By Christina Colclough
Last updated:
Whether you are a boss, manager, or team leader, expressing appreciation, recognition, and sympathy to your staff is an integral part of leadership. A simple pat on the back or some meaningful words of inspiration for work hold significant weight to your employees.
Here are some motivational quotes for you to take your team’s morale and productivity to new heights!
In this article:
10 General Inspirational Quotes About Work
- “A dream doesn’t become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination, and hard work.” – Colin Powell
- “If you are working on something exciting that you really care about, you don’t have to be pushed. The vision pulls you.” —Steve Jobs
- “Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work in hand. The sun’s rays do not burn until brought to a focus.” —Alexander Graham Bell
- “No great achiever – even those who made it seem easy – ever succeeded without hard work.” – Jonathan Sack
- “Just don’t give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don’t think you can go wrong.” —Ella Fitzgerald
- “I’m a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it.” —Thomas Jefferson
- “All growth depends upon activity. There is no development physically or intellectually without effort, and effort means work.”– Calvin Coolidge
- “When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better too.” —Paulo Coelho
- “My attitude is that if you push me towards something that you think is a weakness, then I will turn that perceived weakness into a strength.” —Michael Jordan
- “Without ambition, one starts nothing. Without work, one finishes nothing. The prize will not be sent to you. You have to win it.“ —Ralph Waldo Emerson
15 Good Work Quotes For Appreciation & Recognition
- “Hard work without talent is a shame, but talent without hard work is a tragedy.”– Robert Hall
- “Goodness and hard work are rewarded with respect.”– Luther Campbell
- “Throw yourself into some work you believe in with all your heart, live for it, die for it, and you will find happiness that you had thought could never be yours.”– Dale Carnegie
- “The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little extra.” —Jimmy Johnson
- “When I meet successful people, I ask about 100 questions to find out who they attribute their success to. It is usually the same: persistence, hard work, and hiring good people.”– Kiana To
- “It’s not about money or connection — it’s the willingness to outwork and outlearn everyone.” – Mark Cuban, American investor
- “Working hard for something we don’t care about is called stress. Working hard for something we love is called passion.” —Simon Sinek
- “Success is peace of mind, which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you made the effort to become the best of which you are capable.” —John Wooden
- “Perfection is not attainable. But if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence.” —Vince Lombardi
- “A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks others have thrown at him.” – David Brinkley
- “Try not to become a man of success but rather try to become a man of value.” – Albert Einstein
- “People want to know they matter, and they want to be treated as people. That’s the new talent contract.” – Pamela Stroko
- “Take time to appreciate employees, and they will reciprocate in a thousand ways.” – Bob Nelson
- “All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
- “Your employees come first. And if you treat your employees right, guess what? Your customers come back, and that makes your shareholders happy. Start with employees, and the rest follows from that.” – Herb Kelleher
10 Employee Motivation Quotes For Engagement
- “People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing; that’s why we recommend it daily.” —Zig Ziglar
- “Motivation is the art of getting people to do what you want them to do because they want to do it.” – Dwight D. Eisenhower
- “You’ve got to get up every morning with determination if you’re going to go to bed with satisfaction.” —George Lorimer
- “Pay attention to those employees who respectfully ask why. They are demonstrating an interest in their jobs and exhibiting a curiosity that could eventually translate into leadership ability.” – Harvey Mackay
- “A little more persistence, a little more effort, and what seemed hopeless failure may turn to glorious success.” —Elbert Hubbard
- “It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop.” —Confucius
- “I’m a success today because I had a friend who believed in me, and I didn’t have the heart to let him down.” —Abraham Lincoln
- “Everyone talks about building a relationship with your customer. I think you build one with your employees first.” – Angela Ahrendts
- “Culture is about performance and making people feel good about how they contribute to the whole.” – Tracy Streckenbach
- “Obstacles can’t stop you. Problems can’t stop you. Most of all, other people can’t stop you. Only you can stop you.” —Jeffrey Gitomer
10 Short Inspirational Work Quotes About Changes
- “Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.” —George Bernard Shaw
- “You will never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret of your success is found in your daily routine.” —John C. Maxwell
- “It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.” —Charles Darwin
- “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” —Mahatma Gandhi
