Progress: 1 word, 8 letters and infinite possibilities.
Progress is what pushes you forward towards your ultimate destination. It advances you closer and closer towards your goals. Some think that progress has to be a gigantic leap, but really, progress is any small step you take in the right direction.
Along your journey, you may feel like you’re not progressing fast enough or keeping up with those around you. But we’re here to tell you that’s okay—because even if you’re only making a little progress, you’re still progressing.
Today, we’re sharing 150 inspiring progress quotes to help keep you motivated and moving forward.
The 10 Most Popular Progress Quotes
Any way forward is progress. When you feel your progress wavering, take a look at these top progress quotes to help keep you motivated.
1. “Do not confuse motion and progress. A rocking horse keeps moving but does not make any progress.”
— Alfred Montapert
2. “It doesn’t matter where you come from. It only matters where you are and where you want to go.”
— Dean Graziosi
3. “If you don’t design your own life plan, chances are you’ll fall into someone else’s plan. And guess what they have planned for you? Not much.”
— Jim Rohn
4. “For time and the world do not stand still. Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or the present are certain to miss the future.”
— John F. Kennedy
5. “Never look back unless you are planning to go that way.”
— Henry David Thoreau
6. “Knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every society, in every family.”
— Kofi Annan
7. “Once you know where you want to go, you can start taking action steps towards the best year of your life, which will evolve into the best 10 years of your life, and ultimately to the best rest of your life.”
— Dean Graziosi
8. “A little progress every day adds up to big results.”
— Satya Nani
9. “Courage means to keep making forward progress while you still feel afraid.”
— Joyce Meyer
10. “Always be a work in progress.”
— Emily Lillian
Inspirational Quotes About Progress
Progress requires inspiration. When you feel your tanking running on empty, keep these inspirational quotes in mind.
11. “We can each define ambition and progress for ourselves. The goal is to work toward a world where expectations are not set by the stereotypes that hold us back, but by our personal passion, talents and interests.”
— Sheryl Sandberg
12. “Progress lies not in enhancing what is, but in advancing toward what will be.”
— Khalil Gibran
13. “You cannot change your destination overnight, but you can change your direction overnight.”
— Jim Rohn
14. “We all want progress, but if you’re on the wrong road, progress means doing an about-turn and walking back to the right road; in that case, the man who turns back soonest is the most progressive.”
— C. S. Lewis
15. “Start realizing your true worth and know that you can evolve in the direction you choose.”
— Dean Graziosi
16. “My two favorite things in life are libraries and bicycles. They both move people forward without wasting anything. The perfect day: riding a bike to the library.”
— Peter Golkin
17. “The wise are like a river; they go forward and upward, never backward or downward.”
― Matshona Dhliwayo
18. “Don’t do what you sincerely don’t want to do. Never confuse movement with action.”
— Ernest Hemingway
19. “Do it now; or later may become never.”
― Dean Graziosi
20. “Once you make a decision, the universe conspires to make it happen.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson
21. “Energy and persistence conquer all things.”
— Benjamin Franklin
22. “Anything is possible when you have a path, a plan and a desire to take action.”
— Dean Graziosi
23. “It’s the same each time with progress. First they ignore you, then they say you’re mad, then dangerous, then there’s a pause and then you can’t find anyone who disagrees with you.”
— Tony Benn
24. “Slow, steady progress is better than daily excuses.”
— Robin Sharma
25. “Be more impressed with the height of your passion and enthusiasm than the depth of your knowledge.”
― Dean Graziosi
Life Quotes for When Progress Seems Impossible
Even just a little progress is forward progress. When life seems impossible, focus on the light at the end of the tunnel. If that light seems less-than-bright, remember these quotes.
26. Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.
— George Bernard Shaw
27. When everything seems to be going against you, remember that the airplane takes off against the wind, not with it.
— Henry Ford
28. “When you focus on the outcome rather than the obstacle, your life will never be the same.”
