168 Empowering Collaboration Quotes on Teamwork & Success

Sometimes teamwork makes the dream work, and these collaboration quotes prove it.

Collaboration is a popular buzzword these days, but what does it look like?

Tell us in the comments below which of these collaboration quotes is your favorite.

What are the benefits of reading these collaboration quotes?

Corporations and organizations encourage employees to:

• share ideas
• work together
• integrate their efforts

The open office environment, which seems to get more popular from year to year, is designed on the principle of collaboration.

Everyone may not agree, but those behind the open office concept believe that the absence of walls and dividers facilitates conversations and interactions.

This concept fosters a sharing spirit and collaborative attitude.

Whether this is true or effective in achieving the level of collaboration that its proponents profess, the fact is we typically accomplish more and attain greater results and benefits when we work together – when we indeed collaborate!

However, collaboration is about so much more than a tool for achieving business goals or personal dreams.

Collaboration is about compassion, love, support, kindness, and the power we gain when we share and lean on each other.

As we watched experts and volunteers from across the world come together to rescue 12 young men and their coach from a flooded cave in Thailand, we witnessed a clear display of compassion and a heart-warming demonstration of loving support played out via the power of collaboration in defying the odds and winning!

So, let’s focus on the true meaning, spirit, and value that we gain when we collaborate, as can be gleaned from these empowering quotes on collaboration.

We also have a collection of motivational quotes for employees.

Check that out too.

Check out our most popular quote article, a list of short inspirational quotes for daily inspiration. 

Check out our entire collection of motivational quotes here. 

Empowering collaboration quotes

1. “Alone we can do so little. Together we can do so much.” – Helen Keller

2. “Synergy – the bonus that is achieved when things work together harmoniously.” – Mark Twain

You will also enjoy our article on determination quotes.

3. “Collaboration allows us to know more than we are capable of knowing by ourselves.” – Paul Solarz

4. “I can do things you cannot, you can do things I cannot; together we can do great things.” – Mother Teresa

5. “Individually we are one drop; but together we are an ocean.” – Ryunosoke Satoro

6. “Politeness is the poison of collaboration.” — Edwin Land

7. “Great things in business are never done by one person; they’re done by a team of people.” – Steve Jobs

8. “Many ideas grow better when transplanted into another mind than the one where they sprang up. “— Oliver Wendell Holmes

9. One man can be a crucial ingredient on a team, but one man cannot make a team.” – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

10. “If a team is to reach its potential, each player must be willing to subordinate his personal goals to the good of the team.” – Bud Wilkinson

Inspirational collaboration quotes about teamwork

11. “Every sin is the result of a collaboration.” — Lucius Annaeus Seneca

12. “It is not only one person’s work, it’s really a partnership and collaboration during all these years.” — Christo

You will also enjoy our article on engagement quotes.

13. “Good design begins with honesty, asks tough questions, comes from collaboration and from trusting your intuition.” — Freeman Thomas

You will also enjoy our article on business motivational quotes.

14. “Despair shows us the limit of our imagination. Imagination shared creates collaboration, and collaboration creates community, and community inspires social change.” – Terry Tempest Williams

You will also enjoy our article on Service quotes.

15. “Collaboration is the essence of life. The wind, bees and flowers work together, to spread the pollen.” – Amit Ray

You will also enjoy our article on introduction quotes.

16. “Collaboration is much like a birth. The song that springs forth resembles each one of us to a degree, but it’s the kind of thing that would never be born from just one of us sitting down with a guitar.” – Grant-Lee Phillips

17. “When ‘I’ is replaced by “we” even ‘illness’ becomes ‘wellness’.” – Scharf

18. “Competition makes us faster, collaboration makes us better.” – Fyrefly

19. “Teamwork is the secret that makes common people achieve uncommon results.” – Ifeanyi Enoch Onuoha

20. “We can see that all the desirable experiences that we cherish or aspire to attain are dependent upon cooperation and interaction with other sentient beings.” – Dalai Lama

Collaboration quotes to inspire success

21. “If you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else.” – Booker T. Washington

22. “No one can whistle a symphony. It takes a whole orchestra to play it.” – H.E. Luccock

23. “The best teamwork comes from men who are working independently toward one goal in unison.” – James Cash Penney

24. It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.” – Harry Truman

25. “Collaboration is a key part of the success of any organization, executed through a clearly defined vision and mission and based on transparency and constant communication.” – Dinesh Paliwal

26. “I like working with people. I believe change can only come through collaboration.” – Alain de Botton

27. “Collaboration is an important part of the process, and ego is never a part of it.” – Mack Wilberg

28. “Individual commitment to a group effort–that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work.” – Vince Lombardi

29. “Collaboration allows teachers to capture each other’s fund of collective intelligence.” -Mike Schmoker