- “Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.” —Barack Obama
- “When you change your thoughts, remember to also change your world.” —Norman Vincent Peale
- “Without change, something sleeps inside us and seldom awakens. The sleeper must awaken.” —Frank Herbert
- “Change your opinions, keep to your principles. Change your leaves, keep your roots intact.” —Victor Hugo
- “The foolish and the dead alone never change their opinions.” —James Russell Lowell
- “The greatest discovery of all time is that a person can change his future by merely changing his attitude.” —Oprah Winfrey
10 Positive Quotes To Boost Morale At Work
- “Luck? I don’t know anything about luck. I’ve never banked on it, and I’m afraid of people who do. Luck to me is something else: Hard work—and realizing what is an opportunity and what isn’t.” – Lucille Ball
- “If you can’t yet do great things, do small things in a great way.” ―Napoleon Hill
- “If you get tired, learn to rest, not to quit.” —Banksy
- “Employees aren’t just workers; they’re the backbone of the business, and that makes them more important than the boss any day of the week. Good Employees = Good Business.” – Kilroy J. Oldster
- “Just one small positive thought in the morning can change your whole day.” —Dalai Lama
- “The employer generally gets the employees he deserves.” – J. Paul Getty
- “First, forget inspiration. Habit is more dependable. Habit will sustain you whether you’re inspired or not. Habit will help you finish and polish your stories. Inspiration won’t. Habit is persistence in practice.” ―Octavia Butler
- “The world is changing very fast. Big will not beat small anymore. It will be the fast beating the slow.” —Rupert Murdoch
- “The only thing that overcomes hard luck is hard work.” —Harry Golden
- “Define success on your own terms, achieve it by your own rules, and build a life you’re proud to live.” —Anne Sweeney
15 Inspirational Quotes To Motivate Staff About Failure
- “Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, ‘I will try again tomorrow.’” —Mary Anne Radmacher
- “I am a slow walker, but I never walk back.” —Abraham Lincoln
- “Develop success from failures. Discouragement and failure are two of the surest stepping stones to success.” —Dale Carnegie
- “As I look back on my life, I realize that every time I thought I was being rejected from something good, I was actually being redirected to something better.” —Dr. Steve Maraboli
- “You learn more from failure than from success. Don’t let it stop you. Failure builds character.” —Unknown
- “Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.” —Confucius
- “It’s fine to celebrate success, but it is more important to heed the lessons of failure.” —Bill Gates
- “Do the one thing you think you cannot do. Fail at it. Try again. Do better the second time. The only people who never tumble are those who never mount the high wire.” —Oprah Winfrey
- “Defeat is not the worst of failures. Not to have tried is the true failure.” —George Edward Woodberry
- “Ask yourself this question: ‘Will this matter a year from now?’” —Richard Carlson
- “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.” —Winston Churchill
- “Don’t think of it as a failure. Think of it as a time-released success.” —Robert Orben
- “Failure defeats losers, but it inspires winners.” —Robert T. Kiyosaki
- “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.” —Thomas Edison
- “Real courage is when you know you’re licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what.” —Harper Lee
15 Funny Employee Inspirational Quotes
- “The elevator to success is out of order. You’ll have to use the stairs, one step at a time.” —Joe Girard
- “Luck is a dividend of sweat. The more you sweat, the luckier you get.” — Ray Kroc
- “Be a positive energy trampoline—absorb what you need and rebound more back.” —Dave Carolan
- “The only place success comes before work is in the dictionary.” — Vince Lombardi
- “Every day, I get up and look through the Forbes list of the richest people in America. If I’m not there, I go to work.” — Robert Orben
- “Don’t stay in bed unless you can make money in bed.” — George Burns
- “Work until your bank account looks like a phone number.” —Unknown
- “You can’t have a million-dollar dream with a minimum wage work ethic.” — Zig Ziglar
- “If you’re not failing every now and again, it’s a sign you’re not doing anything very innovative.” — Woody Allen
- “Life is like a sewer … what you get out of it depends on what you put into it.” —Tom Lehrer
- “The best way to appreciate your job is to imagine yourself without one.” — Oscar Wilde
- “I always wanted to be somebody, but now I realize I should have been more specific.” —Lily Tomlin
- “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” — Thomas Edison
- “If you think you are too small to be effective, you have never been in the dark with a mosquito.” — Betty Reese
- “You never become a howling success by just howling.” — Bob Harrington
12 Encouraging Quotes For Team
- “Treat employees like partners, and they act like partners.” – Fred Allen
- “It is not a question of how well each process works; the question is how well they all work together.” – Lloyd Dobens
- “Teamwork is so important that it is virtually impossible for you to reach the heights of your capabilities or make the money that you want without becoming very good at it.” – Brian Tracy
