Lincoln Never Quits

Abraham Lincoln Didn't Quit

Probably the greatest example of persistence is Abraham Lincoln. If you want to learn about somebody who didn't quit, look no further.

Born into poverty, Lincoln was faced with defeat throughout his life. He lost eight elections, twice failed in business and suffered a nervous breakdown.

He could have quit many times - but he didn't and because he didn't quit, he became one of the greatest presidents in the history of our country.

Lincoln was a champion and he never gave up. Here is a sketch of Lincoln's road to the White House:

• 1816 His family was forced out of their home. He had to work to support them.
• 1818 His mother died.
• 1831 Failed in business.
• 1832 Ran for state legislature - lost.
• l832 Also lost his job - wanted to go to law school but couldn't get in.
• 1833 Borrowed some money from a friend to begin a business and by the end of the year he was bankrupt. He spent the next 17 years of his life paying off this debt.
• 1834 Ran for state legislature again - won.
• 1835 Was engaged to be married, sweetheart died and his heart was broken.
• 1836 Had a total nervous breakdown and was in bed for six months.
• 1838 Sought to become speaker of the state legislature - defeated.
• 1840 Sought to become elector - defeated.
• 1843 Ran for Congress - lost.
• 1846 Ran for Congress again - this time he won - went to Washington and did a good job.
• 1848 Ran for re-election to Congress - lost.
• 1849 Sought the job of land officer in his home state - rejected.
• 1854 Ran for Senate of the United States - lost.
• 1856 Sought the Vice-Presidential nomination at his party's national convention - get less than 100 votes.
• 1858 Ran for U.S. Senate again - again he lost.
• 1860 Elected president of the United States.

Brian Tracy

All successful people men and women are big dreamers. They imagine what their future could be, ideal in every respect, and then they work every day toward their distant vision, that goal or purpose.


Communication is a skill that you can learn. It's like riding a bicycle or typing. If you're willing to work at it, you can rapidly improve the quality of evry part of your life.


Decisiveness is a characteristic of high-performing men and women. Almost any decision is better than no decision at all.


Develop an attitude of gratitude, and give thanks for everything that happens to you, knowing that every step forward is a step toward achieving something bigger and better than your current situation.


Goals allow you to control the direction of change in your favor.


I've found that luck is quite predictable. If you want more luck, take more chances. Be more active. Show up more often.


If what you are doing is not moving you towards your goals, then it's moving you away from your goals.


If you raise your children to feel that they can accomplish any goal or task they decide upon, you will have succeeded as a parent and you will have given your children the greatest of all blessings.


If you wish to achieve worthwhile things in your personal and career life, you must become a worthwhile person in your own self-development.


Invest three percent of your income in yourself (self-development) in order to guarantee your future.


It doesn't matter where you are coming from. All that matters is where you are going.


Just as your car runs more smoothly and requires less energy to go faster and farther when the wheels are in perfect alignment, you perform better when your thoughts, feelings, emotions, goals, and values are in balance.


Move out of your comfort zone. You can only grow if you are willing to feel awkward and uncomfortable when you try something new.


Never say anything about yourself you do not want to come true.


No one lives long enough to learn everything they need to learn starting from scratch. To be successful, we absolutely, positively have to find people who have already paid the price to learn the things that we need to learn to achieve our goals.


Only by contending with challenges that seem to be beyond your strength to handle at the moment you can grow more surely toward the stars.


People with clear, written goals, accomplish far more in a shorter period of time than people without them could ever imagine.


Practice Golden-Rule 1 of Management in everything you do. Manage others the way you would like to be managed.


Relationships are the hallmark of the mature person.


Successful people are always looking for opportunities to help others. Unsuccessful people are always asking, "What's in it for me?"

Successful people are simply those with successful habits.


Teamwork is so important that it is virtually impossible for you to reach the heights of your capabilities or make the money that you want without becoming very good at it.


The greatest gift that you can give to others is the gift of unconditional love and acceptance.


The happiest people in the world are those who feel absolutely terrific about themselves, and this is the natural outgrowth of accepting total responsibility for every part of their life.


The key to success is to focus our conscious mind on things we desire not things we fear.


The more credit you give away, the more will come back to you. The more you help others, the more they will want to help you.


The more you seek security, the less of it you have. But the more you seek opportunity, the more likely it is that you will achieve the security that you desire.


The person we believe ourselves to be will always act in a manner consistent with our self-image.


Those people who develop the ability to continuously acquire new and better forms of knowledge that they can apply to their work and to their lives will be the movers and shakers in our society for the indefinite future.


We will always tend to fulfill our own expectation of ourselves.


Whatever we expect with confidence becomes our own self-fulfilling prophecy.