30. “To me, teamwork is the beauty of our sport, where you have five acting as one. You become selfless.” – Mike Krzyzewski

Collaboration quotes to appreciate the power of teamwork

31. “Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships.” – Michael Jordan

32. “Filmmaking is a miracle of collaboration.” – James McAvoy

33. “No matter how brilliant your mind or strategy, if you’re playing a solo game, you’ll always lose out to a team.” – Reid Hoffman

34. It takes two flints to make a fire.” – Louisa May Alcott

35. “Collaboration has no hierarchy. The Sun collaborates with soil to bring flowers on the earth.” – Amit Ray

36. “Life is not a solo act. It’s a huge collaboration, and we all need to assemble around us the people who care about us and support us in times of strife.” — Tim Gunn

37. “When spiders unite, they can tie down a lion.”― Ethiopian Proverb

38. “The beauty of collaboration between older and younger generations is that we combine strength with wisdom—a surefire way to accomplish more for the glory of God.” ― Brett Harris

39. “Those who do not understand the power of collaboration always struggle for growth.”― Anuj Jasani

40. “A strong team can take any crazy vision and turn it into reality.” – John Carmack

Also, check out these team building quotes and sayings that promote working together.

Collaboration quotes to inspire greatness

41. “Collaboration gives the freedom to come out from the narrow scopes of life to the field of endless possibilities.”― Amit Ray

42. “In teamwork, silence isn’t golden. It’s deadly.” — Mark Sanborn

43. “Exclusivity detracts collaboration. Inclusivity attracts participation.”― Janna Cachola

44. “If you can laugh together, you can work together.” – Robert Orben

45. “A successful team is a group of many hands and one mind.” – Bill Bethel

46. “I believe, we can create a better world, a better tomorrow, if we work together. Don’t you?” ― Akiroq Brost

47. “There is no such thing as a self-made man. You will reach your goals only with the help of others.” — George Shinn

48. “Collaborate to innovate”― Winsor Jenkins

49. “Collaboration requires focusing on everything from vision and values to how individuals can feel they are making a real contribution.”― Jane Ripley

50. “Teamwork builds trust and trust builds speed.” — Russel Honore

Other inspirational collaboration quotes

51. “A clear purpose will unite you as you move forward, values will guide your behavior, and goals will focus your energy.”― Kenneth H. Blanchard
If you’re enjoying these quotes, make sure to read our collection of unity quotes about bringing people together.

52. “A good collaboration pushes the boundaries of both partners.” – Neil Blumenthal

53. The fun for me in collaboration is, one, working with other people just makes you smarter; that’s proven.” – Lin-Manuel Miranda

54. “One way a collaboration can go wrong is if your connection is inauthentic or overly prescriptive.” – Mark Parker

55. “Creative collaboration is awesome.” – Alicia Silverstone

56. “Collaboration is the best way to work. It’s only way to work, really.” – Antony Starr

57. “I’m down to work with anyone as long as it’s an organic collaboration.” – Black Though

58. “Team collaboration comes when internal competition has left.”― Mario Maruffi

59. “When you need to innovate, you need collaboration.” – Marissa Mayer

60. “A group becomes a team when each member is sure enough of himself and his contribution to praise the skills of others.” – Norman Shidler

Also check out these community quotes that will make you understand that we are all connected to others.

More collaboration quotes and sayings

61. “Collaboration begins with focusing on the collective good rather than personal gain.”― Jane Ripley

62. “Cooperation, collaboration and coordination are together more powerful than competition.” ― Hendrith Vanlon Smith Jr

63. “Teamwork begins by building trust. And the only way to do that is to overcome our need for invulnerability.” – Patrick Lencioni

64. “Genuine collaboration is an environment that promotes communication, learning, maximum contribution, and innovation.”― Jane Ripley

If you’re enjoying these quotes, make sure to read our collection of innovation quotes that will inspire you to find new successes by trying new things.

65. “Open collaboration encourages greater accountability, which in turn fosters trust.”
― Ron Garan

66. “An individual can make a change but a team can make a revolution.” – Amit Kalantri

67. “The key to fostering effective workplace collaboration is to be aware of the whole person.” – John Alejandro King

68. “Teamwork is not a game for the selfish. It is for those with the mindset that a win for one is a win for all.” – Michael Bassey Johnson

69. “Collaboration begins with mutual understanding and respect.” – Astronaut Ron Garan

70. “Collaboration is important not just because it’s a better way to learn. The spirit of collaboration is penetrating every institution and all of our lives. So learning to collaborate is part of equipping yourself for effectiveness, problem-solving, innovation and life-long learning in an ever-changing networked economy.” — Don Tapscott

Don’t forget to also check out our collection of Thursday quotes to inspire the end of your week.

