57 Quotes On Achieving Greatness

In a world where success is often measured by tangible accomplishments, the pursuit of greatness stands as a beacon for those who strive to exceed ordinary limits. Greatness isn’t merely about achieving significant goals; it's about the journey, the mindset, and the relentless spirit that propels us forward. Quotes have long served as powerful reminders of the principles that guide us on this path. They encapsulate wisdom from thinkers, leaders, and visionaries who have walked before us, offering insights that inspire and motivate. In this collection, you’ll find 57 thoughtfully curated quotes that capture the essence of striving for greatness, each one a testament to the resilience and determination required to truly excel. Whether you're seeking inspiration for personal growth, professional success, or both, let these words serve as a catalyst to ignite your inner drive and fuel your journey towards achieving greatness.

1. “The greatness comes not when things go always good for you. But the greatness comes when you're really tested, when you take some knocks, some disappointments, when sadness comes. Because only if you've been in the deepest valley can you ever know how magnificent it is to be on the highest mountain.” - Richard Nixon

2. “Until you're ready to look foolish, you'll never have the possibility of being great. ” - Cher

3. “[I]f we revert to history, we shall find that the women who have distinguished themselves have neither been the most beautiful nor the most gentle of their sex.” - Mary Wollstonecraft

4. “Robert G. Ingersoll was a great man. a wonderful intellect, a great soul of matchless courage, one of the great men of the earth -- and yet we have no right to bow down to his memory simply because he was great. Great orators, great soldiers, great lawyers, often use their gifts for a most unholy cause. We meet to pay a tribute of love and respect to Robert G. Ingersoll because he used his matchless power for the good of man.{Darrow's eulogy for Ingersoll at his funeral}” - Clarence Darrow

5. “In my opinion, if, as the result of certain combinations, Kepler's or Newton's discoveries could become known to people in no other way than by sacrificing the lives of one, or ten, or a hundred or more people who were hindering the discovery, or standing as an obstacle in its path, then Newton would have the right, and it would even be his duty... to remove those ten or a hundred people, in order to make his discoveries known to mankind. It by no means follows from this, incidentally, that Newton should have the right to kill anyone he pleases, whomever happens along, or to steal from the market every day. Further, I recall developing in my article the idea that all... well, let's say, the lawgivers and founders of mankind, starting from the most ancient and going on to the Lycurguses, the Solons, the Muhammads, the Napoleons, and so forth, that all of them to a man were criminals, from the fact alone that in giving a new law, they thereby violated the old one, held sacred by society and passed down from their fathers, and they certainly did not stop at shedding blood either, if it happened that blood (sometimes quite innocent and shed valiantly for the ancient law) could help them.” - Fyodor Dostoevsky

6. “If you can't do great things, Mother Teresa used to say, do little things with great love. If you can't do them with great love, do them with a little love. If you can't do them with a little love, do them anyway.Love grows when people serve.” - John Ortberg

7. “Those who have the ability to be grateful are the ones who have the ability to achieve greatness.” - Steve Maraboli

8. “You were put on this earth to achieve your greatest self, to live out your purpose, and to do it courageously.” - Steve Maraboli

9. “A great man is always willing to be little.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

10. “The greatness of humanity is not in being human, but in being humane.” - Mahatma Gandhi

11. “Your greatness is revealed not by the lights that shine upon you, but by the light that shines within you.” - Ray A. Davis

12. “If a man has any greatness in him, it comes to light, not in one flamboyant hour, but in the ledger of his daily work.” - Beryl Markham

13. “Our key to greatness lies not in our ability to project ourselves to others as if we are putting ourselves onto a projector and creating an image of ourselves on a projector screen. Rather, our key to greatness lies in who we are which we can give to other people in a way that when they walk away from us, they are able to say in their hearts that they have taken away something with them quite extraordinary.” - C. JoyBell C.

14. “So many will try to destroy me. So many, over and over, coming in periods of greatness. But in this period, I cannot be broken: GAGAKLEIN.” - Lady Gaga

15. “Simplicity is the keynote of all true elegance.” - Coco Chanel

16. “You were born with potential. You were born with goodness and trust. You were born with ideals and dreams. You were born with greatness. You were born with wings. You are not meant for crawling, so don't. You have wings. Learn to use them and fly.” - Rumi

17. “I came to the Greeks early, and I found answers in them. Greece's great men let all their acts turn on the immortality of the soul. We don't really act as if we believed in the soul's immortality and that's why we are where we are today.” - Edith Hamilton

18. “The excitement of opportunity and challenge inspires us to push for greatness.” - Lorii Myers

19. “There is no one great man. Only millions of men and women in possession of tiny pieces of greatness, which when put together, when assembled in the aggregate make the whole. I am a piece of a very large jigsaw puzzle. One of the corner pieces. The one you go for first - important for a time, different from most of the others. But then, in the end, in the big picture, just one of many.” - Mark Dunn

20. “Some people are born with a fire inside them. The will to succeed. It isn’t a learned behavior. It’s just some unknown biological factor that makes them try harder.” - J.A. Konrath

21. “Easily mistaken, it is not about a love for adversity, it is about knowing a strength and a faith so great that adversity, in all its adverse manifestations, hardly even exists.” - Criss Jami

