The most well-known and successful entrepreneurs all began the same way: they had an idea, and they did absolutely anything it took to see it through. They are inspirations in human form showing us all the rewards of never giving up and overcoming opposition.
But let’s face it, no matter what your goal is – we are all, in a way, entrepreneurs. One can only make money when something is done that ultimately turns over profit. Money may not be the way everyone measures success, but everyone must make a living.
Don’t think you’re a salesman? Think again:
Authors need to promote and sell their book. A waiter or a waitress “does business” with every table: selling food, drinks, and good service. Tellers at a bank sell the highest possible customer satisfaction and security so they do not lose their customer to another bank. Actors sell a work of art by physically interpreting it on film or the stage. Union workers sell their ability to work hard. Checkers at grocery stores are selling and promoting the value of shopping at that particular store. Musicians want to sell their music by booking shows and marketing their albums. Call center consultants work to sell their service, reassuring the customer that they are calling the best person to help them.
From the time we wake up in the morning to the time we go to bed, we are communicating, negotiating, and influencing others around us to achieve. In this fast-paced world of buying and selling, we depend on our ability to be able to feed our families and ultimately succeed. Even if you do not work to be rich, you work to at least be able to live and support who and what you love. Therefore, everyone is a salesman, and anyone can benefit from these words of encouragement.
Here are some of the most well-known, innovative, and inspirational quotes from some of the world’s greatest businessmen, inventors, authors, politicians, actors, and ultimately: salesmen.
On Resistance, Failure, & Triumph
“The most valuable thing you can make is a mistake – you can’t learn anything from being perfect.” – Adam Osborne, Founder of Osborne Computer Corporation
“Success is walking from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.” – Winston Churchill, Soldier, Journalist, Historian, and former Prime Minister of Britain
“The philosophy of the rich and the poor is this: the rich invest their money and spend what is left. The poor spend their money and invest what is left.” – Robert Kiyosaki (aka “Rich Dad”), Cashflow Technologies
“What’s right is what’s left if you do everything else wrong.” – Robin Williams, American actor and comedian
“When everything seems to be going against you, remember that the airplane takes off against the wind, not with it.” Henry Ford, founder of Ford Motor Company
On Caring for the Customer
“There is only one boss; the customer. And he can fire everybody in the company, from the chairman down, simply by spending his money somewhere else.” – Sam Walton, Founder of Walmart and Sam’s Club
“Always deliver more than expected.” —Larry Page, co-founder of Google 
“Sometimes, I think my most important job as a CEO is to listen for bad news. If you don’t act on it, your people will eventually stop bringing bad news to your attention, and that is the beginning of the end.” – Bill Gates, Founder of Microsoft
“Everyone has an invisible sign hanging from their neck saying, ‘make me feel important.’ Never forget this message when working with people.” – Mary Kay Ash, Founder of Mary Kay Cosmetics
On Hard Work
“A true entrepreneur is a doer, not a dreamer.” – Nolan Bushnell, Founder of Atari, Inc and Chuck E. Cheese’s
“It doesn’t matter how many times you fail. It doesn’t matter how many times you almost get it right. No one is going to know or care about your failures, and neither should you. All you have to do is learn from them and those around you because all that matters in business is that you get it right once. Then everyone can tell you how lucky you are.” – Mark Cuban, Chairman of AXS TV, Owner of Landmark Theaters
“Nothing will work unless you do.” – Maya Angelou, author, poet, civil rights activist
“Doing business without advertising is like winking at a girl in the dark, you know what you are doing but nobody else does.” – Ed Howe, American novelist and newspaper and magazine editor
“Practice like you’ve never won. Perform like you’ve never lost.” Unknown
“I’m convinced that about half of what separates the successful entrepreneurs from the non-successful ones is pure perseverance.” Steve Jobs, Co-founder, Chairman, and CEO of Apple; CEO of Pixar
