50 Best Business Quotes

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Man wearing a blue work shirt writing down a quote on a napkin next to a laptop

Looking for some motivation to get your business to the next level? I got you. Here is a list of the best quotes about business to help you on your journey to grow your business into something great.

1. “The best way to predict the future is to create it.” – Peter Drucker, Management Consultant and Author

2. “Rule No. 1: Never lose money; rule No. 2: Don’t forget rule No. 1.” – Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway

3. “Change before you have to.” – Jack Welch, Former CEO of General Electric

4. “Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning.” – Bill Gates, Founder of Microsoft

5. “There is only one boss. The customer. And he can fire everybody in the company from the chairman on down, simply by spending his money somewhere else.” – Sam Walton, Founder of Walmart

6. “A business that makes nothing but money is a poor business. ” – Henry Ford, Founder of Ford Motor Company

7. “Choose a job that you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” – Confucius

8. “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do.” – Steve Jobs, Founder of Apple, Inc.

9. “All our dreams can come true – if we have the courage to pursue them.” – Walt Disney, Founder of The Walt Disney Company

10. “Business opportunities are like buses, there’s always another one coming.” – Richard Branson, Founder of Virgin Group

11. “There are two types of people who will tell you that you cannot make a difference in this world: those who are afraid to try and those who are afraid you will succeed.” — Ray Goforth

12. “I learned to never kick someone when they’re down. Everyone makes mistakes, and some are real whoppers. But that makes them whopping opportunities, too.” — Jack Welsh

13. “You need to have a culture instead of a payroll so that people watch themselves. What does this? Not money, but enhanced self-esteem.” — Steve Wynn

14. “Successful people do what unsuccessful people are not willing to do. Don’t wish it were easier; wish you were better.” — Jim Rohn

15. “Stop chasing the money and start chasing the passion.” — Tony Hsieh

16. “Would you like me to give you a formula for success? It’s quite simple, really: Double your rate of failure. You are thinking of failure as the enemy of success. But it isn’t at all. You can be discouraged by failure, or you can learn from it, so go ahead and make mistakes. Make all you can. Because remember that’s where you will find success.” — Thomas J. Watson

17. “People who succeed have momentum. The more they succeed, the more they want to succeed, and the more they find a way to succeed. Similarly, when someone is failing, the tendency is to get on a downward spiral that can even become a self-fulfilling prophecy.” — Tony Robbins

18. “Don’t be distracted by criticism. Remember–the only taste of success some people get is to take a bite out of you.” — Zig Ziglar

19. “The secret of success is to do the common thing uncommonly well.” — John D. Rockefeller Jr.

20. “You know you are on the road to success if you would do your job, and not be paid for it.” — Oprah Winfrey

21. “If someone is out in the desert walking around, they’re going to be thirsty. You just have to ask them what they want to drink.” — Arthur Blank

22. “I never did anything worth doing by accident, nor did any of my inventions come indirectly through accident, except the phonograph. No, when I have fully decided that a result is worth getting, I go about it, and make trial after trial, until it comes.” — Thomas Edison

23. “If you just work on stuff that you like and you’re passionate about, you don’t have to have a master plan with how things will play out.” — Mark Zuckerberg

24. “Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.” — Helen Keller

25. “It’s more effective to do something valuable than to hope a logo or name will say it for you.” — Jason Cohen

Related: The 100 Best Money Quotes of All Time

26. “No matter how brilliant your mind or strategy, if you’re playing a solo game, you’ll always lose out to a team.” — Reid Hoffman

27. “Embrace what you don’t know, especially in the beginning, because what you don’t know can become your greatest asset. It ensures that you will absolutely be doing things different from everybody else.” — Sara Blakely

28. “So often people are working hard at the wrong thing. Working on the right thing is probably more important than working hard.” — Caterina Fake

29. “I think that the most important issue that will reshape our lives in the years ahead will be how man-made and artificial intelligence compete and work together.” — Ray Dalio

30. “Sometimes the best way to make money is when most people say you are wrong and nuts.” — Carl Icahn

31. “Most people fail in science because they talk themselves out of doing the experiment. Ideas are a dime a dozen. What makes the difference is the execution of the idea.” — Craig Venter

32. “Risk more than others think is safe. Dream more than others think is practical.” — Howard Schultz

33. “It doesn’t matter how many times you fail. It doesn’t matter how many times you almost get it right. No one is going to know or care about your failures, and neither should you. All you have to do is learn from them and those around you because all that matters in business is that you get it right once. Then everyone can tell you how lucky you are.” — Mark Cuban

34. “An entrepreneur is someone who has a vision for something and a want to create.” — David Karp

35. “You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, I lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along. You must do the thing you think you cannot do.” — Eleanor Roosevelt

36. “The most dangerous poison is the feeling of achievement. The antidote is to every evening think what can be done better tomorrow.” — Ingvar Kamprad

