Success is not a good teacher. Failure makes you humble.
Shah Rukh Khan, actor
Society often defines success as the result of perseverance, hard work, and the courage to pursue one's goals. But is that the whole story? Influential figures like to share their insights on success to guide and motivate us to find our own; their wisdom says maybe it's not. This article compiles a selection of inspiring quotes about success to empower and inspire you, as well as a list of teamwork quotes to motivate you ahead of your next group project.
| 🤝 Teamwork quotes for your next project | Attribution |
|---|---|
| He who cannot be a good follower cannot be a good leader. | Aristotle |
| I am not so enamoured of my own opinions that I disregard what others may think of them. | Copernicus |
| Collaboration begins with mutual understanding and respect. | Mori Taheripour |
| Collaboration has no hierarchy. The Sun collaborates with soil to bring flowers on the earth. | Amit Ray |
| Alone, we can do so little; together, we can do so much. | Helen Keller |
| If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together. | African proverb |
| The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place. | George Bernard Shaw |
| Individually, we are one drop. Together, we are an ocean. | Ryunosuke Satoro |
Quotes About Success From Industry Leaders
Social media is full of memes about bosses who don't know the shipping dock from the receiving dock (or their head from a hole in the ground). It shouldn't surprise you that jokes about clueless bosses have been around for centuries.
I don't need to know everything, I just need to know where to find it, when I need it.
Various attributions
Albert Einstein often gets the credit for this bon mot, but he uttered a phrase meaning roughly the same thing1. The line's true essence dates much further back, to the 1700s, when the English writer, Samuel Johnson, was inspecting a friend's library.
This quote is in line with what today's leaders teach us. The world's knowledge base is huge and growing; it's counterproductive to burden your mind with information you don't readily need. If your boss tells you this (as mine did, so long ago), don't think them incompetent. Think of them as a giver of wise advice.
The popular maintenance spray in the blue and yellow can displays a unique name, rather than a branded slogan: 'Water Displacement formula, 40th try.'
In 1953, the rapidly growing aerospace industry was looking for a product that would repel water and protect against rust. The Rocket Chemical company immediately set to the task, and on their 40th blending of various chemicals, they hit upon the effective formula2.
This story is a testament to perseverance in reaching your goals. You likely won't reach them on your first - and perhaps not even on your 40th try, but that doesn't mean you should stop trying. As one very famous industry leader said:
I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.
Thomas Edison
These quotes qualify as inspirational and motivational, and the stories attached to them show us how common it is to fail. As most leaders will tell you, getting back up and trying again is the biggest secret to success. Perseverance and resilience are essential ingredients; quitting after a few tries at something will get you absolutely nowhere.
Success cannot be measured in wealth, fame or power, but by whether you have made a positive difference for others.
Richard Branson
Britain's top entrepreneur has a different take on what success is. Note that he doesn't merely work towards making 'a difference'; he insists that the difference must be positive, and it must be for others. His secret to success suggests that, whatever you do, it must be a benefit to all, not just yourself. This aspect relates to the quote at the start of this article: humility is a key success ingredient, too.
Quotes About Success and Hard Work
Around the world, billions of people work from sun-up to sundown, yet they don't find success. At least, not the type that buys Bentleys and positive press reviews. Think about farmers, factory workers, and healthcare professionals: how do they define success? These poignant quotes help tell their stories.
Farming is not just crops, but the cultivation and perfection of human beings.
Masanobu Fukuoka
This Japanese farmer and philosopher didn't just elevate the work of farming, he delivered one of the best quotes about life you might ever hear. His words imply that genuine success isn't just about perseverance and hard work. It's also a matter of personal and spiritual development.
I attribute my success to this: I never gave or took any excuse.
Florence Nightingale
The dedicated soul who founded the modern nursing profession must have worked hard, but she doesn't credit her success to hard work. For her and for billions of workers around the world today, success depends on personal factors and, perhaps, a measure of chance3.
Work smarter, not harder.
Allen F. Morgenstern
For most of the industrialised era, people had to work very hard, indeed, but history proves that few, if any, of those workers found success. Fortunately, around the 1930s, efficiency became industry's latest buzzword.
Allen Morgenstern, an industrial engineer, devised ways to make factory work less tedious and 'hard'. Today, we enjoy the fruits of his labour through streamlined manufacturing processes, and his quip remains a top indicator of success. His idea about working smarter, not harder, remains a piece of wise advice still today.
Success and Personal Fulfilment
Most inspirational quotes, and even those about the passage of time, emphasise the need for personal fulfilment in everything we do. So far, all the quotes about success and achievement in this article point in that direction. These quotes drive that point home.
Success is interior; it has to do with self-fulfilment and the joy of living.
