Empowering Quotes from Inspiring Business Women

"You are more powerful than you know; you are beautiful just as you are."

- Melissa Etheridge

"We need to reshape our own perception of how we view ourselves. We have to step up as women and take the lead."

- Beyoncé

"The difference between a broken community and a thriving one is the presence of women who are valued."

- Michelle Obama

"A woman with a voice is, by definition, a strong woman."

- Melinda Gates

"The most courageous act is still to think for yourself. Aloud."

- Coco Chanel

"I was always looking outside myself for strength and confidence, but it comes from within. It is there all the time."

- Anna Freud

"I raise up my voice—not so I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard...we cannot succeed when half of us are held back."

- Malala Yousafzai

"A strong woman understands that the gifts such as logic, decisiveness, and strength are just as feminine as intuition and emotional connection. She values and uses all of her gifts."

- Nancy Rathburn

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away."

- Maya Angelou

"Normal is not something to aspire to, it's something to get away from."

- Jodie Foster

"I didn't know what I wanted to do, but I always knew the woman I wanted to be."

- Diane von Furstenberg

"Make the most of yourself by fanning the tiny, inner sparks of possibility into flames of achievement."

- Golda Meir

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams."

- Eleanor Roosevelt

"I'd rather regret the things I've done than regret the things I haven't done."

- Lucille Ball

"You get in life what you have the courage to ask for."

- Oprah Winfrey

"Above all, be the heroine of your life, not the victim."

- Nora Ephron

"Done is better than perfect."

- Sheryl Sandberg

"You can't give up! If you give up, you're like everybody else."

- Chris Evert

"Doubt is a killer. You just have to know who you are and what you stand for."

- Jennifer Lopez

"I choose to make the rest of my life the best of my life."

- Louise Hay

"Power’s not given to you. You have to take it."

- Beyoncé

"I learned a long time ago that there is something worse than missing the goal, and that’s not pulling the trigger."

- Mia Hamm

"Success isn’t about how much money you make; it’s about the difference you make in people’s lives."

- Michelle Obama

"We need women at all levels, including the top, to change the dynamic, reshape the conversation, to make sure women's voices are heard and heeded, not overlooked and ignored."

- Sheryl Sandberg

"Making the decision to not follow a system, or someone else’s rules has freed me up to find the best in myself."

- Serena Williams

"The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain."

- Dolly Parton

"Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement."

- Helen Keller

"You can't be that kid standing at the top of the waterslide, overthinking it. You have to go down the chute."

- Tina Fey

"My best successes came on the heels of failures."

- Barbara Corcoran

"The most effective way to do it is to do it."

- Amelia Earhart

"You never lose by loving. You always lose by holding back."

- Barbara de Angelis

"I want every little girl who's told she's bossy to be told instead she has leadership skills."

- Sheryl Sandberg

"One of the most courageous things you can do is identify yourself, know who you are, what you believe in and where you want to go."

- Sheila Murray Bethel

"Don't compromise yourself. You are all you've got."

- Janis Joplin

"A woman is the full circle. Within her is the power to create, nurture and transform."

- Diane Mariechild

"Everyone shines, given the right lighting."

- Susan Cain

"The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity."

- Amelia Earhart

"Courage is like a muscle. We strengthen it by use."

- Ruth Gordon

"What would you do if you weren’t afraid?"

- Sheryl Sandberg

"Do the one thing you cannot do. Fail at it. Try again. Do better the second time. The only people who never truly tumble are those who never mount the high wire. This is your moment. Own it."

- Oprah Winfrey

"Don't sit down and wait for the opportunities to come. Get up and make them."

- Madam C.J. Walker

"You can either waltz boldly onto the stage of life and live the way you know your spirit is nudging you to, or you can sit quietly by the wall, receding into the shadows of fear and self-doubt."

- Oprah Winfrey

"Ask yourself, what would I do if I weren’t afraid? And then go do it."

- Sheryl Sandberg

"Women and girls can do whatever they want. There is no limit to what we as women can accomplish."

- Michelle Obama

"The most successful entrepreneurs I know are optimistic. It’s part of the job description."

- Caterina Fake

"Don't be intimidated by what you don't know. That can be your greatest strength and ensure that you do things differently from everyone else."

- Sara Blakely

"We may encounter many defeats, but we must not be defeated. It may even be necessary to encounter the defeat, so that we can know who we are."

- Maya Angelou

"As a leader, I am tough on myself and I raise the standard for everybody; however, I am very caring because I want people to excel at what they are doing so that they can aspire to be me in the future."

- Indra Nooyi

"The more women help one another, the more we help ourselves. Acting like a coalition truly does produce results."

- Sheryl Sandberg

"I never dreamed about success. I worked for it."

- Estée Lauder

"Success is only meaningful and enjoyable if it feels like your own."

- Michelle Obama

"Chart a new path to success, remaking it in a way that includes not just the conventional metrics of money and power, but a third metric that includes well-being, wisdom, wonder, and giving, so that the goal is not just to succeed but to thrive."

- Arianna Huffington

"The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me?"

- Ayn Rand

"You can often change your circumstances by changing your attitude."

- Eleanor Roosevelt

"Don’t sit down and wait for the opportunities to come. Get up and make them."

- Madam C.J. Walker

"I was once afraid of people saying, “Who does she think she is?” Now, I have the courage to stand and say, “This is who I am.”"

- Oprah Winfrey

"Success doesn’t come from what you do occasionally. It comes from what you do consistently."

- Marie Forleo

"You will be defined not just by what you achieve, but by how you survive."

- Sheryl Sandberg

"Success isn’t about how much money you make, it’s about the difference you make in people’s lives."

- Michelle Obama

"We need to accept that we won’t always make the right decisions, that we’ll screw up royally sometimes—understanding that failure is not the opposite of success, it’s part of success."

- Arianna Huffington

"Don’t ever buy into the belief that you need to behave like a man to succeed. Instead, embrace all of the unique qualities of your personality and bring this into business with you."

- Hulya Mantion

"Don’t let anyone tell you that you are too ‘emotional’ about your business. A founder’s passion … [is] the biggest asset a business can have."

- Sahar Hashemi OBE

"When things get hard (which they will), your WHY needs to be strong enough to keep you going."

- Ali Bonar

"Define success on your own terms, achieve it by your own rules, and build a life you're proud to live."

- Anne Sweeney

"In order to be irreplaceable one must always be different."

- Coco Chanel

"When you take care of yourself, you’re a better person for others. When you feel good about yourself, you treat others better."

- Solange Knowles

"If your dreams do not scare you, they are not big enough."

- Ellen Johnson Sirleaf

"Do what you feel in your heart to be right – for you’ll be criticised anyway."

- Eleanor Roosevelt

"Never take no personally. Sometimes people tell you no for a reason that has nothing to do with you. You must keep going."

- Sofia Vergara

"The most effective way to do it, is to do it."

- Amelia Earhart

"If you’re frustrated because you’re not getting what you want, stop for a second: Have you actually flat-out asked for it? If you haven’t, stop complaining. You can’t expect the world to read your mind. You have to put it out there, and sometimes putting it out there is as simple as just saying, “Hey, can I have that?”"

- Sophia Amoruso

"To love what you do and feel like it matters – how could anything be more fun?"

- Katharine Graham

"It’s important to be willing to make mistakes. The worst thing that can happen is you become memorable."

- Sara Blakely

"You’ll never do a whole lot, unless you’re brave enough to try."

- Dolly Parton

"I don’t like to lose — at anything — yet I’ve grown most not from victories, but setbacks."

- Serena Williams

"I learned to always take on things I’d never done before. Growth and comfort do not coexist."

- Ginni Rometty

"If people are doubting how far you can go, go so far that you can’t hear them anymore."

- Michele Ruiz

"There are many things you can do overnight but there is no overnight success."

- Tory Burch

"Success isn’t about the end result, it’s about what you learn along the way."

- Vera Wang

"You can be good at technology and like fashion and art. You can be good at technology and be a jock. You can be good at technology and be a mom. You can do it your way, on your terms."

- Marissa Mayer

"In whatever you do, you’re not going to stand out unless you think big and have ideas that are truly original. That comes from tapping into your own creativity, not obsessing over what everyone else is doing."

- Sophia Amoruso

"If you don’t learn to delegate as a leader, if you don’t trust your leadership team, you’re never going to have a star leadership team. No star leader is going to join you if you’re going to micromanage everything."

- Arianna Huffington

"A good leader should focus on making sure everyone is being given the tools to do their job, not just expecting - poof! - that they're going to produce great work."

- Anne Sweeney

"I see some people stay in one place because it’s convenient or it’s comfortable. But they’re missing out on their passion."

- Arianna Huffington

"Growth and comfort do not coexist."

- Ginni Rometty

"What I always say is, 'Do every job you're in like you're going to do it for the rest of your life, and demonstrate that ownership of it.'"

- Mary Barra

"There is no force more powerful than a woman determined to rise."

- W.E.B. Du Bois

"A mediocre idea that generates enthusiasm will go further than a great idea that inspires no one."

- Mary Kay Ash

"The only way to do great work is to love what you do."

- Steve Jobs

"I'm not about caring less, I'm about caring smarter."

- Rachel Zane

"Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person."

- Mother Teresa

"The difference between successful people and others is how long they spend time feeling sorry for themselves."

- Barbara Corcoran

"The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any."

- Alice Walker

"Until you’re ready to look foolish, you’ll never have the possibility of being great."

- Cher

"I do not try to dance better than anyone else. I only try to dance better than myself."

- Arianna Huffington

"Don’t raise your voice, improve your argument."

- Donna Paulsen

"You can’t do it all. You have to give what you’ve got for the day and leave the rest for tomorrow."

- Beatrice Dixon

"The business of business should not just be about money, it should be about responsibility. It should be about public good, not private greed."

- Anita Roddick

"Whatever you do, be different – that was the advice my mother gave me, and I can’t think of better advice for an entrepreneur. If you’re different, you will stand out."

- Anita Roddick

"Say yes and figure out the details later. Saying yes when you think you can't is exactly when you should."

- Leanne Pittsford

"It’s important to be intentional in finding champions and allies who are rooting for you."

- Kim and Vanessa Pham

"Surround yourself with a trusted and loyal team. It makes all the difference."

- Alison Pincus

"Don’t be afraid to do something big."

- Daphne Koller

"Perseverance is failing nineteen times and succeeding the twentieth."

- Julie Andrews

"We need to re-shape our own perception of how we view ourselves. We have to step up as women and take the lead."

- Beyonce

"If you don’t get out of the box you’ve been raised in, you won’t understand how much bigger the world is."

- Angelina Jolie

"The challenge is not to be perfect... it’s to be whole."

"Risking is better than regretting."

"Never forget how wildly capable you are."

"If you never try what you want to achieve, you’ll never know."

"The ones that are successful are the ones that never give up."