Vince Lombardi Quotes

The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack in will.

Once you learn to quit, it becomes a habit.

Winning isn't everything--but wanting to win is.

Gentlemen, we will chase perfection, and we will chase it relentlessly, knowing all the while we can never attain it. But along the way, we shall catch excellence.

The dictionary is the only place that success comes before work. work is the key to success, and hard work can help you accomplish anything.

It's not whether you got knocked down; it's whether you get back up.

Practice does not make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect.

The real glory is being knocked to your knees and then coming back. That's real glory. Thats the essence of it.

Winning is a habit. Unfortunately so is losing.

The man on top of the mountain didn't fall there.

football is like life - it requires perserverance, self-denial, hard work, sacrifice, dedication and respect for authority.

I firmly believe that any man's finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle - victorious."

Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence

We didn't lose the game; we just ran out of time.

Life's battles don't always go to the stronger or faster man. But sooner or later, the man who wins is the man who thinks he can.

Success is never final. Failure is never fatal. It s courage that counts.

the harder you work,the harder it is to surrender.

Confidence is contagious. So is lack of confidence.

Leaders aren't born, they are made. They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve any goal which is worthwhile.

Individual commitment to a group effort -- that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work.

We would accomplish many more things if we did not think of them as impossible

Winners never quit and quitters never win

If you aren't fired with enthusiasm, you will be fired with enthusiasm.

If a man is running down the street with everything you own, you won't let him get away. That's tackling.

If you can accept losing, you can't win.

You've got to keep yourself in prime physical condition, because fatigue makes cowards of us all.

Winning isn’t everything; it’s just the ONLY thing.

In great attemps it is glorious even to fail

Perfection is not attainable,” he used to say, quoting Vince Lombardi. “But if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence.

When you go into the end zone, act like you've been there before.

Some of us will do our jobs well and some will not, but we will be judged by only one thing-the result

Winning is not a sometime thing; it's an all time thing. You don't win once in a while, you don't do things right once in a while, you do them right all the time. Winning is habit. Unfortunately, so is losing.

Nobody is hurt. Hurt is in the mind. If you can walk, you can run.

Gentlemen, this is the football.

A man can be as great as he wants to be. If you believe in yourself and have the courage, the determination, the dedication, the competitive drive and if you are willing to sacrifice the little things in life and pay the price for the things that are worthwhile, it can be done.

The will to win is not nearly as important as the will to prepare to win.

Errors, mistakes are the necessary steps in the learning process; once they have served their purpose, they should be forgotten. If we consistently dwell upon the errors, then the error or failure becomes the goal.

There's only one way to succeed in anything, and that is to give it everything.

I tried teeling myself that feeling guilty was just a sickness of some sort. That it was men without guilt who made progress in life. Men who were able to lie, to cheat, men who knew all the shortcuts. Cortez. He didn't fuck around. Neither did Vince Lombardi. But no matter how much I thought about it, I still felt bad.

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.

Most people fail, not because of lack of desire, but, because of lack of commitment.

Let these 2 quotes sink in. In tandem together. "A goal is not always meant to be reached, it often serves as something to aim at." - Bruce Lee "Gentlemen, we will chase perfection, and we will chase it relentlessly, knowing all the while we can never attain it. But along the way, we shall catch excellence.” - Vince Lombardi The key here is thing to take away from the tandem of these quotes is that even those you will never achieve perfection, the fact that you will aim towards unfathomable goals you will along the journey catch greatness.

The soul was not made to run on empty. But the soul doesn’t come with a gauge. The indicators of soul-fatigue are more subtle: • Things seem to bother you more than they should. Your spouse’s gum-chewing suddenly reveals to you a massive character flaw. • It’s hard to make up your mind about even a simple decision. • Impulses to eat or drink or spend or crave are harder to resist than they otherwise would be. • You are more likely to favor short-term gains in ways that leave you with high long-term costs. Israel ended up worshiping a golden calf simply because they grew tired of having to wait on Moses and God. • Your judgment is suffering. • You have less courage. “Fatigue makes cowards of us all” is a quote so ubiquitious that it has been attributed to General Patton and Vince Lombardi and Shakespeare. The same disciples who fled in fear when Jesus was crucified eventually sacrificed their lives for him. What changed was not their bodies, but their souls.

