Winners Motivational Quotes

We've searched our database for all the quotes and captions related to Winners Motivational. Here they are! All 100 of them:

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Don’t let mental blocks control you. Set yourself free. Confront your fear and turn the mental blocks into building blocks.
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Roopleen (Words to inspire the winner in YOU)
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Not all dreamers are winners, but all winners are dreamers. Your dream is the key to your future. The Bible says that, "without a vision (dream), a people perish." You need a dream, if you're going to succeed in anything you do.
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Mark Gorman
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How to win in life: 1 work hard 2 complain less 3 listen more 4 try, learn, grow 5 don't let people tell you it cant be done 6 make no excuses
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Germany Kent
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Success in life is not for those who run fast, but for those who keep running and always on the move.
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Bangambiki Habyarimana (Pearls Of Eternity)
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Don't live the same day over and over again and call that a life. Life is about evolving mentally, spiritually, and emotionally.
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Germany Kent
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Act as if it was, and it will be.
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Lailah Gifty Akita (Pearls of Wisdom: Great mind)
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You were born a winner, a warrior, one who defied the odds by surviving the most gruesome battle of them all - the race to the egg. And now that you are a giant, why do you even doubt victory against smaller numbers and wider margins? The only walls that exist are those you have placed in your mind. And whatever obstacles you conceive, exist only because you have forgotten what you have already achieved.
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Suzy Kassem (Rise Up and Salute the Sun: The Writings of Suzy Kassem)
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When you encounter obstacles, don’t turn your back on them. Face them, confront them and your will see them dissolving in front of your eyes.
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Roopleen (Words to inspire the winner in YOU)
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When something poses as obstacle to you,surmount it and use it as a miracle to move on to greater height.
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Ifeanyi Enoch Onuoha (Overcoming the Challenges of Life)
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Without being push to the wall, we will have remained in our comfortable zone. But this circumstance challenges us to find the courage to move on.
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Lailah Gifty Akita (On Eagles Wings:Rise)
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Your Monday morning thoughts set the tone for your whole week. See yourself getting stronger, and living a fulfilling, happier & healthier life.
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Germany Kent
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A quitter never winsβ€”andβ€” a winner never quits.
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Napoleon Hill (Think and Grow Rich (Start Motivational Books))
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WINNER:is A Runner who β€œWins Inspite Of Ninety Nine Excellent Runners!
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Sujit Lalwani (Life Simplified!)
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The wish of death had been palpably hanging over this otherwise idyllic paradise for a good many years. All business and politics is personal in the Philippines. If it wasn't for the cheap beer and lovely girls one of us would spend an hour in this dump. They [Jehovah's Witnesses] get some kind of frequent flyer points for each person who signs on. I'm not lazy. I'm just motivationally challenged. I'm not fat. I just have lots of stored energy. You don't get it do you? What people think of you matters more than the reality. Marilyn. Despite standing firm at the final hurdle Marilyn was always ready to run the race. After answering the question the woman bent down behind the stand out of sight of all, and crossed herself. It is amazing what you can learn in prison. Merely through casual conversation Rick had acquired the fundamentals of embezzlement, fraud and armed hold up. He wondered at the price of honesty in a grey world whose half tones changed faster than the weather. The banality of truth somehow always surprises the news media before they tart it up. You've ridden jeepneys in peak hour. Where else can you feel up a fourteen-year-old schoolgirl without even trying? [Ralph Winton on the Philippines finer points] Life has no bottom. No matter how bad things are or how far one has sunk things can always get worse. You could call the Oval Office an information rain shadow. In the Philippines, a whole layer of criminals exists who consider that it is their right to rob you unhindered. If you thwart their wicked desires, to their way of thinking you have stolen from them and are evil. There's honest and dishonest corruption in this country. Don't enjoy it too much for it's what we love that usually kills us. The good guys don't always win wars but the winners always make sure that they go down in history as the good guys. The Philippines is like a woman. You love her and hate her at the same time. I never believed in all my born days that ideas of truth and justice were only pretty words to brighten a much darker and more ubiquitous