Sophia Loren
It's rather alarming how many teens declare 'influencer' or 'famous YouTuber' as their sole ambition4. Fame's siren song and the lure of money are, of course, the main reasons why. But Ms Loren's perspective, that success should be 'interior', cancels the 'fame and money' reasons to seek that type of success. Educating our youths about the futility of aiming for hollow fame rather than self-fulfilment would be a good idea.
Seeking fulfilment in others ensures you will never truly be fulfilled.
Lao Tzu
Millennia before Ms Loren graced our silver screens, China's wisest teacher presented the same idea. Relying on others for your worth doesn't just guarantee you'll run yourself ragged on a hamster wheel; it's also psychologically damaging4. Clearly, those two distinguished voices insist that self-fulfilment must come before success.
Happiness lies in the completion of work using one's own brain and skills.
Soichiro Honda
This Japanese engineer and industrialist, the founder of the Honda motor company, doesn't explicitly mention fulfilment. However, he does address one's happiness as a result of using one's skills and knowledge. Once again, we see that success comes from the same place that quotes about love and romance touch: our own inner landscape.
Quotes About Motivation and Success in the Face of Failure
There's a certain measure of grief in failure, and it's important to heal from those negative emotions before reaching for success again. While uplifting quotes can help you heal, post-failure motivational quotes take a slightly different tack.
I can accept failure ... But I can't accept not trying.
Michael Jordan
We consider this world-famous basketball player one of the athletes who defined this sport. He made playing look so easy; it's hard to see where or how he might have failed. But, at the height of his fame, he tried his hand at baseball, a sport where his talent was decidedly lacking. Recovering from all the ridicule aimed his way must have been tough, but at least he tried something new.
Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.
Confucius
This Chinese sage has authored some of the best quotes of all time, and this one must rank at the top of that list. It addresses an aspect of failure that many find the hardest to deal with: what to do next? For starters, rising up is enough. You'll soon figure out which way to go next.
Defeat is a state of mind; no one is ever defeated until defeat is accepted as reality.
Bruce Lee
Read one way, this quote sounds arrogant and just a touch dangerous. It suggests that, as long as you don't admit defeat, you can continue towards an unreachable goal. Our martial arts legend didn't mean it that way. He was urging people to know when they're licked - to accept reality, so they can put it into perspective and move on.
Quotes About Success in the Workplace
Or in school: how can one define success? Again, we return to all the points the quotes throughout this article make. Success is personal; it's internal and fulfilling, and it's all about perseverance, not necessarily hard work. These quotes summarise our topic for us.
Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out.
Robert Collier
Picture the person who gives up their seat on the train to someone who appears to need it more. It's certainly a small effort, but is it success? Arguably, it is, by the definitions of success we've found so far. It's fulfilling - a matter of personal development and a benefit to someone else. Small gestures such as these make you a successful person, even if you don't make headlines for your efforts.
Success usually comes to those who are too busy to look for it.
Henry David Thoreau
This American writer hits the nail on its head. People focused on their personal growth journey, who live in the reality of their world, and who make full use of their talents and skills are too busy to notice success has found them. What a beautiful feeling it is to suddenly realise that you're successful, as defined in your own terms!
Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value.
Albert Einstein
The world's most renowned physicist takes us back to where we started. Success is far too fleeting a goal to chase, but being of value delivers personal and professional fulfilment. Even deep friendship quotes stress the importance of being valuable - to your friends and to society alike. If great thinkers such as those throughout this article mention that quality, success must relate to the degree of value you provide!
References
- Quote Investigator. You Don’t Have to Know Everything. You Just Have to Know Where to Find It – Quote Investigator. 12 Apr. 2012. https://quoteinvestigator.com/2012/04/02/know-where-to-find/. Accessed 10 Aug. 2026.
- Cabral, Lauren. “The History of WD-40.” Back Then History, 7 Apr. 2021, https://www.backthenhistory.com/articles/the-history-of-wd-40. Accessed 10 Aug. 2026.
- Brake, Jonathan. “Busting the ‘Hard Work = Success’ Myth.” The Forged Leader, 9 June 2025, https://theforgedleader.com/busting-the-hard-work-success-myth/. Accessed 10 Aug. 2026.
- Mayer, Beth Ann. “So, Your Kid Wants to Be an Influencer? Before You Roll Your Eyes—Read This.” 10 Oct. 2023, https://www.parents.com/gen-z-wants-to-be-social-media-influencers-8349212. Accessed 10 Aug. 2026.
- Cikanavicius, Darius. “The Trap of External Validation for Self-Esteem.” 28 Aug. 2017, https://psychcentral.com/blog/psychology-self/2017/08/validation-self-esteem. Accessed 10 Aug. 2026.
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