Excellence must be pursued, it must be wooed with all of one’s might and every bit of effort that we have each day there’s a new encounter, each week is a new challenge. All of the noise and all of the glamour all of the color all of the excitement all of the rings and all of the money. These are the things that linger only in the memory. But the spirit, the will to excel, the will to win, these are the things that endure.” — Vince Lombardi (The winning coach from Super Bowl I and Super Bowl II)

Some people try to find things in this game that don't exist but football is only two things - blocking and tackling.

Show me a good loser and i'll show you a loser

The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack of will.

The pursuit of perfection may be impossible, but if we chase perfection, we just might catch excellence.

Perfect Practice Makes Perfect.

Sometimes we get discouraged and turn to inspirational writing, like stuff from Vince Lombardi: “Quitters never win and winners never quit.” Bad advice. Winners quit all the time. They just quit the right stuff at the right time.

I have discovered in my life that it is more challenging to build than to maintain.

It is essential to understand that battles are primarily won in the hearts of men.

Football is a game of inches and inches make the champion

The measure of who we are is what we do with what we have.

Life’s battles don’t always go to the stronger or faster man. Sooner or later the man who wins is the man who thinks he can. ~Vince Lombardi, American Football Coach

The man on top of the mountain didn’t fall there. —VINCE LOMBARDI

The quality of a man's life is in direct proportion to his commitment to excellence, regardless of his chosen field of endeavor.

Its not whether you got knocked down, its whether you get back up.

To me, a leader is a visionary that energizes others. This definition of leadership has two key dimensions: a) creating the vision of the future, and b) inspiring others to make the vision a reality.

1. Success is a choice. -Rick Pitino 2. Success in life comes not from holding a good hand, but in playing a poor hand well. -Warren Lester 3. I shall tell you a great secret, my friend. Do not wait for the last judgment; it takes place every day. -Albert Camus 4. If you're not fired up with enthusiasm, you'll be fired with enthusiasm. -Vince Lombardi 5. There is no security on this earth; there is only opportunity. -Douglas MacArthur 6. Yesterday's the past and tomorrow's the future. Today is a gift, which is why they call it the present. -Bill Keane 7. Show me a thoroughly satisfied man and I will show you a failure. -Thomas Edison 8. When you get to the end of your rope tie a knot and hang on. -Franklin D. Roosevelt 9. The best way to predict your future is to create it. -Author unknown 10. I always remember an epitaph which is in the cemetery at Tombstone, Arizona. It says, "Here lies Jack Williams. He done his damnedest." I think that is the greatest epitaph a man can have. -Harry S Truman 11. Triumph? Try Umph! -Author unknown 12. You hit home runs not by chance but by preparation. -Roger Maris 13. If you don't have enough pride, you're going to get your butt beat every play. -Gale Sayers 14. My mother taught me very early to believe I could achieve any accomplishment I wanted to. The first was to walk without braces. -Wilma Rudolph 15. You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it. -Margaret Thatcher

As integral as religion was to his sense of self, it was not until he reached West Point and combined his spiritual discipline with Blaik’s military discipline that his coaching persona began to take its mature form. Everything he knew about organizing a team and preparing it to play its best, Lombardi said later, he learned at West Point. “It all came from Red Blaik.

Football is a great deal like life in that it teaches that work, sacrifice, perseverance, competitive drive, selflessness and respect for authority is the price that each and every one of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile.

Winning in not a sometimes thing. You don't win once in awhile... You don't do things right once in awhile... You do them right all the time. Winning is a habit.