― Dean Graziosi
29. “The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”
— Nelson Mandela
30. “Bad times have a scientific value. These are occasions a good learner would not miss.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson
31. “March on. Do not tarry. To go forward is to move toward perfection. March on, and fear not the thorns, or the sharp stones on life’s path.”
— Khalil Gibran
32. “Do not fear mistakes. You will know failure. Continue to reach out.”
— Benjamin Franklin
33. “The world hates change, yet it is the only thing that has brought progress.”
— Charles Kettering
34. “A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing.”
— George Bernard Shaw
35. “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.”
— Thomas Edison
36. “Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.”
— Henry Ford
37. “Don’t let life discourage you; everyone who got where they are had to begin where they were.”
— Richard L. Evans
38. “Character consists of what you do on the third and fourth tries.”
— James A. Michener
39. “You just can’t beat the person who won’t give up.”
— Babe Ruth
40. “You do what you can for as long as you can, and when you finally can’t, you do the next best thing. You back up but you don’t give up.”
— Chuck Yeager
Quotes for When You’re a Work in Progress
We are all works in progress, constantly searching for new opportunities to learn and grow. When you feel alone in your progress, take a look at these famous faces who continued to work on themselves throughout their lives.
41. “If you’re walking down the right path and you’re willing to keep walking, eventually you’ll make progress.”
— Barack Obama
42. “We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.”
— Albert Einstein
43. “If there is no struggle, there is no progress.”
— Frederick Douglass
44. “All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make the better.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson
45. “Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.”
— Jim Rohn
46. “Those who dare to fail miserably can achieve greatly.”
— John F. Kennedy
47. “Do whatever you’re doing the best you can, knowing there’s a bigger horizon.”
― Dean Graziosi
48. “No matter how many mistakes you make or how slow you progress, you are still way ahead of everyone who isn’t trying.”
— Tony Robbins
49. “A person with a clear purpose will make progress on even the roughest road. A person with no purpose will make no progress on even the smoothest road.”
— Thomas Carlyle
50. “Human beings are works in progress that mistakenly think they’re finished. The person you are right now is as transient, as fleeting and as temporary as all the people you’ve ever been. The one constant in our lives is change.”
— Daniel Gilbert
51. “A work-in-progress generates its own energy field. You, the artist or entrepreneur, are pouring love into the work; you are suffusing it with passion and intention and hope.”
— Steven Pressfield
52. “Think about how long it took for the mountains to get there and look so beautiful. Think about how long it takes for this tree over us to grow. We’re so impatient. Think about it. This leaf here took forever to become that perfect leaf. We’re that. We’re works in progress. That’s actually being alive.”
— Daphne Zuniga
53. “Fall in love with the process and the results will come.”
― Dean Graziosi
54. “We are always works in progress. You will hurt people you love, and help people you detest. This is called being a human and it happens to everyone.”
— Adam Savage
55. “Start thinking of yourself as an artist and your life as a work-in-progress. Works-in-progress are never perfect. But changes can be made… Art evolves. So does life. Art is never stagnant. Neither is life. The beautiful, authentic life you are creating for yourself and those you love is your art. It’s the highest art.”
— Sarah Ban Breathnach
56. “Knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every society, in every family.”
— Kofi Annan
57. “Life is a succession of lessons which must be lived to be understood. All is riddle, and the key to a riddle is another riddle.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson
58. “Our ambition should be to rule ourselves, the true kingdom for each one of us; and true progress is to know more, and be more and to do more.”
— Oscar Wilde
59. “Successful people, whether they’re working for somebody else or working for themselves, do whatever they do to the best of their ability ― as if the boss is watching them every minute of every day.”
― Dean Graziosi
60. “Finished ought to be an F-word for all of us. We are all works in progress. Each day presents an opportunity to learn more, do more, be more, grow more in our lives and careers.”
