Sales is not for the weak. You have probably seen the memes of how draining the life of a salesperson can be because of the repetitions in activities, which can typically come with a high volume of rejection. They can be comedic and relatable, but it's important to remember why you started and have the right messaging in your ear from your peers and leaders to stay motivated.
Here are 30 motivational and inspirational quotes that can help keep you pushing when the going gets tough in sales. Bookmark for future reference and share your favorite with a friend!
1. “I never lose. I either win or learn.” – Nelson Mandela
2. “Either you run the day or the day runs you.” – Jim Rohn
3. "True nobility is being superior to your former self." – Ernest Hemingway
4. “The ordinary focus on what they’re getting. The extraordinary think about who they’re becoming.” – Unknown
5. “The top salespeople are usually the ones with the most activity; it doesn’t guarantee you will close more deals, but if you have no activity, you won’t be closing any deals.” – Colleen Honan, Chief Sales Officer, Brainshark
6. “A fool thinks himself to be wise, but a wise man knows himself to be a fool.” – William Shakespeare
7. “Don't bother telling the world you are ready. Show it. Do it." – Peter Dinklage
8. “You need to let the little things that would ordinarily bore you suddenly thrill you.” – Andy Warhol
9. “If you are not too large for the place you occupy, you are too small for it.” – Chester A. Arthur
10. "I am hitting my head against the walls, but the walls are giving way." – Gustav Mahler
11. “Don’t say you don’t have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Pasteur, Michelangelo, Mother Teresa, Helen Keller, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein.” – H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
13. “Humor is the universal solvent against the abrasive elements of life.” – Alan Simpson
14. “I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.” – Bruce Lee
15. “When you're good at something, you'll tell everyone. When you're great at something, they'll tell you.” – Walter Payton
16. "All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds, wake in the day to find it was in vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act on their dreams with open eyes, to make them possible." – T.E. Lawrence
17. "I don't like that man. I must get to know him better." – Abraham Lincoln
18. “How you sell is more important than what you sell.” – Andy Paul, author, speaker and strategist, Zero-Time Selling
19. "There are three choices in life: be good, get good, or give up.” – Hugh Laurie (as House)
20. “You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you.” – Walt Disney
21. “You’ve got enemies? Good, that means you stood up for something in your life.” – Eminem
22. “Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.” – Dale Carnegie
23. “Don’t measure yourself by what you have accomplished, but by what you should have accomplished with your ability.” – John Wooden
24. “If you are working on something that you really care about, you don’t have to be pushed. The vision pulls you.” – Steve Jobs
25. “You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.” – Mae West
26. “Don’t become a wandering generality. Be a meaningful specific.” – Zig Ziglar, legendary sales author and speaker
27. “Success looks a lot like failure up until the moment you break through the finish line.” – Dan Waldschmidt, Co-CEO, Edgy Inc.
28. “True productivity comes from allowing yourself to make mistakes. Do so, and you’ll succeed more often than any ten perfectionists.” – Laura Stack, CEO, The Productivity Pro
29. “Establishing trust is better than any sales technique.” – Mike Puglia, Chief Marketing Officer, Kaseya
30. “I will never quit. I persevere and thrive on adversity. My Nation expects me to be physically and mentally stronger than my enemies. If knocked down, I will get back up, every time. I will draw on every remaining ounce of strength to protect my teammates and to accomplish our mission. I am never out of the fight.” – U.S. Navy SEALs credo