22. “In our time no one has the conception of what is great. It is up to me to show them.” - Napoleon Bonaparte

23. “Fame is a jealous mistressAnd will brook no rival.” - Tiruvalluvar

24. “Some are born great. Some achieve greatness. Some get it as a graduation gift.” - Robin Williams

25. “Are you the fruit of redemption? If yes, then make a delightful noise unto Him.” - Jaachynma N.E. Agu

26. “You may not attain the highest height with one leap but my dear; you will reach your destination.” - Jaachynma N.E. Agu

27. “God rewards every act of obedience to His Will.” - Jaachynma N.E. Agu

28. “The presence of God is so important in the life of believers. There is abundance of all you need to make your life comfortable in His presence.” - Jaachynma N.E. Agu

29. “Let your words glorify God and edify your hearers and then beautify your life.” - Jaachynma N.E. Agu

30. “Don't set your goals by what other people deem important.” - Jaachynma N.E. Agu

31. “The common man wants nothing of life but health, longevity, amusement, comfort -- "happiness." He who does not despise this should turn his eyes from world history, for it contains nothing of the sort. The best that history has created is great suffering.” - Oswald Spengler

32. “There is an enduring freshness in what remains strange and obscure which the cliches of greatness can only evoke nostalgia for.” - Bauvard

33. “remember when God has answered you, it no longer matters who has been against you but for Him to answer you and change your story, you have to make up your mind to disobey the wrong order, change the status quo and BE DIFFERENT!” - Agu, Jaachynma N.E.

34. “Don't just float through life; don't just agree to anything and everything, have a course you are known for at all times.” - Agu, Jaachynma N.E.

35. “Everyone has a calling. Thus, everyone has the chance to do something remarkable that will make hime great in the eyes of others.” - Jawe Querimit

36. “Never again will I underestimate the greatness inside of me just because of the hate and limited thinking inside of others.” - Steve Maraboli

37. “Every time I create something, whether an idea or a work of art, initially, its supposed completion seems absolutely perfect to me. However the more I think about it, stare it down, the more it marinates in my soul over the hours, days, and weeks, the more flaws I start to find in it; and finally, the more I'm pressed to continue enhancing it. It essentially turns out that whatever thing a flawed and imperfect, human eye once thought was amazing begins to appear quite wretched. This is why, eternally, God cannot be impressed by mere talents or by mortal achievements. To perfect eyes, I imagine that great is not really that great; rather, humility is ultimately a human being's true greatness.” - Criss Jami

38. “The great would not think themselves demigods if the little did not worship them.” - Pierre-Claude-Victor Boiste

39. “God is great, God is faithful".~R. Alan Woods [2103]” - R. Alan Woods

40. “An average man is egoistic, proud and has strong self esteem. They always require partners who massage their ego not those who will drag their ego to the mud.” - Agu, Jaachynma N.E.

41. “An intelligent woman is a goldmine! She has the ability to learn, reason and understand things better and faster than her contemporaries. She is competent, alert and can reason out stuffs easily.” - Agu, Jaachynma N.E.

42. “A responsible woman sees and accepts only the best in a given situation.” - Agu, Jaachynma N.E.

43. “A responsible woman doesn’t see opportunities and needs and look the other way pretending not to see them rather she gets to work to ensure things are done properly and her man succeeds in his endeavours.” - Agu, Jaachynma N.E.

44. “Only adversity provides the opportunity for greatness.” - Wayde Goodall

45. “Greatness consists not in the holding of some future office, but really consists in doing great deeds with little means and the accomplishment of vast purposes from the private rants of life. To be great at all one must be great here, now, in Philadelphia.” - Russell H. Conwell

46. “Don`t descend to the lowest ebb.” - Agu Jaachynma N E

47. “Don`t turn around in circles for making circles do not equate making progress.” - Agu Jaachynma N E

48. “Forget yesterday, Act on Today and Get a hold on tomorrow.” - Agu Jaachynma N E

49. “Life is beautiful if you take the best option.” - Agu Jaachynma N E

50. “There is seed time and harvest, choose to sow at the right time so as to have a bountiful harvest.” - Jaachynma N.E. Agu

51. “Choices, options, decisions abound. Choose right, take the best option and decide well.” - Jaachynma N.E. Agu

52. “You have been called to a life of blessing, don`t descend to that of curses.” - Jaachynma N.E. Agu

53. “Relish what is good and expedient.” - Jaachynma N.E. Agu

54. “Accept responsibilities for all your actions. Learn from your past and your mistakes.” - Agu Jaachynma N E

55. “Desire to give and not always receive.” - Jaachynma N.E. Agu

56. “Tom's cowardice was as huge as his courage, as it must be in great men.” - John Steinbeck

57. “Children get food shelter pocket money longholidays and love, all of it apparently free gratis, and most of the little fools think it's a sort of compensation for having been born. 'There are no strings on me!' They sang; but I, pinnoccio, saw the strings. Parents are impelled by the profit motive - nothing more, nothing less. For their attentions, they expected, from me, the immense dividend of greatness.” - Salman Rushdie