reality. The girl was experiencing the first flushes of love while Rick was at least feeling the methadone equivalent. Although selfishness and greed are more ephemeral than the real values of life their effects on the world often outlive their origins. Miriam's a meteor job. Somewhere out there in space there must be a meteor with her name on it. Tsismis or rumours grow in this land like tropical weeds. Surprises are so common here that nothing is surprising. A crooked leader who can lead is better than a crooked one who can't. Although I always followed the politics of Hitler I emulate the drinking habits of Churchill. It [Australia] is the country that does the least with the most. Rereading the brief lines that told the story in the manner of Fox News reporting the death of a leftist Rick's dark imagination took hold. Didn't your mother ever tell you never to trust a man who doesn't drink? She must have been around twenty years old, was tall for a Filipina and possessed long black hair framing her smooth olive face. This specter of loveliness walked with the assurance of the knowingly beautiful. Her crisp and starched white uniform dazzled in the late-afternoon light and highlighted the natural tan of her skin. Everything about her was in perfect order. In short, she was dressed up like a pox doctor’s clerk. Suddenly, she stopped, turned her head to one side and spat comprehensively into the street. The tiny putrescent puddle contrasted strongly with the studied aplomb of its all-too-recent owner, suggesting all manner of disease and decay.
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John Richard Spencer
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You don't need to work hard to earn an empire; there is an army of slaves to do it for you.
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Bangambiki Habyarimana (Pearls Of Eternity)
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An entrepreneur is a man who knows he can fail, but he does not accept to fail before he actually fails, and when he fails he learns from his errors and moves on.
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Bangambiki Habyarimana (Pearls Of Eternity)
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7 keys to getting more things done: 1 start 2 dont make excuses 3 celebrate small steps 4 ignore critics 5 be consistent 6 be open 7 stay positive
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Germany Kent
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You don't fight the battles you know you will win, its the ones that everyone says you will lose.
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Chris Burkmenn
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Magic always happens when you direct your inner powers to the object you want to change.
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Bangambiki Habyarimana (Pearls Of Eternity)
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Nothing says "you're a loser" more than owning a motivational poster about being a winner.
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Justin Sewell
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Don't scale your perfection in the middle sometimes your last card decides the winner.
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Anuj Tiwari
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We can only reach the highest height, if we encourage each other.
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Lailah Gifty Akita (Pearls of Wisdom: Great mind)
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You are strong because of what you overcame, brave because of what you defeated, fierce because of what you mastered, and powerful because of what you conquered.
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Matshona Dhliwayo
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And it occurred to her that reading was, among other things, a muscle and one that she had seemingly developed. She could read the novel with ease and great pleasure, laughing at remarks, they were hardly jokes, that she had not even noticed before.
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Alan Bennett (The Uncommon Reader)
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Never seek to please anyone. Seek to evolve thyself.
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Lailah Gifty Akita (Pearls of Wisdom: Great mind)
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To be a champion, compete; to be a great champion, compete with the best; but to be the greatest champion, compete with yourself.
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Matshona Dhliwayo
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TOGETHER we stand, TOGETHER we fall, TOGETHER we win, and winners take ALL. -Temple College Volleyball Team
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Larry O'Sullivan (How Is My Driving?: Motivational Tips for Success in Business and Life)
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Those who win never give up. Those who give up never win.
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Roy T. Bennett
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You may encounter many disappointments. Be strong. Tell yourself, β€œI am good enough, I will try again.
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Lailah Gifty Akita (Pearls of Wisdom: Great mind)
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Success sits on a mountain of mistakes
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Bangambiki Habyarimana (The Great Pearl of Wisdom)
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You can perhaps, in a number of circumstances, tell yourself that you can't have more than you have until you do better than you're doing, but by all means steer clear of its reverse, the creed of defeat, in saying that you can't do better than you're doing until you can have more than you have.
