No great intellectual thing was ever done by great effort.

Enthusiasm is the most important thing in life.

Pursue one great decisive aim with force and determination.

You must stay drunk on writing so reality cannot destroy you.

It was high counsel that I once heard given to a young person, ‚always do what you are afraid to do.‘

Flaming enthusiasm, backed up by horse sense and persistence, is the quality that most frequently makes for success.

There’s a silly notion that failure’s not an option at NASA. Failure is an option here. If things are not failing, you are not innovating enough.

If I’d been born ugly, you’d never have heard of Pele.

I respect Drake not only as a creative person but as a business mind as well. I think Drake’s important.

Believe you can and you’re halfway there.

Being brilliant is no great feat if you respect nothing.

A great secret of success is to go through life as a man who never gets used up.

We’re just enthusiastic about what we do.

I’ve run the Boston Marathon 6 times before. I think the best aspects of the marathon are the beautiful changes of the scenery along the route and the warmth of the people’s support. I feel happier every time I enter this marathon.

It isn’t enough to talk about peace. One must believe in it. And it isn’t enough to believe in it. One must work at it.

‚Victory Lap,‘ even the title. It’s the accumulation of trial and error; that’s what I represent; trial and error.

I’ve got my Grammys on top of my piano and I look at them when I play.

I firmly believe that unless one has tasted the bitter pill of failure, one cannot aspire enough for success.

It’s lack of faith that makes people afraid of meeting challenges, and I believed in myself.

Keep your eyes on the stars, and your feet on the ground.

I think beating myself up sometimes and knowing I am not happy when I do it makes me work harder to do a good job.

When you cease to make a contribution, you begin to die.

The most effective way to do it, is to do it.

You know, I look like a woman but I think like a man. And in this world of business, that has helped me a lot. Because by the time they think that I don’t know what’s goin‘ on, I then got the money, and gone.

Few people think more than two or three times a year; I have made an international reputation for myself by thinking once or twice a week.

Often people become our friend or follower with an undercurrent of resentment in our having more success than they have. They secretly desire the opportunity to take us down a notch; they have a nose for any misstep on our part they can exploit.

Do the thing you fear to do and keep on doing it… that is the quickest and surest way ever yet discovered to conquer fear.

You can’t die with an unfinished book.

I care very deeply about the people at Tesla. I feel like I have a great debt to the people of Tesla who are making the company successful.

Where sense is wanting, everything is wanting.

Everything that is done in the world is done by hope.

Israel was not created in order to disappear – Israel will endure and flourish. It is the child of hope and the home of the brave. It can neither be broken by adversity nor demoralized by success. It carries the shield of democracy and it honors the sword of freedom.

Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence.

For unflagging interest and enjoyment, a household of children, if things go reasonably well, certainly all other forms of success and achievement lose their importance by comparison.

You shall, I question not, find a way to the top if you diligently seek for it; for nature hath placed nothing so high that it is out of the reach of industry and valor.

The first rule is not to lose. The second rule is not to forget the first rule.

A good objective of leadership is to help those who are doing poorly to do well and to help those who are doing well to do even better.

I’m a can-do girl.

Whosoever desires constant success must change his conduct with the times.

In soloing – as in other activities – it is far easier to start something than it is to finish it.

Failed plans should not be interpreted as a failed vision. Visions don’t change, they are only refined. Plans rarely stay the same, and are scrapped or adjusted as needed. Be stubborn about the vision, but flexible with your plan.

Almost everything that is great has been done by youth.

Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others‘ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.

We will be more successful in all our endeavors if we can let go of the habit of running all the time, and take little pauses to relax and re-center ourselves. And we’ll also have a lot more joy in living.

I’m only as good as my last word, my last hook, my last bridge.

When we do the best that we can, we never know what miracle is wrought in our life, or in the life of another.

The person who goes farthest is generally the one who is willing to do and dare. The sure-thing boat never gets far from shore.

I don’t believe we are supposed to go through life defeated and not having enough money to pay our bills or send our kids to college.

Life must be lived and curiosity kept alive. One must never, for whatever reason, turn his back on life.

It is better to be the hammer than the anvil.

I need music. It’s like my heartbeat, so to speak. It keeps me going no matter what’s going on – bad games, press, whatever!

I always was that person who was hard on myself and challenged myself no matter what I was doing, whether it was passing third grade or playing basketball.

I didn’t have nothin‘ going for me… school, home… until I found something I loved, which was music, and that changed everything.

When I prepare, I am not messing around. I find the right places, the right people, and the right environment. Iceland is one of those places.

On Sundays when I speak, I hopefully give somebody something that they can use the next day at work or at home.

Protect your enthusiasm from the negativity of others.

Richard Burton came from the same town as me, so I thought I’d follow my nose, and follow my luck. I think I’ve been very lucky.

Men do not shape destiny, Destiny produces the man for the hour.

The majority of men meet with failure because of their lack of persistence in creating new plans to take the place of those which fail.

Critics only make you stronger. You have to look at what they are saying as feedback. Sometimes the feedback helps, and other times, it’s just noise that can be a distraction.

Opportunity dances with those already on the dance floor.