- “Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is a success.” —Henry Ford
- “Connect the dots between individual roles and the goals of the organization. When people see that connection, they get a lot of energy out of work. They feel the importance, dignity, and meaning in their job.” – Scott and Kelly Blanchard
- “A true leader has the confidence to stand alone, the courage to make tough decisions, and the compassion to listen to the needs of others. He does not set out to be a leader but becomes one by the equality of his actions and the integrity of his intent.” – Douglas MacArthur
- “It is better to have one person working with you than three people working for you.” — Dwight D. Eisenhower
- “Remember, teamwork begins by building trust. And the only way to do that is to overcome our need for invulnerability.” —Patrick Lencioni
- “The real competitive advantage in any business is one word only, which is ‘people.’” – Komil Toume
- “Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision. The ability to direct individual accomplishments toward organizational objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results.” —Andrew Carnegie
- “Alone we can do so little; together. we can do so much.” —Helen Keller
- “I invite everyone to choose forgiveness rather than division, teamwork over personal ambition.” —Jean-Francois Cope
30 Daily Quotes About Work
Monday Quotes
- “Before anything else, preparation is the key to success.” — Alexander Graham Bell
- “Make each day your masterpiece.” — John Wooden
- “We will fail when we fail to try.” — Rosa Parks
- “Mondays offer new beginnings 52 times a year!” —David Dweck
- “Your Monday morning thoughts set the tone for your whole week. See yourself getting stronger and living a fulfilling, happier, and healthier life.” —Germany Kent
Tuesday Quotes
- “Real change, enduring change, happens one step at a time.” — Ruth Bader Ginsburg
- “And now that you don’t have to be perfect, you can be good.” — John Steinbeck
- “Light tomorrow with today.” — Elizabeth Barrett Browning
- “Someday is not a day of the week.” — Janet Dailey
- “A year from now you may wish you had started today.” — Karen Lamb
Wednesday Quotes
- “Believe you can, and you’re halfway there.” — Theodore Roosevelt
- “The most important step a man can take. It’s not the first one, is it? It’s the next one. Always the next step.” ― Brandon Sanderson
- “There will always be hurdles in life, but if you want to achieve a goal, you must continue.” — Malala Yousafzai
- “Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” — Will Rogers
- “Never confuse a single defeat with a final defeat.” — F. Scott Fitzgerald
Thursday Quotes
- “Your imagination is your preview of life’s coming attractions.” — Albert Einstein
- “Be miserable. Or motivate yourself. Whatever has to be done, it’s always your choice.” —Wayne Dyer
- “Don’t count the days; make the days count.” — Muhammad Ali
- “Boss up and change your life / You can have it all, no sacrifice” — Lizzo
- “You can get what you want, or you can just get old.” ― Billy Joel
Friday Quotes
- “Friday sees more smiles than any other day of the workweek!” —Kate Summers
- “Oh! It’s Friday again. Share the love that was missing during the week. In a worthy moment of peace and bliss.” —S. O’ Sade
- “Every Friday, I like to high-five myself for getting through another week on little more than caffeine, willpower, and inappropriate humor.” —Nanea Hoffman
- “Make a Friday a day to celebrate work well done that you can be proud of, knowing that you just didn’t put in time for the next paycheck.” —Byron Pulsifer
- “When you leave work on Friday, leave work. Don’t let technology follow you throughout your weekend (answering text messages and emails). Take a break. You will be more refreshed to begin the workweek if you have had a break.” —Catherine Pulsifer
Inspirational Quotes For Weekend
- “Rivers know this: There is no hurry. We shall get there some day.” ― A.A. Milne
- “Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.” — Maya Angelou
- “Don’t trust any one story of how to become successful.” — Mindy Kaling
- “Success is a state of mind. If you want success, start thinking of yourself as a success.” — Joyce Brothers
- “Success is the sum of small efforts repeated day in and day out.” — Robert Collier
Conclusion
There’s no need to wait for a big win or setback to send a motivational quote. Make it your daily or weekly habit so that your employees feel valued, cared for, and appreciated all week. Remember, a small note with words of inspiration can link the whole team together!
You might also like these articles:
Motivation and Productivity:
- 55 Employee Recognition Examples
- 60+ Employee Appreciation Quotes
Messages and Recognition:
- 40 Thank-You Messages For Coworkers
- 50 Happy Work Anniversary Messages To Co-worker
- 50+ Happy Birthday Wishes for Your Coworker
- 55+ Happy Boss Day Messages
- 10 Congratulations on Your New Job Examples
- 35+ Happy Thanksgiving Messages To Employees
- 30 Christmas Messages Your Employees
Share on:
Christina J. Colclough
Dr Christina J. Colclough is an expert on The Future World of Work and the politics of digital technology advocating globally for the importance of the workers’ voice. She has extensive regional and global labour movement experience, is a sought-after keynote speaker, coach, and strategist advising progressive governments and worker organisations.