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Criss Jami (Healology)
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Challenges are part of life; We weaken our spirit, when we act in fear and lose hope. But we strengthen our spirit, when we fearlessly with faith and hope, rise up to meet and conquer the challenges.
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Lailah Gifty Akita (Think Great: Be Great! (Beautiful Quotes, #1))
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Winners Evaluate Themselves In A Positive Manner And Look For Their Strengths As They Work To Overcome Weaknesses.
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Zig Ziglar (Great Quotes from Zig Ziglar: 250 Inspiring Quotes from the Master Motivator and Friends)
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If you wait for the mango fruits to fall, you'd be wasting your time while others are learning how to climb the tree
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Michael Bassey Johnson (The Book of Maxims, Poems and Anecdotes)
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Big dreamers become big winners.
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Matshona Dhliwayo
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If his decision is correct, he will win the battle, even if it lasts longer than expected. If his decision is wrong, he will be defeated and he will have to start all over againβ€”only this time with more wisdom. But once he has started, a Warrior of the Light perseveres until the end.
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Paulo Coelho (Warrior of the Light)
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Winners dont do different things They do things differently
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Shiv Kera
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Dear 2016, If I had any defeats in your team, I am glad they were on my terms. Love, Defeated Winner
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Jasleen Kaur Gumber
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Think you're a slave and you'll find a master; think you're a master and slaves will find you
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Bangambiki Habyarimana (The Great Pearl of Wisdom)
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Don't let fear of failure prevent you from making effective choices and firm decisions.
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Roopleen (Words to inspire the winner in YOU)
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Never despair if you have to start at the bottom; not even the sun rises from the top.
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Matshona Dhliwayo
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Losing teaches you how to win; winning teaches you how not to lose.
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Matshona Dhliwayo
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Work like you've never won. Win like you've never lost.
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Matshona Dhliwayo
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Never allow carping critics to deter you from success. Instead, silence them with it.
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Christian Baloga
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When we have graciously endured every adversity, we become like a shining diamond.
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Lailah Gifty Akita (Think Great: Be Great! (Beautiful Quotes, #1))
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Times of adversity are golden moments.
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Lailah Gifty Akita (Think Great: Be Great! (Beautiful Quotes, #1))
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Whatever begun with planning, ends in a victory.
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Amit Kalantri
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The only thing holding you back is you. Commit to developing the mindset of a winner, set your goals and chase them down. Remember, a dog in the hunt ain't got no fleas!
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Andy Albright
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The real winners I've met in life weren't necessarily skilled or perfect. They just had the tenacity to never, ever give up.
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Curtis Rivers (Seven Paths to Freedom)
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It is in vain to try and stop a star from rising, even with a ladder.
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Matshona Dhliwayo
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Don't fear mistakes, they are your stepping stone to success
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Bangambiki Habyarimana (The Great Pearl of Wisdom)
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My left foot is the wisdom from yesterday, my right foot is the vision of tomorrow and my mind is focused on the work of today and this is how I stand a winner.
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Amit Kalantri
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I don't consider those competitions fair where judges get to decide the winner, because selected judges quite often are not worthy or qualified enough to make the right decision.
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Amit Kalantri
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What you make of life is up to you. You have all the tools and resources you need - what you do with them is up to you. The choice is yours. Stay mindful of your choices!
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John C. Maxwell (The Power of Winning: Motivation and Inspiration on How to Be a Winner)
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Amateurs quit when they are tired. Champions quit only when they have won.
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Matshona Dhliwayo
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Winners were born to win, legends were born to win forever.
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Matshona Dhliwayo
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Sometimes it’s OK to go with the flow; you need not to be a winner, diverse, superior, special EVERYTIME.
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Aman Jassal (Rainbow - the shades of love)
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You will never achieve a goal by definition unless you try.
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Oscar Auliq-Ice
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Run the race of life with all perseverance and endurance.
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Lailah Gifty Akita (Think Great: Be Great! (Beautiful Quotes, #1))
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Winners lose much more often than losers. So if you keep losing but you're still trying, keep it up! You're right on track.