Collaboration quotes about teamwork and the arts

71. “I think it is in collaboration that the nature of art is revealed.” — Steve Lacy

72. “It takes collaboration across a community to develop better skills for better lives.” — Jose Angel Gurria

73. “True public safety requires a collaboration between law enforcement and the community.” — Betsy Hodges

74. “Art is a collaboration between God and the artist, and the less the artist does the better.” — Andre Gide

75. “Unity is strength… When there is teamwork and collaboration, wonderful things can be achieved.” — Mattie Stepanek

76. “The whole point of collaboration is that you give and take from each other, and that’s how you create things that are totally new.” — Virgil Abloh

77. “Collaboration is like carbonation for fresh ideas. Working together bubbles up ideas you would not have come up with solo, which gets you further faster.” — Caroline Ghosn

78. “Collaboration is key, it takes innovation and creativity to the next room.”― Shawn Lukas

79. “As you navigate through the rest of your life, be open to collaboration. Other people and other people’s ideas are often better than your own. Find a group of people who challenge and inspire you, spend a lot of time with them, and it will change your life.” — Amy Poehler

80. “If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” – Isaac Newton

Collaboration quotes to help you work as a team

81. “No individual can win a game by himself.” — Pele

82. “Bad attitudes will ruin your team.” — Terry Bradshaw

83. “The speed of the boss is the speed of the team.” — Lee Laccoca

84. “A core group of guys, all sharing similar goals, can move mountains.” ― Chris Matakas

85. “If everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself.” — Henry Ford

86. “A team is more than a collection of people. It is a process of give and take.” — Barbara Glacel

87. “Great teamwork is the only way we create the breakthroughs that define our careers.” — Pat Riley

88. “Controversy, content, consistency and collaboration are the four pillars to build your brand” ― Anuj Jasani

89. “There is immense power when a group of people with similar interests gets together to work toward the same goals.” — Idowu Koyenikan

90. “Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision. The ability to direct individual accomplishments toward organizational objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results.” — Andrew Carnegie

Collaboration Quotes To Encourage You Into Teamwork

91. “Collaboration and augmentation are the foundational principles of innovation.” — Vaclav Smil

92. “None of us, including me, ever do great things. But we can all do small things, with great love, and together we can do something wonderful.” — Mother Teresa

93. “Collaboration means working toward a goal; collectivism means a socialist style support group that “shares the wealth.” ― Brett Stevens

94. “The hardest problems of pure and applied science can only be solved by the open collaboration of the worldwide scientific community.” — Kenneth G Wilson

95. “It is the long history of humankind (and animal kind, too) that those who learned to collaborate and improvise most effectively have prevailed.” — Charles Darwin

96. “Every collaboration helps you grow. With Bowie, it’s different every time. I know how to create settings, unusual aural environments. That inspires him. He’s very quick.” — Brian Eno

97. “Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, and working together is success.” — Henry Ford

98. “Working with others is, in my mind, the future of business. You have a larger audience, more ideas, shared risk, shared workload and you will be getting a portion of something greater than had you done it alone.” — Seth Nichol

99. “Collaborate with people you can learn from.” — Pharrell

100. “Our method was to develop integrated products, and that meant our process had to be integrated and collaborative” — Steve Jobs

Collaboration Quotes To Prove Teams Can Achieve More

101. “Enlightenment is living in the light of cosmic collaboration.” ― Amit Ray

102. “Many hands make light work.” — John Heywood

103. “To build a strong team, you must see someone else’s strength as a complement to your weakness and not a threat to your position or authority.” — Christine Caine

104. “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success. You may have the greatest bunch of individual stars in the world, but if they don’t play together, the club won’t be worth a dime.” — George Herman

105. “The main ingredient of stardom is the rest of the team.” — John Wooden

106. “Surround yourself with a trusted and loyal team. It makes all the difference.” — Alison Pincus

107. “We talk a lot about hope, helping, and teamwork. Our whole message is that we are more powerful together.” — Victoria Osteen

108. “Teams share the burden and divide the grief.” — Doug Smith

109. “Strategy is not a solo sport, even if you’re the CEO.” — Max McKeown

111. “Teamwork makes the dream work.” — Bang Gae

Collaboration Quotes To Make You Grow

112. “Cooperation is working together agreeably… Collaboration is working together aggressively; and theres a world of difference between those two.” — John C. Maxwell

113. “Most great learning happens in groups. Collaboration is the stuff of growth.” — Ken Robinson

114. “Collaboration always wins over competition… and is more fun, too.” — Silvio Micali

115. “A successful collaboration is all about trust and respect. If you show people trust they will perform better.” — Oh Land

116. “Being in a band is always a compromise. Provided that the balance is good, what you lose in compromise, you gain by collaboration.” — Mike Rutherford

117. “It’s such a joy to work with different ensembles and create a collaboration. Rehearsing and building a performance is very interesting for me.” — Cecilia Bartoli