— Reid Hoffman & Ben Casnocha
61. “Believing in progress does not mean believing that any progress has yet been made.”
— Franz Kafka
62. “The most important thing I think we need to remember is that we’re a work in progress. Do not be ashamed or afraid to ask for help. That’s what I did. I asked for help.”
— Carnie Wilson
63. “It’s a big theme in my life, learning about myself and being a better person. I’m a work in progress; I have revelations every day.”
— Rick Rubin
64. “I try to give myself permission to be a work-in-progress and not have everything figured out at once. It’s more manageable and takes some of the pressure off of feeling like I have to have everything right all the time.”
— Jewel
65. “We are all forever a work in progress. I mean, that is the truth. You are forever in your whole life a work in progress, and forever there is a 12-year-old that’s driving in to work with you every day. And you are still on the school playground and you are still whatever it is in college or you are still wondering why someone didn’t return your call or ask you out.”
— Sherry Lansing
Motivational Quotes for When You Need to Keep Progressing
If you’re on a path to progress, it’s easy to become unmotivated. But have a look at these motivational quotes to help keep you motivated!
66. “You don’t make progress by standing on the sidelines, whimpering and complaining. You make progress by implementing ideas.”
— Shirley Chisholm
67. “Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not to stop questioning.”
— Albert Einstein
68. “People might not get all they work for in this world, but they must certainly work for all they get.”
— Frederick Douglass
69. “Either you run the day or the day runs you.”
— Jim Rohn
70. “If you tell yourself you can’t, you won’t.”
― Dean Graziosi
71. “Yesterday is but today’s memory, and tomorrow is today’s dream.”
— Khalil Gibran
72. “Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement, and success have no meaning.”
— Benjamin Franklin
73. “Keep on going and the chances are you will stumble on something, perhaps when you are least expecting it. I have never heard of anyone stumbling on something sitting down.”
— Charles Kettering
74. “Celebrate what you’ve accomplished, but raise the bar a little higher each time you succeed.”
— Mia Hamm
75. “You are always a student, never a master. You have to keep moving forward.”
— Conrad Hall
76. “Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.”
— Albert Einstein
77. “We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we’re curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.”
— Walt Disney
78. “Success seems to be connected with action. Successful people keep moving. They make mistakes, but they don’t quit.”
— Conrad Hilton
79. “Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.”
— Thomas Edison
80. “I’m telling you, as a guy who has been at the lowest lows you can get to, and some of the highest highs, I actually did some of my best work when I was down and out and no one expected anything from me.”
― Dean Graziosi
81. “It is the set of the sails, not the direction of the wind that determines which way we will go.”
— Jim Rohn
82. “We should not judge people by their peak of excellence; but by the distance they have traveled from the point where they started.”
— Henry Ward Beecher
83. “What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.”
— Jane Goodall
84. “Stay afraid, but do it anyway. What’s important is the action. You don’t have to wait to be confident. Just do it and eventually the confidence will follow.”
— Carrie Fisher
85. “One can choose to go back toward safety or forward toward growth. Growth must be chosen again and again; fear must be overcome again and again.”
— Abraham Maslow
86. “Don’t go through life, grow through life.”
— Eric Butterworth
87. “It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all – in which case, you fail by default.”
— J.K. Rowling
88. “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
— H. Jackson Brown Jr.
89. “In life, you can have an excuse, or you can have an obstacle that is an opportunity to learn and grow.”
— Dean Graziosi
90. “You can waste your lives drawing lines. Or you can live your life crossing them.”
— Shonda Rhimes
Quotes for When You’re Making Slow Progress
If you don’t feel like you’re making progress as quickly as you would like, don’t give up. One step can equal big results. When you leave your comfort zone, keep going.
91. “It always seems impossible until it’s done.”
— Nelson Mandela
92. “Life is a series of experiences, each one of which makes us bigger, even though sometimes it is hard to realize this. For the world was built to develop character, and we must learn that the setbacks and grieves which we endure help us in our marching onward.”