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Kathy Collins (200 Motivational and inspirational Quotes That Will Inspire Your Success)
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One who conquers fear cannot be conquered by anyone.
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Matshona Dhliwayo
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We held on to great memories. This sustains us in every moment.
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Lailah Gifty Akita (Think Great: Be Great! (Beautiful Quotes, #1))
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Definite purpose, absolute commitment.
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Lailah Gifty Akita (Think Great: Be Great! (Beautiful Quotes, #1))
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Faith gives you confidence, strength and hope; vital for any accomplishment
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Lailah Gifty Akita (Pearls of Wisdom: Great mind)
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If the race isn't over after you have won, then it wasn't your game!
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Vishwanath S J
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Never live in fear or regret, live in lessons learned that make you better and keep going forward
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Kyle Vidrine (Wake Up The Winner In You: Your Time Is Now)
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Haters can never rejoice especially when their enemy wins. The moment you can’t be happy when someone wins, watch yourself. That habit is not good for you.
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Israelmore Ayivor (Leaders' Frontpage: Leadership Insights from 21 Martin Luther King Jr. Thoughts)
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The fun part is finding which thoughts, in that crazy beehive of emotion, are the ones that mass produce the honey.
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Curtis Tyrone Jones
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Winners play to win. Losers play to avoid defeat. Losing teaches you how to win; winning teaches you how not to lose.
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Matshona Dhliwayo
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Nothing else will show your true character than how you lose
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Ken Gleed (Life...Intercepted!: Life Changing Lessons Learned From Moments of Failure)
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Some people quit when victory is around the corner
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Bangambiki Habyarimana (The Great Pearl of Wisdom)
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You don't have to finish today, what is important is that you finish. But remember today might be the last day of your life.
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Bangambiki Habyarimana (The Great Pearl of Wisdom)
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Failure is an opportunity to learn again
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Bangambiki Habyarimana (The Great Pearl of Wisdom)
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If you are a winner by the judgements of few judges and not by your performance, you are not a real winner.
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Amit Kalantri
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In the presence of the sun nobody sees the stars; excel, and you too will eclipse your competition.
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Matshona Dhliwayo
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You were born a winner, don't let the world cheat you out of remaining one.
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Matshona Dhliwayo
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You can win a game before it begins.
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Matshona Dhliwayo
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Winners have justification, losers have an excuse.
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Durgesh Satpathy (What We Think We Become)
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A Knock Down Does Not Have To Be A KnockOut
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Kyle Vidrine (Wake Up The Winner In You: Your Time Is Now)
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I'm not a winner, but I was the best player
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1PENULiS
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Winners win, Losers lose. It's YOU who decides what you want to be
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Andrew Rozario
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Two motives urge fans to obsession with their sports. One is the need-β€”through the appeal of vicarious successβ€”-to identify with winners. The other is to sanction, through pedantry, dogmatism, record-keeping, wise secret knowledge, and pseudo-scholarship, a claim to expertise on the subject. Sports give every man his opportunity to perform as a learned bore and to watch innumerable commentators on TV do the same.
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Paul Fussell (Class: A Guide Through the American Status System)
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You were born a giver, don't die a taker. You were born an earner, don't die a begger. You were born a sharer, don't die a hoader. You were born a lover, don't die a hater. You were born a builder, don't die a destroyer. You were born a creator, don't die an immitator. You were born a leader, don't die a follower. You were born a learner, don't die a teacher. You were born a doer, don't die a talker. You were born a dreamer, don't die a doubter. You were born a winner, don't die a loser. You were born an encourager, don't die a shamer. You were born a defender, don't die an aggressor. You were born a liberator, don't die an executioner. You were born a soldier, don't die a murderer. You were born an angel, don't die a monster. You were born a protecter, don't die an attacker. You were born an originator, don't die a repeater. You were born an achiever, don't die a quitter. You were born a victor, don't die a failure. You were born a conqueror, don't die a warrior. You were born a contender, don't die a joker. You were born a producer, don't die a user. You were born a motivator, don't die a discourager. You were born a master, don't die an amateur. You were born an intessessor, don't die an accusor. You were born an emancipator, don't die a backstabber. You were born a sympathizer, don't die a provoker. You were born a healer, don't die a killer. You were born a peacemaker, don't die an instigater. You were born a deliverer, don't die a collaborator. You were born a savior, don't die a plunderer. You were born a believer, don't die a sinner.
