quotations about success
There was nothing worse ... than a loser who'd made it. It was just part of the way things worked--part of the complexity of life ... that sometimes somebody who absolutely deserved nothing more than to be one of the downtrodden, the oppressed, the dregs of society, lucked out into a position of wealth, power and admiration. At least people who were natural winners knew how to carry themselves in their pomp, whether their ascendancy had come through the luck of being born rich and powerful or the luck of being born ambitious and capable. Losers who'd made it always let the side down.... Their only use ... was as examples to be held up to those who complained about their lack of status or money or control over their lives: look, if this idiot can achieve something, so can anybody, so can you. So stop whining about being exploited and work harder.
IAIN M. BANKS
Surface Detail
Ireland has a very different attitude to success than a lot of places, certainly than over here in the United States. In the United States, you look at the guy that lives in the mansion on the hill, and you think, you know, one day, if I work really hard, I could live in that mansion. In Ireland, people look up at the guy in the mansion on the hill and go, one day, I'm going to get that bastard. It's a different mind-set.
BONO
interview, Larry King Weekend, December 1, 2002
I do all this alone, everything I achieve, I achieve alone, because it's my head I'm locked into, and I share this space with nobody but myself.
ALEX GARLAND
The Coma
The secret to success, whether it's women or money, is knowing when to quit. I oughta know: I'm divorced and broke.
SONNY CROCKETT
Miami Vice
Nothing changes your opinion of a friend so surely as success -- yours or his.
FRANKLIN P. JONES
Saturday Evening Post, November 29, 1953
Even success needs its consolations.
GEORGE ELIOT
letter to J. W. Cross, June 3, 1876
The man who arrives young believes that he exercises his will because his star is shining. The man who only asserts himself at thirty has a balanced idea of what willpower and fate have each contributed, the one who gets there at forty is liable to put the emphasis on will alone.
F. SCOTT FITZGERALD
American Cavalcade, October 1937
Desperation is the surest road to success.
HARRY SOLOMON
"The Physics of Being Dick", 3rd Rock From the Sun
To attain "success" without attaining positive self-esteem is to be condemned to feeling like an imposter anxiously awaiting exposure.
NATHANIEL BRANDEN
The Power of Self-Esteem
A man may be a merchant prince and in commercial prosperity a grand success, but if lust of accumulation has eaten out all the finer qualities of the soul, the sympathy and affection for others, the desire to make others happy, the determination to live for God and the welfare of humanity, he is a lamentable failure.
HENRY F. KLETZING & ELMER L. KLETZING
Traits of Character Illustrated in Bible Light
Great success is a great temptation.
THEODORE PARKER
"A Sermon of the Moral Dangers incident to Prosperity"
Many a man can make a success of everything but himself.
EDGAR GUEST
Home Rhymes
Success isn't outscoring someone, it's the peace of mind that comes from self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best. Success is a journey, not a destination--half the fun is getting there.
GITA BELLIN
A Sharing of Completion and Celebration
To succeed in life one needs two things -- influence and a lucky star.
LEONID ANDREYEV
The Life of Man
If you would revenge yourself on those who have slighted you, BE SUCCESSFUL; it is a bitter satire on their want of judgment; to show that you can do without them, a galling wound to the self-love of proud, inflated people; but you must reckon on their hatred, as they will never forgive you.
CHARLES WILLIAM DAY
The Maxims, Experiences, and Observations of Agogos
He who feared that he would not succeed sat still.
HORACE
Epistles
We often set up as a model the man with a large fortune, rather than the man of integrity of soul, and urge our youth to emulate him. If fortune fails to smile on us in filling our coffers, we count that we have not made a success in life.
HENRY F. KLETZING & ELMER L. KLETZING
Traits of Character Illustrated in Bible Light
Your intention sets the universe in motion. The universe flows in the direction of your intention, and so it is important to be clear on your exact intention in any situation. If you are absolutely clear as to your intent, your subconscious success mechanism will support you in getting there. Most people encounter problems in creating the kind of life they want because they have not clearly determined where they want to go, or visualized what it is going to look like when they get there. Those who lead purposeful, successful lives do so because they have set up in their mind a clear picture of what they want to create in their lives.
ROBERT ANTHONY
Beyond Positive Thinking
Those who succeed can't forgive a fellow for being a failure, and those who fail can't forgive him for being a success.
GEORGE HORACE LORIMER
Letters from a Self-Made Merchant to His Son
Success is the child of Audacity.
BENJAMIN DISRAELI
The Rise of Iskander