The Top 13 Inspirational Quotes I Shared with Students As An Ivy League Professor

When I was a college professor I wanted my classes to be different. So every day I started class with a quote that linked to the topic of the day to set the stage for what was to come before I launched into my lecture.

After 20 minutes I paused my lectures for half-time where I shared a real world example or mini-case study that revealed the relevance of what we were discussing. Class ended with a call back to the quote from the start to tie it all together.

As a result of having used that process for a decade at the University of Illinois and Cornell University where I was often teaching four or more classes each semester, I accumulated a large library of quotes.

So, when a Get Your Message Heard podcast listener recently asked me about my favorite quotes, little did he know that answering the question was anything but easy. It felt a bit like being asked which of my grandchildren I like best.

Despite the difficulty of sorting through all those quotes that have different meaning and bring back various memories, I decided to share a few of my most used quotes with you. These are the ones I read often in the Evernote file where they reside and share frequently in messages I deliver for clients.

They may have value for you as you strive to create impact with your ideas and get your message heard.

• Earl Nightingale keeps me focused: "We become what we think about."
• Abraham Lincoln reminds me how to live the best life I can in the service of others: "I do the very best I know how-the very best I can; and I mean to keep doing so until the end. If the end brings me out all right, what is said against me won't amount to anything. If the end brings me out wrong, ten angels swearing I was right would make no difference."
• Dixie Gillespie challenges me to live up to my potential: "It is one of the most ironic truths about the human creature: he is unable to measure his own potential, therefore he believes it to be limited."
• Zig Ziglar helps me keep gratitude front and center: "Gratitude is the healthiest of all human emotions. The more you express gratitude for what you have, the more likely you will have even more to express gratitude for."
• Jim Rohn guides me through the difficult times: "Don’t wish it was easier, wish you were better. Don’t wish for less problems, wish for more skills. Don’t wish for less challenge, wish for more wisdom."
• Jim Rohn also never lets me forget that I am the only one who can change the things that aren’t working: "If you don't like how things are, change it! You're not a tree."
• James Allen coaches me when I am struggling with over-thinking and not taking action: "A man has to learn that he cannot command things, but that he can command himself; that he cannot coerce the wills of others, but that he can mold and master his own will: and things serve him who serves Truth; people seek guidance of him who is master of himself."
• James Allen also keeps me thinking bigger and dreaming about what is possible: "Dream lofty dreams, and as you dream, so you shall become. Your vision is the promise of what you shall one day be; your ideal is the prophecy of what you shall at last unveil."
• John Maynard Keynes helps me remember that I need to leave the old behind in order to pursue the new: "The difficulty lies not so much in developing new ideas as in escaping from old ones."
• Confucius pushes me to pursue excellence: "The will to win, the desire to succeed, the urge to reach your full potential... these are the keys that will unlock the door to personal excellence."
• Jonathan Swift reinforces the power and necessity of vision: "Vision is the art of seeing what is invisible to others."
• Less Brown helps me remember the reality of time: "In every day, there are 1,440 minutes. That means we have 1,440 daily opportunities to make a positive impact."
• Mark Victor Hansen supports my quest to connect with and serve the right people: "The only thing that matters is engaging with people who care about things that matter that will make a meaningful difference in the world."

What is your favorite quote and how do you use it to increase your impact? Please share this post on social media using the buttons below, include your quote, and tag me so I can learn what you’ve found works for you.