— Henry Ford
93. “Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable… Every step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering, and struggle; the tireless exertions and passionate concern of dedicated individuals.”
— Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
94. “You can’t have a better tomorrow if you are thinking about yesterday all the time.”
— Charles Kettering
95. “Always concentrate on how far you have come, rather than how far you have left to go. The difference in how easy it seems will amaze you.”
— Heidi Johnson
96. “Baby steps count, as long as you are going forward. You add them all up, and one day you look back and you’ll be surprised at where you might get to.”
— Chris Gardner
97. “In recovering from our creative blocks, it is necessary to go gently and slowly… These are baby steps. Progress, not perfection, is what we should be asking of ourselves.”
— Julia Cameron
98. “I’m a slow walker, but I never walk back.”
— Abraham Lincoln
99. “Painting is a slow process; it takes time to get there, you learn little by little and always want the next painting to be better than the last. For me, success is about this, seeing the slow progress in my work.”
— Ali Banisadr
100. “Slow, steady progress is better than daily excuses.”
— Robin Sharma
101. “When you’re really down and out and you’re at the very bottom, all you can do is look up.”
― Dean Graziosi
102. “When you encounter various trials, big or small, be full of joy. They’re opportunities to learn patience.”
— Scott Curran
103. “Patience is a key element of success.”
— Bill Gates
104. “Some quit due to slow progress. Never grasping the fact that slow progress is progress.”
— Jeff Olson
105. “You will never stub your toe standing still. The faster you go, the more chance there is of stubbing your toe, but the more chance you have of getting somewhere.”
— Charles Kettering
106. “Sometimes in life we take a leap of faith. Remember, the leap is not about getting from one side to the other. It’s simply about taking the leap…and trusting the air, the universal breath, will support your wings so that you may soar.”
— Kristi Bowman
107. “Recognizing that you are not where you want to be is a starting point to begin changing your life.”
— Deborah Day
108. “Be patient with yourself. You are growing stronger every day. The weight of the world will become lighter…and you will begin to shine brighter. Don’t give up.”
— Robert Tew
109. “When you get into a tight place and everything goes against you… never give up then, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn.”
— Harriet Beecher Stowe
110. “What if I told you it’s true ― you are going faster than ever before, but you may be on a treadmill and not a ladder.”
― Dean Graziosi
111. “Trust the process. Your time is coming. Just do the work and the results will handle themselves.”
— Tony Gaskins
112. “Be not afraid of growing slowly; be afraid only of standing still.”
— Chinese Proverb
113. “You are the one that possesses the keys to your being. You carry the passport to your own happiness.”
— Diane von Furstenberg
114. “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.”
— Winston Churchill
115. “Someone is sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.”
— Warren Buffett
Love Quotes to Power Your Progress
“I love you!” Those 3 simple words can turn your entire day around. Take a look at these quotes about love and compassion to power your progress.
116. “We cannot seek achievement for ourselves and forget about progress and prosperity for our community… Our ambitions must be broad enough to include the aspirations and needs of others, for their sakes and for our own.”
— Cesar Chavez
117. “Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress; working together is success.”
— Helen R. Martin
118. “Progress only happens with change, and people love something different.”
— Tessa Blanchard
119. “We should learn to live and love our neighbors as ourselves for the sake of peace and progress.”
— David McCallum
120. “I would just encourage my younger self to not care about people’s perceptions and to love myself fully and to keep progressing and striving for what you are going to become.”
— Ashton Sanders
121. Monetary success is not success. Career success is not success. Life, someone that loves you, giving to others, doing something that makes you feel complete and full. That is success. And it isn’t dependent on anyone else.
— James Avery
122. “Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.”
— Albert Schweitzer
123. “He has achieved success who has worked well, laughed often and loved much.”