Whatever you believe with feeling becomes your reality.


Whatever you dwell on in the conscious grows in your experience.


Winners make a habit of manufacturing their own positive expectations in advance of the event.


You can become an even more excellent person by constantly setting higher and higher standards for yourself and then by doing everything possible to live up to those standards.


You cannot control what happens to you, but you can control your attitude toward what happens to you, and in that, you will be mastering change rather than allowing it to master you.


You have to put in many, many, many tiny efforts that nobody sees or appreciates before you achieve anything worthwhile.


You have within you right now, everything you need to deal with whatever the world can throw at you.


Your company's most valuable asset is how it is known to its customers.


Your decision to be, have and do something out of ordinary entails facing difficulties that are out of the ordinary as well. Sometimes your greatest asset is simply your ability to stay with it longer than anyone else.

Your greatest asset is your learning ability. Your greatest resource is your time.

Thomas A. Edison

Anything that won't sell, I don't want to invent. Its sale is proof of utility, and utility is success.


Be courageous. I have seen many depressions in business. Always America has emerged from these stronger and more prosperous. Be brave as your fathers before you. Have faith! Go forward!


Being busy does not always mean real work. The object of all work is production or accomplishment and to either of these ends there must be forethought, system, planning, intelligence, and honest purpose, as well as perspiration. Seeming to do is not doing.


Discontent is the first necessity of progress.


Everything comes to him who hustles while he waits.


Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.


Great ideas originate in the muscles.


Hell, there are no rules here - we're trying to accomplish something.


I am proud of the fact that I never invented weapons to kill.


I find my greatest pleasure, and so my reward, in the work that precedes what the world calls success.


I have friends in overalls whose friendship I would not swap for the favor of the kings of the world.


I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.


I know this world is ruled by infinite intelligence. Everything that surrounds us- everything that exists - proves that there are infinite laws behind it. There can be no denying this fact. It is mathematical in its precision.


I never did a day's work in my life. It was all fun.


I never did anything by accident, nor did any of my inventions come by accident; they came by work.


I start where the last man left off.


If we did all the things we are capable of, we would literally astound ourselves.


It is astonishing what an effort it seems to be for many people to put their brains definitely and systematically to work.


Just because something doesn't do what you planned it to do doesn't mean it's useless.

Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.


Maturity is often more absurd than youth and very frequently is most unjust to youth.


Nearly every man who develops an idea works it up to the point where it looks impossible, and then he gets discouraged. That's not the place to become discouraged.


Non-violence leads to the highest ethics, which is the goal of all evolution. Until we stop harming all other living beings, we are still savages.


One might think that the money value of an invention constitutes its reward to the man who loves his work. But... I continue to find my greatest pleasure, and so my reward, in the work that precedes what the world calls success.


Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.


Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.


Religion is all bunk.


Restlessness is discontent and discontent is the first necessity of progress. Show me a thoroughly satisfied man and I will show you a failure.


Results! Why, man, I have gotten a lot of results. I know several thousand things that won't work.


Show me a thoroughly satisfied man and I will show you a failure.


The best thinking has been done in solitude. The worst has been done in turmoil.


The body is a community made up of its innumerable cells or inhabitants.


The chief function of the body is to carry the brain around.


The reason a lot of people do not recognize opportunity is because it usually goes around wearing overalls looking like hard work.


The three great essentials to achieve anything worth while are: Hard work, Stick-to-itiveness, and Common sense.


The value of an idea lies in the using of it.


There is far more opportunity than there is ability.


There is no expedient to which a man will not go to avoid the labor of thinking.


There is no substitute for hard work.

Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.


Maturity is often more absurd than youth and very frequently is most unjust to youth.


Nearly every man who develops an idea works it up to the point where it looks impossible, and then he gets discouraged. That's not the place to become discouraged.


Non-violence leads to the highest ethics, which is the goal of all evolution. Until we stop harming all other living beings, we are still savages.


One might think that the money value of an invention constitutes its reward to the man who loves his work. But... I continue to find my greatest pleasure, and so my reward, in the work that precedes what the world calls success.


Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.


Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.


Restlessness is discontent and discontent is the first necessity of progress. Show me a thoroughly satisfied man and I will show you a failure.


Results! Why, man, I have gotten a lot of results. I know several thousand things that won't work.


Show me a thoroughly satisfied man and I will show you a failure.


The best thinking has been done in solitude. The worst has been done in turmoil.


The body is a community made up of its innumerable cells or inhabitants.


The chief function of the body is to carry the brain around.


The reason a lot of people do not recognize opportunity is because it usually goes around wearing overalls looking like hard work.


The three great essentials to achieve anything worth while are: Hard work, Stick-to-itiveness, and Common sense.


The value of an idea lies in the using of it.