Success demands singleness of purpose.

t is essential to understand that battles are primarily won in the hearts of men.

It's not whether you get knocked down, it's whether you get up.

Winning isn't a sometime thing; it's an all-the-time thing.

Simplicity is a form of humility, and simplicity is a sign of true greatness. Meekness is a sign of humility, and meekness is a sign of true strength.

Mental toughness is many things. Its humility, as it behooves us all to remember that simplicity is the sign of greatness, and meekness is the sign of true strength” (Vince Lombardi)

It’s easy to have faith in yourself and have discipline when you’re a winner, when you’re number one. What you got to have is faith and discipline when you’re not a winner.” —Vince Lombardi, Pro Football Hall of Fame

Have you noticed how prejudice still exists today. For instance, now they challenge famous people for their past achievements: People like Christopher Columbus and now even Vince lombardi. Nothing surprises me. I never grew-up with prejudices against anyone. I don't care what color you are or where you came from. This sort of stuff to me never made sense. You see I grew up in a "educated family." Education teaches you not to be so ignorant.

Winning isn’t everything,” Eisenhower said faintly. “Sometimes, just knowing your family’s safe and healthy and alive is even better.” “Did Vince Lombardi say that?” Reagan asked. “Or Shakespeare?” “No,” Eisenhower said. “I did.

There never was a champion who, to himself, was a good loser. There is a vast difference between a good sport and a good loser.” In Blaik’s opinion the “purpose of the game is to win. To dilute the will to win is to destroy the purpose of the game.” In this, as in most matters, he was influenced by General MacArthur. He never forgot MacArthur’s words: “There is no substitute for victory.

I remember once he began a speech to us by asking ‘What is the meaning of love?’ ” recalled Bob Skoronski. “And this is what he said. He said, ‘Anybody can love something that is beautiful or smart or agile. You will never know love until you can love something that isn’t beautiful, isn’t bright, isn’t glamorous. It takes a special person to love something unattractive, someone unknown. That is the test of love. Everybody can love someone’s strengths and somebody’s good looks. But can you accept someone for his inabilities?’ And he drew a parallel that day to football. You might have a guy playing next to you who maybe isn’t perfect, but you’ve got to love him, and maybe that love would enable you to help him. And maybe you will do something more to overcome a difficult situation in football because of that love. He didn’t want us to be picking on each other, but thinking, What can I do to make it easier for my teammate?

Sometimes we get discouraged and turn to inspirational writing, like stuff from Vince Lombardi: “Quitters never win and winners never quit.” Bad advice. Winners quit all the time. They just quit the right stuff at the right time. Most people quit. They just don’t quit successfully.

Most of the time, we deal with the obstacles by persevering. Sometimes we get discouraged and turn to inspirational writing, like stuff from Vince Lombardi: “Quitters never win and winners never quit.” Bad advice. Winners quit all the time. They just quit the right stuff at the right time.

Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence. The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack of will. It's not whether you get knocked down, it's whether you get up. --- Vince Lombardi ----

We live in an age fit for heroes. No time has ever offered such perils or prizes. Man can provide a full life for humanity – or he can destroy himself with the problems he has created. The test of this century will be whether man confuses the growth of wealth and power with the growth of spirit and character.…

I’ve never known a man worth his salt who in the long run, deep down in his heart, didn’t appreciate the grind, the discipline,” said Vince Lombardi. “I firmly believe that any man’s finest hour—this greatest fulfillment to all he holds dear—is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle—victorious.

Praise in public; criticize in private.

When you get into the endzone, act like you've been there before.

The greatest accomplishment is not in never falling, but in rising again after you fall.

Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence.

The only place success comes before work is in the dictionary.

It's easy to have faith in yourself and have discipline when you're a winner, when you're number one. What you got to have is faith and discipline when you're not a winner.

