Intelligence without ambition is a bird without wings.” 一 Salvador Dali
12. “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” 一 Winston Churchill
13. “There’s no greater gift than thinking that you had some impact on the world, for the better.” 一 Gloria Steinem
14. “All day long the superior man is creatively active.” 一 the I Ching
15. “Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing.” 一 Benjamin Franklin
16. “If you always do what interests you, at least one person is pleased.” 一 Katherine Hepburn
17. “I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do.” 一 Leonardo da Vinci

Motivational quotes on working well

A great job is more than tasks — it’s recognition, trust, and belonging. These quotes offer inspiration to help you rediscover what working well really means.

18. “Doing the best at this moment puts you in the best place for the next moment.” 一 Oprah Winfrey
19. “Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.” 一 Laozi
20. “Don’t worry when you are not recognized but strive to be worthy of recognition.” 一 Abraham Lincoln
21. “If it’s your job to eat a frog, it’s best to do it first thing in the morning. And If it’s your job to eat two frogs, it’s best to eat the biggest one first.” 一 Mark Twain
22. “Great things in business are never done by one person. They’re done by a team of people.” 一 Steve Jobs
23. “System in all things is the soul of business. To deliberate maturely, and execute promptly is the way to conduct it to advantage.” 一 George Washington
24. “As a leader, you have to have the ability to assimilate new information and understand that there might be a different view.” 一 Madeleine Albright
25. “In football as in watchmaking, talent and elegance mean nothing without rigor and precision.” 一 Lionel Messi
26. “We must use time as a tool, not as a couch.” 一 John F. Kennedy
27. “Whatever your life’s work is, do it well. A man should do his job so well that the living, the dead, and the unborn could do it no better.” 一 Martin Luther King Jr.
28. “People might not get all they work for in this world, but they must certainly work for all they get.” 一 Frederick Douglass
29. “Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” 一 Helen Keller
30. “It is not fair to ask of others what you are not willing to do yourself.” 一 Eleanor Roosevelt
31. “He has a right to criticize, who has a heart to help.” 一 Abraham Lincoln

Motivational quotes for inspiration

Some days are about survival — but reconnecting with your bigger goals can reignite motivation. These quotes help you think bigger, dig deeper, and keep going:

32. “We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.” 一 Martin Luther King Jr.
33. “Once we accept our limits, we go beyond them.” 一 Albert Einstein
34. “With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts.” 一 Eleanor Roosevelt
35. “Some men see things as they are, and say why. I dream of things that never were, and say why not.” 一 Robert Kennedy
36. “Just try new things. Don’t be afraid. Step out of your comfort zones and soar, all right?” 一 Michelle Obama
37. “We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.” 一 Oscar Wilde
38. “Time is the substance from which I am made. Time is a river which carries me along, but I am the river; it is a tiger that devours me, but I am the tiger; it is a fire that consumes me, but I am the fire.” 一 Jorge Luis Borges
39. “When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive – to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love.” 一 Marcus Aurelius
40. “Never say never, because limits, like fears, are often just an illusion.” 一 Michael Jordan
41. “The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.” 一 Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Motivational quotes on happiness

Happiness fluctuates — wins one day, stress the next. Prioritizing mental wellness matters. These quotes offer perspective and positivity to help you stay steady through it all:

42. “Look within. Within is the fountain of good, and it will ever bubble up, if thou wilt ever dig.” 一 Marcus Aurelius
43. “Be happy for this moment. This moment is your life.” 一 Omar Khayyam
44. “Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don’t resist them – that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.” 一 Laozi
45. “Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions.” 一 the 14th Dalai Lama
46. “When things get hard, stop for a while and look back and see how far you’ve come. Don’t forget how rewarding it is. You are the most beautiful flower, more than anyone else in this world.” 一 V of BTS
47. “Your success and happiness lies in you. Resolve to keep happy, and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against difficulties.” 一 Helen Keller

Motivational quotes on perseverance

Perseverance powers progress — through feedback, change, or meetings that should’ve been emails. These quotes are here to remind you: you’re tougher than you think:

48. “First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.” 一 Mahatma Gandhi
49. “Vitality shows in not only the ability to persist but the ability to start over.” 一 F. Scott Fitzgerald
50. “One never notices what has been done; one can only see what remains to be done.” 一 Marie Curie
51. “The only man who never makes a mistake is the man who never does anything.” 一 Theodore Roosevelt
52. “All judgment is relative. It may be right today and wrong tomorrow. The only thing that makes it truly right is the desire to have it constantly moving in the right direction.” 一 Frances Perkins
53. “Nothing is built on stone; all is built on sand, but we must build as if the sand were stone.” 一 Jorge Luis Borges
54. “You have power over your mind 一 not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.” 一 Marcus Aurelius
55. “If there is no struggle, there is no progress.” 一 Frederick Douglass
56. “You have to fight to reach your dream. You have to sacrifice and work hard for it.” 一 Lionel Messi
57. “Energy and persistence conquer all things.” 一 Benjamin Franklin
58. “Nothing in human judgment is final. One may courageously take the step that seems right today because it can be modified tomorrow if it does not work well.” 一 Frances Perkins
59. “People are tired of simple things. They want to be challenged.” 一 Umberto Eco
60. “Perseverance brings good fortune.” 一 the I Ching
61. “Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.” 一 Mahatma Gandhi
62. “It always seems impossible until it’s done.” 一 Nelson Mandela

Motivational quotes on growing

Growth keeps work — and life — moving forward. Whether you’re learning, evolving, or aiming higher, these quotes offer the nudge you need to take the next step:

63. “The main interest in life and work is to become someone else that you were not in the beginning.” 一 Michel Foucault
64. “Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.” 一 John F. Kennedy
65. “All the genius I have lies in this; when I have a subject in hand, I study it profoundly. Day and night it is before me.” 一 Alexander Hamilton
66. “He who would learn to fly one day must first learn to stand and walk and run and climb and dance; one cannot fly into flying.” 一 Friedrich Nietzsche
67. “I am always doing that which I cannot do, in order that I may learn how to do it.” 一 Pablo Picasso
68. “Learning never exhausts the mind.” 一 Leonardo da Vinci
69. “To know, is to know that you know nothing. That is the meaning of true knowledge.” 一 Socrates
70. “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” 一 Benjamin Franklin
71. “As we advance in life it becomes more and more difficult, but in fighting the difficulties the inmost strength of the heart is developed.” 一 Vincent van Gogh

Motivational quotes on success

Success isn’t one-size-fits-all — it’s personal, meaningful, and worth celebrating. These quotes offer a fresh perspective on what achievement really looks like (spoiler: no title required):

72. “Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value.” 一 Albert Einstein
73. “After climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb.” 一 Nelson Mandela
74. “Success is a science; if you have the conditions, you get the result.” 一 Oscar Wilde
75. “You will be judged by what you succeed at gentlemen, not by what you attempt.” 一 Clement Atlee
76. “Success is only meaningful and enjoyable if it feels like your own.” 一 Michelle Obama
77. “Great things are done by a series of small things brought together.” 一 Vincent van Gogh
78. “Curiosity is the key to problem solving.” 一 Galileo
79. “Genius is the ability to put into effect what is on your mind.” 一 F. Scott Fitzgerald
80. “The secret of getting ahead is getting started.” 一 Mark Twain
81. “Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.” 一 Winston Churchill

Motivational quotes on failure

Failure isn’t fun — but it’s part of the process. Every success story has a few stumbles. These quotes might help you reset, refocus, and keep going:

82. “My great concern is not whether you have failed but whether you are content with your failure.” 一 Abraham Lincoln
83. “I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can’t accept not trying.” 一 Michael Jordan
84. “I don’t believe in failure. It is not failure if you enjoyed the process.” 一 Oprah Winfrey
85. “It is common sense to take a method and try it. If it fails, admit it frankly and try another. But above all, try something.” 一 Franklin Delano Roosevelt
86. “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.” 一 Thomas Edison
87. “Mistakes are almost always of a sacred nature. Never try to correct them. On the contrary: rationalize them, understand them thoroughly.” 一 Salvador Dali
88. “Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.” 一 Robert Kennedy

Unlock motivation for you and your company today

Motivation isn’t something you can force. It doesn’t show up just because it’s on the calendar. It grows from the environment around you: feeling valued by your manager, being recognized in real time, and knowing your voice shapes what happens next.

If that’s not your daily experience, it might be time to rethink how your company motivates its people. That’s where Achievers comes in.

Achievers helps organizations build cultures where recognition is frequent, genuine, and — most importantly — easy. With peer-to-peer recognition, a global rewards marketplace, and intelligent feedback channels that turn insight into action, it’s designed to empower employees and guide leaders at every level.

Motivation doesn’t need to be manufactured. With the right tools, it becomes second nature.

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