There is far more opportunity than there is ability.


There is no expedient to which a man will not go to avoid the labor of thinking.


There is no substitute for hard work.

Inspirational Story: The Story of Soichiro Honda

Like most other countries, Japan was hit badly by the Great Depression of the 1930s. In 1938, Soichiro Honda was still in school, when he started a little workshop, developing the concept of the piston ring.

His plan was to sell the idea to Toyota. He labored night and day, even slept in the workshop, always believing he could perfect his design and produce a worthy product. He was married by now, and pawned his wife's jewelry for working capital.

Finally, came the day he completed his piston ring and was able to take a working sample to Toyota, only to be told that the rings did not meet their standards! Soichiro went back to school and suffered ridicule when the engineers laughed at his design.

He refused to give up. Rather than focus on his failure, he continued working towards his goal. Then, after two more years of struggle and redesign, he won a contract with Toyota.

By now, the Japanese government was gearing up for war! With the contract in hand, Soichiro Honda needed to build a factory to supply Toyota, but building materials were in short supply. Still he would not quit! He invented a new concrete-making process that enabled him to build the factory.

With the factory now built, he was ready for production, but the factory was bombed twice and steel became unavailable, too. Was this the end of the road for Honda? No!

He started collecting surplus gasoline cans discarded by US fighters – "Gifts from President Truman," he called them, which became the new raw materials for his rebuilt manufacturing process. Finally, an earthquake destroyed the factory.

After the war, an extreme gasoline shortage forced people to walk or use bicycles. Honda built a tiny engine and attached it to his bicycle. His neighbors wanted one, and although he tried, materials could not be found and he was unable to supply the demand.

Was he ready to give up now? No! Soichiro Honda wrote to 18,000 bicycles shop owners and, in an inspiring letter, asked them to help him revitalize Japan. 5,000 responded and advanced him what little money they could to build his tiny bicycle engines. Unfortunately, the first models were too bulky to work well, so he continued to develop and adapt, until finally, the small engine 'The Super Cub' became a reality and was a success. With success in Japan, Honda began exporting his bicycle engines to Europe and America.

End of story? No! In the 1970s there was another gas shortage, this time in America and automotive fashion turned to small cars. Honda was quick to pick up on the trend. Experts now in small engine design, the company started making tiny cars, smaller than anyone had seen before, and rode another wave of success.

Today, Honda Corporation employs over 100,000 people in the USA and Japan, and is one of the world's largest automobile companies. Honda succeeded because one man made a truly committed decision, acted upon it, and made adjustments on a continuous basis. Failure was simply not considered a possibility.

Inspirational Story: The Man, The Boy and The Donkey

A Man and his son were once going with their Donkey to market. As they were walking along by its side a countryman passed them and said: "You fools, what is a Donkey for but to ride upon?"

So the Man put the Boy on the Donkey and they went on their way. But soon they passed a group of men, one of whom said: "See that lazy youngster, he lets his father walk while he rides."

So the Man ordered his Boy to get off, and got on himself. But they hadn't gone far when they passed two women, one of whom said to the other: "Shame on that lazy lout to let his poor little son trudge along."

Well, the Man didn't know what to do, but at last he took his Boy up before him on the Donkey. By this time they had come to the town, and the passers-by began to jeer and point at them. The Man stopped and asked what they were scoffing at. The men said:

"Aren't you ashamed of yourself for overloading that poor donkey of yours and your hulking son?"

The Man and Boy got off and tried to think what to do. They thought and they thought, till at last they cut down a pole, tied the donkey's feet to it, and raised the pole and the donkey to their shoulders. They went along amid the laughter of all who met them till they came to Market Bridge, when the Donkey, getting one of his feet loose, kicked out and caused the Boy to drop his end of the pole. In the struggle the Donkey fell over the bridge, and his fore-feet being tied together he was drowned.

"That will teach you," said an old man who had followed them:

Please all, and you will please none

Les Brown

A lot of people do not muster the courage to live their dreams because they are afraid to die.


Accept responsibility for your life. Know that it is you who will get you where you want to go, no one else.


All of us need to grow continuously in our lives.


Anytime you suffer a setback or disappointment, put your head down and plow ahead.


Don't let someone else's opinion of you become your reality.


Forgive those who have hurt you.


Forgive yourself for your faults and your mistakes and move on.


Goals help you channel your energy into action.


Help others achieve their dreams and you will achieve yours.


Honor your commitments with integrity.


I advise you to say your dream is possible and then overcome all inconveniences, ignore all the hassles and take a running leap through the hoop, even if it is in flames.


If you are carrying strong feelings about something that happened in your past, they may hinder your ability to live in the present.


If you fall, fall on your back. If you can look up, you can get up.