Lombardi works you so hard,” Knafelc once said, “that when he tells you to go to hell, you look forward to the trip.

They call it coaching, but it is teaching. You do not just tell them it is so, but you show them the reasons why it is so and you repeat and repeat until they are convinced, until they know.

she had married Vince because he seemed solid, religious and faithful, unlike her father. She believed, as he did, in the sacredness and lifelong commitment of marriage. She told herself that she would have to adjust.

Late on weekend nights, when Vince was at last free from athletics, he took Marie out to his favorite haunts with the Palaus and other friends. They often drove up Route 9W to Englewood Cliffs for a late meal at Leo’s and then some band music at the Rustic Cabin, where they fell into the habit of buying a beer and steak sandwich for a performer who came over to their table to chat after his closing set, a skinny young Italian crooner from Hoboken named Frank Sinatra.

Football is a great deal like life in that it teaches that work, sacrifice, perseverance, competitive drive, selflessness and respect for authority is the price that each and every one of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile

Truth is, we’re a lot better off, and a lot closer to experiencing real, feel-good moments, when we’re wringing ourselves out for the glory of God and fulfilling our daily tasks—at work, at home, in ministry, anywhere. What did Vince Lombardi say in that famous speech: “I firmly believe that any man’s finest hour—his greatest fulfillment to all he holds dear—is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle—victorious.

A date was soon set for the wedding. He and Marie were married on Saturday, August 31, 1940, at the Church of Our Lady of Refuge on East 196th Street in the Bronx. The nuptial mass was performed by the Reverend Jeremiah F. Nemecek, a Fordham football fan who idolized the Seven Blocks of Granite

Again on Rose Hill with all the familiar sounds, sights and smells, dank gymnasium office, trainer Jake’s old barber chair, the Keating Hall clock tower, Jesuits in cassocks clucking along, lunches of linguine and calamari on Arthur Avenue, leaves and mud on the practice field, thud and smack of leather upon leather as dusk enveloped the Bronx, maroon and gold, we do or die notes drifting over from band rehearsal—Lombardi was in his element, restored. Football as religion. The T a catechism from which he preached. And God was in the details.

Every day Lombardi heard Cox lecture on the meaning of character—“an integration of habits of conduct superimposed on temperament, the will exercised on disposition, thought, emotion and action.” It was man’s obligation, Cox said, to use his will “to elicit the right and good free actions and to refrain from wrong and evil actions.” While man was blessed with intellect and free will, he was ennobled only when he sublimated individual desires “to join others in pursuit of common good.” Cox lamented that the modern world was turning away from that notion, and “the vaunted liberty which was to make us free has eventuated in a more galling servitude to man’s lower nature.

There is no substitute for victory" Oscar Wilde "I didn't say that--wouldn't have. Maybe it was Vince Lombardi" O.W. "Not I, either. Try Count von Schlieffen" Vince Lombardi "What's the big deal. I said it---I think. Doh!" Homer Simpson "Imposter. 'Twas I." Homer the original (Greek guy)

It's not whether you get knoked down, It's whether you get back up

The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack of will. —Vince Lombardi, What It Takes to Be Number One

Leaders are made, they are not born. They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile.” – Vince Lombardi

As the legendary Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi used to say, you have to know your fundamentals to play a good game.

It is a peculiar modern superstition that to achieve success in any area we have to make that area the be all and end all of our lives—and live and breathe for that alone. (Vince Lombardi: “Winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing.”) Down that way lies the path to idolatry, obsession, restlessness, cut-throat rivalry, and a life marked by either arrogance or bitter regrets. If our best strivings are to remain truly human, they need a goal and a standard outside us to challenge us always to aim higher, but also to bring in fresh air and keep life in perspective. Our goals, tasks and missions are never themselves God. If we try to make them so, they will be idols. Only God is God, and therefore such a goal and standard above all our endeavors. Again, we are to “seek first His kingdom . . . and all these things will be added to you.”20