Motivational quotes
Twenty short motivational quotes about starting, small steps, habits and trying again, each with who said it and where it comes from. Pick one, write it down and use it for a week.
Updated 21 October 2026. Sources named on the page.
- Twenty quotes, each with the person and the source
- Grouped by starting, habits, falling and trying again, and courage
- How to use one a day without scrolling
- Free, and nothing you type is saved or sent
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Quotes about starting and small steps
“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” Laozi, Tao Te Ching, chapter 64, in translation.
“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before beginning to improve the world.” Anne Frank, 'Give!', 26 March 1944, in Tales from the Secret Annex.
“Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become.” James Clear, Atomic Habits, 2018.
“Begin with the end in mind.” Stephen R. Covey, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, 1989.
“Small things often.” John and Julie Gottman, The Love Prescription, 2022 (the title of its introduction).
“The tree which fills the arms grew from the tiniest sprout; the tower of nine storeys rose from a small heap of earth.” Laozi, Tao Te Ching, chapter 64, tr. James Legge, 1891.
Quotes about habits
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy, 1926 (summing up Aristotle; often credited to Aristotle himself).
“All our life, so far as it has definite form, is but a mass of habits.” William James, Talks to Teachers on Psychology, 1899, 'The Laws of Habit'.
“Moral virtue comes about as a result of habit.” Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics, book 2, tr. W. D. Ross.
“You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.” James Clear, Atomic Habits, 2018.
“How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.” Annie Dillard, The Writing Life, 1989.
“If you want to change the world, start off by making your bed.” William H. McRaven, University of Texas at Austin commencement address, 2014.
Quotes about falling and trying again
“Fall seven times, stand up eight.” Japanese proverb, Proverb.
“Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.” Samuel Beckett, Worstward Ho, 1983.
“Almost all good writing begins with terrible first efforts.” Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird, 1994.
“It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all.” J. K. Rowling, Harvard commencement address, 2008.
Quotes about courage and learning
“I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it.” Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom, 1994.
“Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not absence of fear.” Mark Twain, Pudd'nhead Wilson, 1894, chapter 12 epigraph (Pudd'nhead Wilson's Calendar).
“Grit is sticking with your future, day in, day out, not just for the week, not just for the month, but for years.” Angela Duckworth, TED2013 talk Grit: The power of passion and perseverance.
“In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert's there are few.” Shunryu Suzuki, Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind, 1970.
How to use a motivational quote
A quote does nothing on its own. Choose one that fits a small thing you are about to do, write it on a note or at the top of today's page, and read it when you start. Change it after a week, or keep it if it still fits.
Pick by what you need today
If you are putting something off, start with the lines about beginning and small steps. If a habit has slipped, try the ones about falling and trying again. If something frightens you, the lines on courage say the fear is allowed to be there.
Make it a daily habit
Reading a line is easy to forget. Pair it with something you already do, such as the first coffee, and write one sentence about what it means for today. The Daily Journal shows a new card each day, with the source, and keeps your own lines private.
About the sources
Quotes spread without their origins, and many are credited to the wrong person. Each line here names the book, speech or proverb it comes from, so you can check it. If a line is a translation, the table says so.
Questions
What is a good motivational quote for starting something?
"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step" (Laozi, Tao Te Ching, in translation) is the best known, and "Small things often" (John and Julie Gottman, The Love Prescription, 2022) is a shorter one.
How do I use a quote so it helps?
Pick one for one small task, write it down where you will see it, and change it after a week. A line you read once is forgotten; a line beside the task is used.
Are these quotes checked?
Each one has a named speaker and a source in the table. Translations are marked as translations.
Can I get a new quote every day?
Yes. The Daily Journal shows a new card each day with its source, and the first three habits are free.
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