If you put yourself in a position where you have to stretch outside your comfort zone, then you are forced to expand your consciousness.


If you set goals and go after them with all the determination you can muster, your gifts will take you places that will amaze you.


If you take responsibility for yourself you will develop a hunger to accomplish your dreams.


In day-to-day commerce, television is not so much interested in the business of communications as in the business of delivering audiences to advertisers. People are the merchandise, not the shows. The shows are merely the bait.


It takes someone with a vision of the possibilities to attain new levels of experience. Someone with the courage to live his dreams.


Just because Fate doesn't deal you the right cards, it doesn't mean you should give up. It just means you have to play the cards you get to their maximum potential.


Life has no limitations, except the ones you make.


Life takes on meaning when you become motivated, set goals and charge after them in an unstoppable manner.


Other people's opinion of you does not have to become your reality.


Review your goals twice every day in order to be focused on achieving them.


Shoot for the moon and if you miss you will still be among the stars.


Someone's sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.


The only limits to the possibilities in your life tomorrow are the buts you use today.


There are winners, there are losers and there are people who have not yet learned how to win.


Too many of us are not living our dreams because we are living our fears.


Unlike productions in the other arts, all television shows are born to destroy two other shows.


Wanting something is not enough. You must hunger for it. Your motivation must be absolutely compelling in order to overcome the obstacles that will invariably come your way.


We must look for ways to be an active force in our own lives. We must take charge of our own destinies, design a life of substance and truly begin to live our dreams.


When life knocks you down, try to land on your back. Because if you can look up, you can get up. Let your reason get you back up.


You cannot expect to achieve new goals or move beyond your present circumstances unless you change.


You must remain focused on your journey to greatness.


You need to make a commitment, and once you make it, then life will give you some answers.


You take on the responsibility for making your dream a reality.


Your ability to communicate is an important tool in your pursuit of your goals, whether it is with your family, your co-workers or your clients and customers.


Your goals are the road maps that guide you and show you what is possible for your life.


Your smile will give you a positive countenance that will make people feel comfortable around you.

Zig Ziglar

A goal properly set is halfway reached.


A lot of people quit looking for work as soon as they find a job.


Building a better you is the first step to building a better America.


Every choice you make has an end result.


Every obnoxious act is a cry for help.


Expect the best. Prepare for the worst. Capitalize on what comes.


Failure is a detour, not a dead-end street.


I believe that being successful means having a balance of success stories across the many areas of your life. You can't truly be considered successful in your business life if your home life is in shambles.


If God would have wanted us to live in a permissive society He would have given us Ten Suggestions and not Ten Commandments.


If you can dream it, then you can achieve it. You will get all you want in life if you help enough other people get what they want.


If you don't see yourself as a winner, then you cannot perform as a winner.


If you go looking for a friend, you're going to find they're very scarce. If you go out to be a friend, you'll find them everywhere.


If you learn from defeat, you haven't really lost.


If you treat your wife like a thoroughbred, you'll never end up with a nag.


If you want to reach a goal, you must "see the reaching" in your own mind before you actually arrive at your goal.


It was character that got us out of bed, commitment that moved us into action, and discipline that enabled us to follow through.


It's not what you've got, it's what you use that makes a difference.


Little men with little minds and little imaginations go through life in little ruts, smugly resisting all changes which would jar their little worlds.


Many marriages would be better if the husband and the wife clearly understood that they are on the same side.


Money isn't the most important thing in life, but it's reasonably close to oxygen on the "gotta have it" scale.

Money won't make you happy... but everybody wants to find out for themselves.


People don't buy for logical reasons. They buy for emotional reasons.


People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing - that's why we recommend it daily.


People who have good relationships at home are more effective in the marketplace.


Positive thinking will let you do everything better than negative thinking will.


Remember that failure is an event, not a person.


Sometimes adversity is what you need to face in order to become successful.


Statistics suggest that when customers complain, business owners and managers ought to get excited about it. The complaining customer represents a huge opportunity for more business.


Success is dependent upon the glands - sweat glands.


Success is the maximum utilization of the ability that you have.


The foundation stones for a balanced success are honesty, character, integrity, faith, love and loyalty.


The way you see people is the way you treat them.


When you are tough on yourself, life is going to be infinitely easier on you.


You can have everything in life you want, if you will just help other people get what they want.


You cannot climb the ladder of success dressed in the costume of failure.


You cannot perform in a manner inconsistent with the way you see yourself.


You cannot tailor-make the situations in life but you can tailor-make the attitudes to fit those situations.


You do not pay the price of success, you enjoy the price of success.


You were born to win, but to be a winner, you must plan to win, prepare to win, and expect to win.


Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude.