5 Insanely Inspirational Quotes For Entrepreneurs

Believe it or not, successful people have bad days, too. The difference is they don’t let their feelings dictate their actions. Remembering that emotions are temporary, they have a singular focus -- to serve a larger vision.  

In order to keep my eye on the prize, even when huge setbacks occur, I always come back to the inspiration of my vision as the key to unlocking my motivation. These are some of my favorite quotes for one of those days.

1. “People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing--that’s why we recommend it daily.” --Zig Ziglar

The law of consistency is a powerful thing. It's tough to hope to be great at something and have it come true if you don't practice it often. Whatever habits you practice on a daily basis will support you in getting the result you are looking for (or support you in not getting them if you lack the discipline).  

2. “If you can't fly then run, if you can't run then walk, if you can't walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward.” -- Martin Luther King, Jr. 

My friend Sean Stephenson recently experienced a near fatal accident. After just a month he is already moving forward toward his comeback. In his most recent podcast, he talks about his mentor, Byron Katie, calling him to give him inspiration to help him heal. She told him to stop calling it an “accident” and start calling it a “purpose." His takeaway is exactly that -- to continue living a life of intention and purpose.

3. “Chase the vision, not the money, the money will end up following you.” -- Tony Hsieh, Zappos founder and CEO 

I am a big fan of the company Zappos and its culture. According to Hsieh’s widely read book Delivering Happiness, companies with a higher sense of purpose outperform others by 400 percent.

4. “You don’t learn to walk by following rules. You learn by doing and falling over.” -- Richard Branson 

It's said that Branson has dyslexia and had poor academic performance as a student, but later discovered his superpower to network (something he and I have in common). 

On one of Branson's last days at school, his headmaster is reported to have told him he would either end up in prison or become a millionaire. Branson is infamous not only for his innovation but also for his risk-taking. Oh yeah, and for his net worth.

5. “Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning.” -- Bill Gates  

One of my favorite books is The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz, and one of his precepts to live by is “Don’t take anything personally”. A great skill to have is to be able to objectively utilize feedback to improve your product or service.

Sometimes we all have to “fake it till you make it.” A little inspiration goes a long way, so the next time you are feeling unmotivated to take action in your business, pull out your favorite quotes, or better yet post them on the wall in your home or office, and get yourself back in the game quicker.

LEWIS HOWES

CONTRIBUTOR

Lifestyle Entrepreneur, Coach, Advisor

Inspiring Leadership Quotes

#10. Sam Walton:

"Outstanding leaders go out of their way to boost the self-esteem of their personnel. If people believe in themselves, it's amazing what they can accomplish."

#9. Bill Bradley:

"Leadership is unlocking people's potential to become better."

#8. Lao Tzu:

"A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves"

#7. Jack Welch:

"Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others."

#6. Brian Tracy:

"Become the kind of leader that people would follow voluntarily; even if you had no title or position."

#5. Ralph Nadar:

"I start with the premise that the function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers."

#4. Harry S. Truman:

"In reading the lives of great men, I found that the first victory they won was over themselves... self-discipline with all of them came first.."

#3. Bill Gates:

"As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others."

#2. John Quincy Adams:

"If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader."

#1. Vince Lombardi:

"Leaders aren’t born, they are made. And they are made just like anything else, through hard work. And that’s the price we’ll have to pay to achieve that goal, or any goal."

10 brilliant quotes from Warren Buffett, America's second-richest person

Here are 10 of the best quotes from the second-richest person in the U.S.

The article below was originally published at Entrepreneur.com.

By Jason Fell, Entrepreneur.com

Whether it’s ketchup or ice cream or more recently batteries, Warren Buffett‘s Berkshire Hathaway is a powerhouse, managing a stable of more than 80 businesses. Its stock trades at more than $210,000 per share.

And if Berkshire Hathaway is legit, then Buffett — the company’s charismatic leader — is the real deal in business. At age 84, the man has a net worth of $66.8 billion, according to a recent report. Yes, you read that right. Billion. (Actually, it looks like he might be worth even more now…)

Buffett is the second wealthiest individual in the U.S., behind Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates ($81.5 billion) and ahead of Oracle’s Larry Ellison ($47.3 billion).

Buffett is as brilliant in business and investing as he is inspiring. Here are 10 of his best quotes, collected from his many letters to Berkshire shareholders and elsewhere around the web. Enjoy.

1. Give your mind some clarity.

“I insist on a lot of time being spent, almost every day, to just sit and think. That is very uncommon in American business. I read and think. So I do more reading and thinking, and make less impulse decisions than most people in business. I do it because I like this kind of life.”

2. Never forget thy business basics.

“Price is what you pay. Value is what you get.”

3. Know what you’re getting into, before you get into it.

“It’s far better to buy a wonderful company at a fair price than a fair company at a wonderful price.”

4. Be smart — and realistic.

“I try to buy stock in businesses that are so wonderful that an idiot can run them. Because sooner or later, one will.”

5. Don’t fake it till you make it.

“After all, you only find out who is swimming nakedwhen the tide goes out.”

6. Always know who you’re dealing with.

“You can’t make a good deal with a bad person.”

7. Act with honor and integrity.

“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.”

8. Value what’s most important.

“Too often, a vast collection of possessions ends up possessing its owner. The asset I most value, aside from health, is interesting, diverse, and long-standing friends.”

9. Hit the brakes when you need to.

“The most important thing to do if you find yourself in a hole is to stop digging.”

10. Be bold. Be confident.

“I always knew I was going to be rich. I don’t think I ever doubted it for a minute. ”