— Elbert Hubbard
124. “Success comes from taking the initiative and following up… persisting… eloquently expressing the depth of your love. What simple action could you take today to produce a new momentum toward success in your life?”
— Tony Robbins
125. “Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.”
— Lao Tzu
Quotes About Procrastination: The Enemy of Progress
Progress has 2 enemies: perfectionism and procrastination. Of the 2, procrastination can sidetrack your self-improvement and discourage your efforts. When procrastination is getting the best of you, remember these progress quotes.
126. “Procrastination is the art of keeping up with yesterday.”
— Don Marquis
127. “If what you are doing is not moving you towards your goals, then it’s moving you away from your goals.”
— Brian Tracy
128. “Procrastination can be categorized as the habit, and that habit, if continued repeatedly and turned into a lifestyle, transforms into a bad habit that can pull us back from progress and delay our success.”
— Mark Thomas
129. “Doubt increases with inaction. Clarity reveals itself in momentum. Growth comes from progress. For all these reasons, BEGIN.”
— Brendon Burchard
130. “Procrastination makes easy things hard, hard things harder.”
— Mason Cooley
131. “Procrastination is like a credit card: it’s a lot of fun until you get the bill.”
— Christopher Parker
132. “In a moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing to do, the next best thing is the wrong thing and the worst thing you can do is nothing.”
— Theodore Roosevelt
133. “Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle.”
— Unknown
134. “Don’t put off for tomorrow what you can do today because if you enjoy it today, you can do it again tomorrow.”
— James A. Michener
135. “It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare, it is because we do not dare that they are difficult.”
— Lucius Annaeus Seneca
Success Quotes to Encourage Your Progress
When your progress dwindles, sometimes all you need is a few words of encouragement. Take a look at these positive affirmations to help jumpstart your success!
136. “Before everything else, getting ready is the secret of success.”
— Henry Ford
137. “If there is any one secret of success, it lies in the ability to get the other person’s point of view and see things from that person’s angle as well as from your own.”
— Henry Ford
138. “Whatever your life’s work is, do it well. A man should do his job so well that the living, the dead and the unborn could do it no better.”
— Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
139. “Success is steady progress toward one’s personal goals.”
— Jim Rohn
140. “Success is a science; if you have the conditions, you get the result.”
— Oscar Wilde
141. “Determine a single measure that you can use to grade your progress and success in each area of your life. Refer to it daily.”
— Brian Tracy
142. “Don’t aim for success if you want it; just do what you love and believe in, and it will come naturally.”
— David Frost
143. “Think twice before you speak, because your words and influence will plant the seed of either success or failure in the mind of another.”
— Napoleon Hill
144. “However difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at.”
— Stephen Hawking
145. “The price of success is hard work, dedication to the job at hand, and the determination that whether we win or lose, we have applied the best of ourselves to the task at hand.”
— Vince Lombardi
146. “Desire is the key to motivation, but it’s determination and commitment to an unrelenting pursuit of your goal – a commitment to excellence – that will enable you to attain the success you seek.”
— Mario Andretti
147. “Success isn’t a result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire.”
— Arnold H. Glasow
148. “Success consists of getting up just one more time than you fall.”
— Oliver Goldsmith
149. “Success is how high you bounce when you hit bottom.”
— George S. Patton
150. “Goal-setting is arguably the most important step to success.”
― Dean Graziosi
Which Progress Quotes Were Your Favorite?
Did any of these progress quotes really stand out to you? If so, jot them down for later! Don’t be afraid to put your favorite inspirational quotes on slips of paper to keep in your wallet or phone case.
Or, turn a motivational quote into your phone background or computer screensaver.
Surround yourself with progress and positivity, and you’ll find progress and positivity come to you in return.
If you’re feeling inspired, text “#QuoteofTheDay” to Dean at 480-400-9019 and mention the word “blog.”
Your text will go straight to Dean’s personal cell (seriously)!
