31 Best Short Inspirational Quotes

Step deeper into my world with these 31 best, short, inspirational quotes for work, about life and struggles, about happiness that share motivational and beautiful messages on life.

Earlier this year in March, I started on the path that would lead to creating my short inspirational quotes: I took a huge leap of faith and decided to start my own freelance writing business in addition to my full time career as an elementary educator. To say I was scared is an understatement of epic proportions, but I knew I was more afraid of not trying than I was of trying and failing, a message you see often in my short inspirational quotes.

So how exactly did my short inspirational quotes come to be? I'm glad you asked. To help with my feelings of doubt and fear, during the summer, I decided to revamp my workout routine and add something I dislike, running. My thought was if I could see myself making progress in something tangible, such as speed per mile, distance run, or how I felt a little less like I was dying each day, then I would realize that that same success could be created in my business. This is another theme that frequently pops up in my short inspirational quotes.

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I got way more than I bargained for with running, my new business and the short inspirational quotes I created.

To offset the feelings of doubt and negativity I faced each morning running the treacherous hills in my neighborhood, while pushing my son in his stroller, I would try to think of a short inspirational quote to keep me going. Often I contemplated why I was torturing myself so unnecessarily, but every morning something awesome happened. In between singing ABC's and searching for animals and colors to distract my toddler, a cute short, inspirational quote would come to me.

What are Some Short Inspirational Quotes?

A short, inspirational quote is made up of a few words that motivate, encourage and inspire. The words can be cute, funny, deal with love strength or more. For me, my short inspirational quotes started as a way of getting through my morning runs.

As I was struggling up one of the many hills in my neighborhood, a short, inspirational quote would pop up in my head and motivate me to get through the run and day of activities, writing and publicizing my new business.

One of the first short inspirational quote thoughts that I had was “Train your mindset for success.” I’m sure you’ve heard that where the mind goes, the body follows. I found if I told myself I would run for the first minute and then walk for 30 seconds, I survived the one minute and actually could run even a little more. I was already doing a decent job with my meal prep lifestyle, but the short inspirational quotes were helping with my mindset.

Each time I put my short, inspirational quote about work into action, it was successful, so I kept at it and each day, I saw slight improvement. I figured since it was working during my runs, why not try my deep motivational quotes with PHraseD, LLC (my freelance writing business). Sure enough, if I set a goal to reach out to 10 potential clients each day and post twice to each of my social media accounts or write and edit on my blog, I succeeded. On days when I didn’t “train my mindset,” I typically accomplished very little.

I also decided to start sharing the short, inspirational quotes for work that were occurring to me to my followers because maybe, just maybe, if the quotes was motivating me, it would also motivate them. Recently, one of my followers asked where I got all my great short motivational quotes and it made me very emotional because the little "words" and thoughts that started occurring to me as inspiration with my life and struggles running have become a part of the fabric of my day and those of others. Lately, I have found that same motivation even if I’m not running. Whenever a difficult situation arises, I’ll have a surge of positivity in the form of words (cute short inspirational quote) to help me get by.

Most of the short, inspirational quotes for work that come to me can be divided into two sets: those that deal with mindset and those that deal with goals and success as it relates to work, life, struggles and happiness. I hope each of these motivational quotes is able to remind you how capable, strong, intelligent, powerful and deserving you are. Use them to push you towards your ultimate goals, stop doubt and fight off feelings of inadequacy. Without further ado!

Mindset

Mindset is normally seen as the beliefs and thoughts you have about life and goals. Mindset affects how you view the world and the part you play in it. For me, I’ve had to reprogram my mindset, since starting the business, to realize that I could be a business owner and a successful one at that. Here are my top short inspirational quotes for work to reset and improve your mindset.

31 Short Inspirational Quotes and Sayings

1. Train your mindset for success

I already addressed this short inspirational quote above, so, yes, have a mindset that focuses on success and then work towards that success. This is definitely an excellent short, inspirational quote for work.

2. What limits?

We often block our own success by placing limits on what we can do or achieve. Stop! Those limits only exist if you allow them to. If you struggle with something, seek help or hire someone, but stop allowing small challenges to limit your success. The encouragement to fight off disbelief and doubt is one of the reasons this is a powerful short inspirational quote for women and work.

S.T.A.R.T

Stop Telling yourself All the Reasons not to Try. You’re filled with so much promise and potential, have so much inside of you that the world needs, but you keep finding excuses not to start. The time is now. Your time is now. Begin today.

4. The greatest obstacle to your success is self doubt.

This deep motivation quote addresses doubt. We all feel like impostors at some point or another. We’re not as good as so and so, not as talented, not as disciplined, don’t have the best resources... So what? Your unique approach and talent is unlike anyone else's and you’ll never accomplish what you don’t try to accomplish.

5. Exceed all expectations, especially your own.

It’s great to have an idea of what you want to achieve and do, but don’t let that bar hold you back either. Explore the potential for more and take on that challenge if the opportunity arises.

6. The move from failure to victory starts with you.

You will continue to fail if you believe you’ll fail. You'll win when you start to believe you’ll win. This super motivational quote was especially relevant to my struggle as a new runner. I failed at running because I did not run. When I decided to run and ran, I improved. Now it’s still not pretty and I still don’t like it, but I’m much better and I know I can do it if I put forth the effort and commit to the process.

7. Focus on what you can do.

You can’t do it all and you don’t need to. Some things might take a team and some things may not be for you. Accept it and focus on what you can do and do that thing or those things repeatedly well.

8. You’ll be so proud of you.

This short inspirational quote would be great to motivate students and kids struggling with new concepts in school. I’m sure each of us has worked on a goal before and felt what it was like to complete it successfully. Don’t you want to repeat that feeling? Don't you want to help someone feel that feeling? Keep working. You’ll be so proud of you once you get it done.

9. Yes, you too.

I know it seems like everyone else is being successful. They’re finishing degrees, starting businesses, building houses and starting families. You can be a part of that success with your own effort and dedication. It didn’t happen for them overnight and it won’t for you either, but yes, you too can be successful.

10. Success is success

Most of us have the terrible habit of nitpicking everything about our life and efforts . We didn’t work hard enough or didn’t achieve enough. Sometimes it’s important to realize that even a small measure of success is still success and deserves to be acknowledged and celebrated. use this motivational quote to focus on the positive in your life and move towards happiness.

11. You design your reality.

Stop complaining about where you currently are in life. If you feel that miserable or passionate, start working to change it. You are powerful enough to design your reality.

12. Don’t live your life in training wheels.

Yes, while you’re working towards big goals and dreams, you will want to practice and plan, but then you have to be willing to dive on it. You can’t spend your life in training wheels. At some point, you have to take the risk, face your fear and get on that bicycle, without the safety net.

13. Intent is meaningless without action.

This short inspirational quote has a tinge of sarcasm. Simply intending to something is inadequate. Too many people are sitting today with the best plans and intentions and are no closer to their dreams than they were when they first occurred to them. Take small steps if you must, but take steps. Your intent is meaningless without action to support them.

14. Once upon a time she saved herself. The end.

Again another motivational quote for women laced with sarcasm. Too many fairy tale and real life accounts call for women to be saved by someone else, namely men. It’s high time that you decided to take a more active role in your own story and save yourself. For example a few years ago I went looking for solutions to help my more energetic students and discovered flexible seating. This short inspirational quote highlights how you can save yourself if you're willing to put in the time and energy.

15. Discipline will take you places motivation can’t go.

This could be your motivational quote of the day, everyday and it applies to work, life, challenges, happiness and health and fitness. It’s easy to be motivated and it might even last for a while, but when things start getting hard motivation will not be enough. You will need discipline to help you push through the obstacles and get to the next phase.

16. P.L.A.N.

Prepare, Learn, Anticipate and Navigate. We all know that without a plan, dreams seldom become reality. I want to encourage you to break your plan down into specific sections. First, prepare for the dreams and goals you’re trying to accomplish. Then, learn as much as you can about your business or endeavor. After that, try to anticipate problems and have your responses planned. Finally navigate your way to the end goal that you’ve envisioned.

17. Next stop: Everything you’ve been working for.

This motivational quote is geared toward providing inspiration for your life and struggles. One of my biggest struggles was going through the process to American citizenship. The words in this short inspirational quote remind you to keep going because if you realized how close you were to breaking through, you wouldn’t even consider giving up. Keep pressing forward because your next stop could bring you to the place you want to be in.

18. It can only break you if you let it.

Repeat this over and over, if necessary. You’re going to go through terrible things. Death, pain, refusals, betrayals, adjusting to new life changes like becoming a mom, financial hardships and on and on, but it cannot break you unless you allow it to. It is normal to hurt, to be angry, to feel as if you want to give up, but don’t. You owe it to yourself to finish what you’ve started.

19. Face your excuses.

I think excuses are huge culprits in inactivity and lack of success. We come up with reasons why we can't or why we shouldn’t and before you know it we’re further from our goals than we were to begin with. My first story, "Duppy Business", in the I am an Island Girl series almost wasn't a reality because of excuses. Let this short inspirational quote remind you to take charge and face your excuses.

One way of overcoming your excuses, outside of being ecouraged by this short inspirational quote is to start writing down your excuses, face them and eliminate them one by one. If it can’t be eliminated do what you can to minimize its negative impact. Then, this short inspirational quote will truly help to reshape your life.

20. Self reflection is scary, but necessary for growth.

No one likes talking hard, long looks at them self. It is much easier to sit and criticize others. When you practice self reflection, it is not about tearing yourself apart. It is about gaining clarity about your strengths and weaknesses, so that you may be prepared for how they’ll affect your actions.

21. Superheroine mentality.

Superheroes are frequently misunderstood. People think they don’t have fear or doubt. The way I see it, they do, they just choose to go on in spite of them because they are motivated by the greater good. Become your own superhero and push past the pain and doubts to do the things that deep down inside you know you were meant to do.

22. Your confidence is showing.

Confidence can change the entire dynamic of your life. It will change how people respond to you and better yet your own mindset and belief system. Even when you’re not 100% brimming with confidence, project it outwardly. It will soon become a real part of who you are.

23. Act boldly.

Being timid has its place, but not normally in entrepreneurship and dream chasing. You will need to be bold. Act boldly in your settings and interactions.

24. Success is on the other side.

On the other side of your fears, doubts, challenges and obstacles is what you’ve been working for. Use this short, inspirational quote as a reminder that you just need to stay committed to your plan and remain disciplined to get there.

25. Get out of your own way.

Your own thoughts about what you can and cannot do can make or break you. In so many cases, we don’t follow through or execute because of self imposed fear or thoughts. Change your belief system with short, inspirational quotes and then get out of your own way and fulfill the dreams you have.

26. I won’t lie, it doesn’t get easier. Not if you’re doing it right.

Everyone wants to think that once they achieve their goal/s things get easier. I’m sorry to say that every new level comes with its own challenges. So, unfortunately, no, it doesn’t get easier, not if you’re doing it right, anyway. Continue to encourage yourself at each level with my short, inspirational quotes.

27. Rethink your process

Constantly renegotiate and assess where you are. The last thing you want to do is to get months or years into a plan before realizing that it won’t work. Sometimes that is unavoidable and part of the plan, but other times it could have been prevented and addressed if you took the time to rethink your process.

For me, mindset is the most important part of the equation to being successful, and apparently my mind agrees because the majority of the short, inspirational quotes that have come to me deal with renegotiating mindset.

Goals/Dreams

Goals and dreams are those desires in our hearts and minds that push us to greater heights. I think mindset and goals and dreams have an egg and chicken relationship. I can't decide if you devise goals and dreams after adjusting your mindset or if your goals and dreams push you to correct your mindset. Either way dreaming and setting goals is also important to inspiring success, so here are my top short, inspirational quotes on dreams and goals for work, about life, struggles and happiness.

28. Goal acquisition is my new obsession.

Until your goals become as important as that show you're binge watching or those shoes you must have, you will struggle to achieve them. Use this short inspirational quote to help you put your energy and action into your goals and you will get closer to them becoming reality.

29. Surpass your wildest dreams. Then, keep going.

You’re capable of so much greatness, so much so that you can’t even fully imagine it yet. Keep working, keep being dedicated to learning and growing more in your craft and your wildest dreams will be the tip of what you do!

30. A goal is a personal promise to your future self.

Don’t let yourself down. You’ve promised yourself that you will achieve this goal, carve out this new life and live a life you’ve dreamed of, now do it. You have enough people in your life who break promises to you, don’t become one of them. Empower yourself daily with a short, inspirational quote and focus on your dreams.

31. Your dreams are waiting to be chased.

As long as your dreams remain fancies or ideas in your head they will never seem possible, but if you put steps in place and make a plan then they become real, possible. Chase your dreams and use these short, inspirational quotes to keep you motivated. You deserve all the success and happiness you can handle.

Life can beat you down to the point where it feels foolish to dream, but it isn’t. As long as you are making progress daily and keeping yourself motivated and positive, you have a chance. These short, inspirational quotes are your daily reminders for work, about life and when struggles come to keep chasing your happiness and dreams.

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