37. “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do.” — Steve Jobs

38. “The stars will never align, and the traffic lights of life will never all be green at the same time. The universe doesn’t conspire against you, but it doesn’t go out of its way to line up the pins either. Conditions are never perfect. ‘Someday’ is a disease that will take your dreams to the grave with you. Pro and con lists are just as bad. If it’s important to you and you want to do it ‘eventually,’ just do it and correct course along the way.” — Tim Ferriss

39. “If you can push through that feeling of being scared, that feeling of taking a risk, really amazing things can happen.” — Marissa Mayer

40. “What do you need to start a business? Three simple things: know your product better than anyone, know your customer, and have a burning desire to succeed.” — Dave Thomas

41. “Play by the rules, but be ferocious.” Phil Knight

42. “If people like you, they’ll listen to you, but if they trust you, they’ll do business with you.” — Zig Ziglar

43.“There’s no shortage of remarkable ideas, what’s missing is the will to execute them.” — Seth Godin

44. “Failure defeats losers, failure inspires winners.” Robert T. Kiyosaki

45. “A goal is a dream with a deadline.” Napoleon Hill

46. “Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it.” Henry David Thoreau

47. “If you’re competitor-focused, you have to wait until there is a competitor doing something. Being customer-focused allows you to be more pioneering.” Jeff Bezos

48. “Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can’t lose.” – Bill Gates

49. Don’t be afraid to give up the good to go for the great.” John D. Rockefeller

50. “Don’t worry about being successful but work toward being significant and the success will naturally follow.” Oprah Winfrey

Do you have a favorite quote about business? If so, share it with us on social media.

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24 Comments

  1. Danielle Ogilve says:

    Change before you have to! I love that so much!

    1. I do too. It’s so true!

  2. Josh Steinberg says:

    Hey Deacon,

    My favorite is #33. I love Mark Cuban, and I love this quote.

    1. Me too, because it’s so true. I believe failure isn’t total if you learn from it. Then just use what you learn and keep trying until you succeed!

  3. Kate Wolwort says:

    Steve Jobs is such an inspiration for all of us.

    1. Indeed, he is! Thanks for dropping by!

  4. I’m a big Richard Branson fan, so it’s great to see him on here.

  5. I’m so glad that I read this today. This is great Monday or any day stuff!
    I agree with lots of the comments above. I really like Richard Branson. Opportunties are always there if you choose to see them.

  6. Glen @ Monster Piggy Bank says:

    These actually make me feel like I should be doing so much more with my life :s
    I guess I should get started – there is no time like the present.

  7. Brent Pittman says:

    These are great quotes! They make me want to read more biographies to glean from their wisdom.

    1. I know what you mean. Biographies are a great resource to learn from those who have been successful in life.

  8. Melissa@LittleHouseintheValley says:

    I love quotes #3 and #9. They hold such important lessons.

    Thanks for an interesting round up.

  9. These are great quotes! Here are a few inspirational quotes:
    The ability to concentrate and to use your time well is everything if you want to succeed in business–or almost anywhere else for that matter.
    Lee Iacocca

    Every ceiling, when reached, becomes a floor, upon which one walks as a matter of course and prescriptive right.
    Aldous Huxley

    It is not enough to take steps which may some day lead to a goal; each step must be itself a goal and a step likewise.
    Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

    Who aims at excellence will be above mediocrity; who aims at mediocrity will be far short of it.
    Burmese Saying

  10. Ryan @ Planwise says:

    I hope to be quoted one day…. =D

  11. AverageJoe says:

    My favorite quote I don’t espouse: “This is business….if you want a friend, buy a dog.” – Gordon Gecko, Wall Street. It makes me laugh, though.

  12. Money Bulldog says:

    These are great quotes! I’m a big Richard Branson fan so it’s great to see him on here.

    1. Richard Branson has some great insight. I always enjoy learning from people that have been successful and that are willing to share what they have learned with the rest of the world.

  13. Tackling Our Debt says:

    These are excellent quotes! I love them all – especially the one from Walmart.

    1. I love that one too! It is amazing how much power the customer has. If the customer decides to go somewhere else, than that business needs to step up it’s game or it will be out of business.

  14. I love the Confucius one. It’s so true. There is one that I like to, and will try to, poorly translate that says “The one who starts first hits twice”, meaning that if you are the first to launch a successful business, even though competitors come after you, you will always be a reference in your market.

  15. Carrie Smith says:

    “We are the sum total of the five people we spend the most time with” – Jim Rohn

    I’m a big fan of Jim Rohn’s quotes but especially this one since we always need to remind ourselves to be surrounded by people who inspire and motivate us. We should also surround ourselves with people who are positive and encourage us and our work!

    1. That is a good one and so true as well!

  16. Pete Sveen says:

    Write down your goals for the day and then GET STUFF DONE! – Pete Sveen

    1. That’s a nice one Pete! Goal setting is key to getting things done!