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Matshona Dhliwayo
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What one needs to do is to keep this correct thinking up and to make it a part and parcel of personality. For that you need to keep reminding yourself at continuous intervals. Write your aims or positive ideas in your diary and read them before sleep and after getting up in morning. You can paste motivational posters in your living room which will give you positive energy.
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Pradeep Chaswal (How to be Successful in Present Day World (Winner Series, #1))
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We inter-change ideas. You can stay in the United States and inspire people in Indonesia. You can stay in Ghana and inspire people in Turkey. You can stay in Nigeria and inspire people in cote'd voire. You can stay in Senegal and inspire people in China and vice versa.
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Michael Bassey Johnson
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A winner mindset is not an "I want" or "I wish" mindset, but an "I am" mindset.
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Brandon Grant
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Winners run through the finish line. End your day with passion and enthusiasm.
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Butch Bellah (The 10 Essential Habits of Sales Superstars: Plugging into the Power of Ten)
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If you want to rise higher then see yourself as a winner...
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Stephen Richards (Success is Only One Thought Away: Motivational and Inspirational Quotes from Mind Power Professional Stephen Richards)
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You cannot be chosen as a winner without contest. Winners have many families but nobody wants to associate with a loser. I will prepare myself and one day my chance will come.
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Osunsakin Adewale (The Hour of Temptation)
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Confidence confers on you the courage to conquer challenges.
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Ifeanyi Enoch Onuoha
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You can do anything you set your mind to. You’re a human being, full of so many different thoughts and emotions; you’re the most powerful force in your universe. So when you realise that the absolute worst that could happen to you is death, wouldn’t you rather die knowing you did your best you lived your life in the most amazing way? You followed your dreams, you found your purpose and you served the rest of mankind simply by being the best person you can be? Or would you prefer to die with the regret of everything that you didn’t make time to do?
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K.A. Hill (The Winners' Guide)
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I observed that when a footballer is about to make a threatening strike to score a goal, there comes a big shout from spectators at the field. He could either get detracted to miss the opportunity or motivated to make it happen. Such is life!
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Israelmore Ayivor (The Great Hand Book of Quotes)
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Every teacher are once a student, Every professional are once an amateur, Every rich are once a poor, Every motorist are once a learner, Every friend are once a stranger, Every ex are once a lover, Every today are once a tomorrow, Every emigrate are once a citizen, Every dead are once alive, Every house are once a land, Every super star are once an upcoming, Every winner are once a dreamer and every start always have an end. Stay humble and Positive, afterall life is vanity- Goals Rider
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Goals Rider
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Givers are worth more than takers. Earners are worth more than beggars. Sharers are worth more than hoarders. Lovers are worth more than haters. Builders are worth more than destroyers. Creators are worth more than imitators. Leaders are worth more than followers. Learners are worth more than teachers. Doers are worth more than talkers. Dreamers are worth more than doubters. Winners are worth more than losers. Encouragers are worth more than detractors. Defenders are worth more than aggressors. Liberators are worth more than jailers. Soldiers are worth more than murderers. Angels are worth more than monsters. Protectors are worth more than attackers. Originators are worth more than copiers. Achievers are worth more than quitters. Victors are worth more than failures. Conquerors are worth more than warriors. Contenders are worth more than spectators. Producers are worth more than users. Motivators are worth more than discouragers. Masters are worth more than amateurs. Intercessors are worth more than accusers. Emancipators are worth more than backstabbers. Sympathizers are worth more than provokers. Healers are worth more than killers. Peacemakers are worth more than instigators. Deliverers are worth more than collaborators. Saviors are worth more than invaders. Believers are worth more than sinners.
