“ … There’s a spark in you, you just gotta ignite the light..”

-Singer Katy Perry in her song ‘Firework’

Motivation. It is a very powerful word. It has the power to change the tide of wars! It is implied that with a strong push in the right direction, any organization can achieve targets that it has set its eyes upon.

In the corporate world, employees are the building blocks of a company. One block crumbles and it triggers a reaction that affects the whole organization. This is where employee motivation gets factored in.

There are several reasons why employee motivation is vital. The primary aspect is meeting the goals set up by the management. It increases employee productivity and efficiency. With the correct motivation and incentive, an employee will be pushed to produce quality work to the best of his abilities.

The right motivation involves the usage of just the right words. The right words can do wonders in igniting the fire of perseverance in a person. Here are some of the most influential employee motivational quotes that any employer can deploy as his motivational arsenal.

Best Motivational Quotes for Employees and Workplace

1. “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t – you’re right.” —Henry Ford

2. “Becoming is better than being.” —Carol Dweck, Mindset

3. “I know not all that may be coming, but be it what it will, I’ll go to it laughing.” —Herman Melville, Moby Dick

4. “The sun himself is weak when he first rises, and gathers strength and courage as the day gets on.” —Charles Dickens, The Old Curiosity Shop

5. “How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” —Anne Frank, The Diary of a Young Girl

6. “Oh yes, the past can hurt. But you can either run from it, or learn from it.” —Rafiki, The Lion King

7. “If I had nine hours to chop down a tree, I’d spend the first six sharpening my axe.” —Abraham Lincoln

8. “It’s life. You don’t figure it out. You just climb up on the beast and ride.” ―Rebecca Wells, Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood

9. “There’s zero correlation between being the best talker and having the best ideas.” —Susan Cain, Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking

10. “Unless someone like you care a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better, it’s not.” —Dr. Suess, the Lorax

11. “A proud heart can survive general failure because such a failure does not prick its pride. It is more difficult and more bitter when a man fails alone”. —Chinua Achebe, Things Fall Apart

12. “You will never plough a field if you only turn it over in your mind.” —Irish Proverb

13. “If you hire people just because they can do a job, they’ll work for your money. But if you hire people who believe what you believe, they’ll work for you with blood and sweat and tears.” —Simon Sinek

14. “Genius is born—not paid.” —Oscar Wilde

15. “The power of imagination makes us infinite.” —John Muir

16. “Luck is a matter of preparation meeting opportunity.” —Seneca

17. “Don’t persuade, defend or interrupt. Be curious, be conversational, be real. And listen.” — Elizabeth Lesser

18. “Failure is the condiment that gives success its flavor.” —Truman Capote

19. “An innovator is one who does not know it cannot be done.” —R.A. Mashelkar

20. “I am not a product of my circumstances. I am a product of my decisions.” —Stephen Covey

21. “We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.” – Einstein

22. “The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new.” – Socrates

23. “If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail.” – Abraham Maslow

24. “It takes courage to step off of the familiar to embrace the new and unknown future. But when you do, the possibilities are endless.” – Successories

25. “In the confrontation between the river and the rock, the river always wins…not through strength but by perseverance.” – Successories

26. “Take the initiative and lead the way. You can make the difference.” – Successories

27. “A leader’s job is to look into the future, and to see the organization not as it is…but as it can become.” – Successories

28. “The secret of getting ahead, is getting started.” – Mark Twain

29. “When your work speaks for itself, don’t interrupt.” – Henry J. Kaiser

30. “Well done, is better than well said.” – Benjamin Franklin

31. “Success means doing the best we can with what we have. Success is the doing, not the getting; in the trying, not the triumph. Success is a personal standard, reaching for the highest that is in us, becoming all that we can be.” – Zig Ziglar

32. “Do not be embarrassed by your failures, learn from them and start again.” – Richard Branson”

33. “Success is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm.” – Winston Churchill

34. “Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen.” – Michael Jordan

35. “Approach every challenge with a level head, unwavering focus and a determination to light the way for others to succeed.” – Successories

36. “Courage is rightly esteemed the first of human qualities because it is the quality which guarantees all others.” – Winston Churchill

37. “Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishments.” – Successories

38. “It is attitude, not circumstance, that makes success possible in even the most unlikely conditions.” – Successories

39. “The road to success is sometimes long and arduous. It takes unwavering commitment and a will to succeed in order to complete the journey.” – Successories

40. “Success is not by chance, it takes someone willing to climb a mountain full of obstacles and challenges. It may seem insurmountable from a distance, but if you imagine with all your mind and believe with all your heart, you will reach the top.” – Successories

41. “Successful is the person who has lived well, laughed often and loved much, who has gained the respect of children, who leaves the world better than they found it, who has never lacked appreciation for the earth’s beauty, who never fails to look for the best in others or give the best of themselves.” – Successories

42. “Greatness is not in where we stand, but in what direction we are moving. We must sail sometimes with the wind and sometimes against it – but sail we must and not drift, nor lie at anchor.” – Oliver Wendell Holmes

43. “Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed…every morning a lion wakes up. It knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death. It doesn’t matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle…when the sun comes up, you’d better be running.” – Proverb

44. “Change is life giving. It helps us grow into someone greater than we already are.” – Successories

45. “Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration, the rest of us just get up and go to work.” – Stephen King

46. “Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle.” – Abraham Lincoln

47. “Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.” – Martink Luther King Jr.

48. “The day is what you make it! So why not make it a great one?” – Steve Schulte

49. “It’s not the load that breaks you down, it’s the way you carry it.” – Lou Holtz

50. “Believe you can and you are halfway there.” – Theodore Roosevelt

As an employer, you are put in a position with the power to make or break your employees. You have the power to shape their lives as an individual. With the right motivation, employees can achieve new heights of corporate excellence!