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Matshona Dhliwayo
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There are many stories and accounts about the winners of lotteries who are jubilant when they win, but whose lives descend into a nightmare after acquiring that unearned money. (No challenge, no skill.) Thelottery looks like "the answer" to people because they associate money with pleasure. But the true enjoyment of money comes in part from the earning of it, which involves skill and challenge. Watching television is usually done for pleasure. That's why so few people can remember (or make use of) any of the 30 hours of television they have watched in the past week.
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Steve Chandler
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Why read this book to find out how to win friends? Why not study the technique of the greatest winner of friends the world has ever known? Who is he? You may meet him tomorrow coming down the street. When you get within ten feet of him, he will begin to wag his tail. If you stop and pat him, he will almost jump out of his skin to show you how much he likes you. And you know that behind this show of affection on his part, there are no ulterior motives: he doesn’t want to sell you any real estate, and he doesn’t want to marry you. Did you ever stop to think that a dog is the only animal that doesn’t have to work for a living? A hen has to lay eggs, a cow has to give milk, and a canary has to sing. But a dog makes his living by giving you nothing but love.
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Dale Carnegie (How To Win Friends and Influence People)
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Fly with those who lift you up and thrust you forward A pilot friend of mine told me there are four main principles to master when flying airplanes: lift, thrust, weight, and drag. You have to take all these into account to make sure the plane will fly. It struck me that these same principles apply to specific types of people. There are some who lift you, brighten your day, cheer you up, and make you feel better about yourself. You meet them and you have a spring in your step. They’re a lift. Then there are people who thrust you. They inspire you, motivate you, challenge you to move forward and pursue your dreams. The third group are weights. They pull you down, dump their problems on you, so that you leave feeling heavier, negative, discouraged, and worse than you did before. Finally, there are those who are a drag. They’ve always got a sad song. The dishwasher broke. The goldfish died. They didn’t get invited to a party. They’re stuck in a pit. They expect you to cheer them up, fix their problems, and carry their loads. We all encounter people from each of these four groups. You have to make sure you’re spending the majority of your time with lifters and thrusters. If you’re only hanging out with weights and drags, it will keep you from becoming everything you were created to be.
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Joel Osteen (You Can You Will: 8 Undeniable Qualities of a Winner)
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All A players have six common denominators. They have a scoreboard that tells them if they are winning or losing and what needs to be done to change their performance. They will not play if they can’t see the scoreboard. They have a high internal, emotional need to succeed. They do not need to be externally motivated or begged to do their job. They want to succeed because it is who they areΒ .Β .Β . winners. People often ask me how I motivate my employees. My response is, β€œI hire them.” Motivation is for amateurs. Pros never need motivating. (Inspiration is another story.) Instead of trying to design a pep talk to motivate your people, why not create a challenge for them? A players love being tested and challenged. They love to be measured and held accountable for their results. Like the straight-A classmate in your high school geometry class, an A player can hardly wait for report card day. C players dread report card day because they are reminded of how average or deficient they are. To an A player, a report card with a B or a C is devastating and a call for renewed commitment and remedial actions. They have the technical chops to do the job. This is not their first rodeo. They have been there, done that, and they are technically very good at what they do. They are humble enough to ask for coaching. The three most important questions an employee can ask are: What else can I do? Where can I get better? What do I need to do or learn so that I continue to grow? If you have someone on your team asking all three of these questions, you have an A player in the making. If you agree these three questions would fundamentally change the game for your team, why not enroll them in asking these questions? They see opportunities. C players see only problems. Every situation is asking a very simple question: Do you want me to be a problem or an opportunity? Your choice. You know the job has outgrown the person when all you hear are problems. The cost of a bad employee is never the salary. My rules for hiring and retaining A players are: Interview rigorously. (Who by Geoff Smart is a spectacular resource on this subject.) Compensate generously. Onboard effectively. Measure consistently. Coach continuously.
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Keith J. Cunningham (The Road Less Stupid: Advice from the Chairman of the Board)
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Most people have heard of Mahatma Gandhi, the man who led India to independence from British rule. His life has been memorialized in books and film, and he is regarded as one of the great men in history. But did you know Gandhi did not start out as a great hero? He was born into a middle-class family. He had low self-esteem, and that made him reluctant to interact with others. He wasn’t a very good student, either, and he struggled just to finish high school. His first attempt at higher education ended in five months. His parents decided to send him to England to finish his education, hoping the new environment would motivate him. Gandhi became a lawyer. The problem when he returned to India was that he didn’t know much about Indian law and had trouble finding clients. So he migrated to South Africa and got a job as a clerk. Gandhi’s life changed one day while riding on a train in South Africa in the first-class section. Because of his dark skin, he was forced to move to a freight car. He refused, and they kicked him off the train. It was then he realized he was afraid of challenging authority, but that he suddenly wanted to help others overcome discrimination if he could. He created a new vision for himself that had value and purpose. He saw value in helping people free themselves from discrimination and injustice. He discovered purpose in life where none had existed previously, and that sense of purpose pulled him forward and motivated him to do what best-selling author and motivational speaker Andy Andrews calls β€œpersist without exception.” His purpose and value turned him into the winner he was born to be,
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Zig Ziglar (Born to Win: Find Your Success Code)
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Westerners, not just Lincoln Steffens. It took in the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States. It even took in the Soviet Union’s own leaders, such as Nikita Khrushchev, who famously boasted in a speech to Western diplomats in 1956 that β€œwe will bury you [the West].” As late as 1977, a leading academic textbook by an English economist argued that Soviet-style economies were superior to capitalist ones in terms of economic growth, providing full employment and price stability and even in producing people with altruistic motivation. Poor old Western capitalism did better only at providing political freedom. Indeed, the most widely used university textbook in economics, written by Nobel Prize–winner Paul Samuelson, repeatedly predicted the coming economic dominance of the Soviet Union. In the 1961 edition, Samuelson predicted that Soviet national income would overtake that of the United States possibly by 1984, but probably by 1997. In the 1980 edition there was little change in the analysis, though the two dates were delayed to 2002 and 2012. Though the policies of Stalin and subsequent Soviet leaders could produce rapid economic growth, they could not do so in a sustained way. By the 1970s, economic growth had all but stopped. The most important lesson is that extractive institutions cannot generate sustained technological change for two reasons: the lack of economic incentives and resistance by the elites. In addition, once all the very inefficiently used resources had been reallocated to industry, there were few economic gains to be had by fiat. Then the Soviet system hit a roadblock, with lack of innovation and poor economic incentives preventing any further progress. The only area in which the Soviets did manage to sustain some innovation was through enormous efforts in military and aerospace technology. As a result they managed to put the first dog, Leika, and the first man, Yuri Gagarin, in space. They also left the world the AK-47 as one of their legacies. Gosplan was the supposedly all-powerful planning agency in charge of the central planning of the Soviet economy. One of the benefits of the sequence of five-year plans written and administered by Gosplan was supposed to have been the long time horizon necessary for rational investment and innovation. In reality, what got implemented in Soviet industry had little to do with the five-year plans, which were frequently revised and rewritten or simply ignored. The development of industry took place on the basis of commands by Stalin and the Politburo, who changed their minds frequently and often completely revised their previous decisions. All plans were labeled β€œdraft” or β€œpreliminary.” Only one copy of a plan labeled β€œfinal”—that for light industry in 1939β€”has ever come to light. Stalin himself said in 1937 that β€œonly bureaucrats can think that planning work ends with the creation of the plan. The creation of the plan is just the beginning. The real direction of the plan develops only after the putting together of the plan.” Stalin wanted to maximize his discretion to reward people or groups who were politically loyal, and punish those who were not. As for Gosplan, its main role was to provide Stalin with information so he could better monitor his friends and enemies. It actually tried to avoid making decisions. If you made a decision that turned
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Daron Acemoğlu (Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity and Poverty)