118. “Collaboration is when magic is made with more than one person. It’s when more than one person finds common ground on the same page. That’s collaboration.” — Michael Urie

119. “A chance to collaborate with one of my favorite bands in a completely open and supportive creative environment… some our best work.” — Dave Genn

120. “I like the idea of collaboration – it pushes you. It’s a richer experience.” — Frank Gehry

121. “Working together precedes winning together…collaboration is multiplication.” — John C. Maxwell

Collaboration Quotes To Improve Your Productivity

122. “Sometimes it’s more a matter of collaboration which matters in a collection.” —  Raf Simons

123. “The real beauty in my professional experience has been friendships and collaborations with filmmakers.” — Peter Morgan

124. “For me making music is part social, part interaction, part collaboration.” — Norah Jones

125. “I love doing collaborations – it’s always good to do something that’s out the box.” — Kelly Rowland

126. “I learn a lot from my experiences and collaborations. Most of my collaborations are meant for me to learn.” — Pharrell Williams

127. “Nothing new that is really interesting comes without collaboration.” — James D. Watson

128. “Collaboration is far more powerful than competition. Do not think that only if you are pushed to the wall, you will do your best.” — Jaggi Vasudev

129. “We are moving from sharing to cooperation to collective action.” — Clay Shirky

130. “I believe in collaboration. I think that is the most entertaining and effective way to write for me, personally.” — Jonah Hill

131. “What I enjoy is a collaboration. Working with other like-minded people. People who have brilliant minds and big hearts.” — Julian Ovenden

Collaboration Quotes to Improve The Quality of Your Work

132. “Collaboration is a nice change of pace from the often solitary nature of the writer’s craft.” ― Edward M Lerner

133. “Filmmaking is such a collaboration. At a certain point, I suppose you do have to let go and trust the people you’re working with.” ― Madonna Ciccone

134. “I always find that the best collaborations are when you work with people that know what they’re doing, and you leave them alone to do it.” ― Twyla Tharp

135. “Of course, from time to time, I want to do everything myself and be more involved on my own with the creative process. But I don’t mind the collaboration at all.” ― Michel Gondry

136. “Collaboration is vital to sustain what we call profound or really deep change, because without it, organizations are just overwhelmed by the forces of the status quo.” ― Peter Senge

137. “I wanted to collaborate because, you know, I get lonely.” ― Woody Allen

138. “I’ve never written anything that wasn’t somewhat of a collaboration. I don’t know how people do it on their own.” ― Charlie Day

139. ‘Cooperation and collaboration among nations and countries can help in the process of development of promoting welfare as well as bringing peace and stability.” ― Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

140. “I’m a very big believer in collaboration and teamwork.” ― Barbara Boxer

141. “People achieve more as a result of working with others than against them.” ― Dr. Allan Fromme

Collaboration Quotes for Working Together

142. Collaboration allows us to see the best in others and bring out the best in ourselves.” ― Simon Sinek

143. “Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” ― Helen Keller

144. Collaboration is the highest form of personal mastery.” ― Peter Drucker

145. “The strength of the team is each individual member. The strength of each member is the team.” ― Phil Jackson

146. “Collaboration is the key to success in any sphere, be it personal or professional.” ― Ken Blanchard

147. Collaboration is the process of pooling different strengths to reach a common goal.” ― Stephen Covey

148. “Collaboration requires trust, and trust requires transparency.” ― Jon Miller

149. “Collaboration is a strategic choice that leverages the full power of the organization.” ― Jim Collins

150. “Collaboration is the best way to achieve a goal that is beyond the reach of any single person.” ― Tom Peters

151. “Collaboration is the most effective way to create a competitive advantage, because together we can achieve what no one of us could alone.” ― John Seely Brown

Uniting Minds and Hearts Through Collaboration Quotes

152. “Great collaboration is a beautiful thing.” ― Brian Eno

153. “Collaboration, it turns out, is not a gift from the gods but a skill that requires effort and practice.” ― Douglas B. Reeves

154. “As Christians, we should be the best collaborators in the world. We should be quick to find unlikely allies and subversive friends, like Jesus did.” ― Shane Claiborne

155. “Training often gives people solutions to problems already solved. Collaboration addresses challenges no one has overcome before.” ― Marcia Conner

156. “With commitment and vision, it is possible to build a bridge between potential partners and communities whose work is of relevance to peace-building initiatives.” ― Widad Akrawi

157. “For collaboration to be effective; when we come together we must put aside our interests and agendas, and unite.” ― JA Perez

158. “Small mind competes, big mind collaborates and great mind encompasses.” ― Amit Ray

159. “In order for collaboration to take place, managers must give up their silos and their perceptions of power.” ― Jane Ripley

160. “Collaborators let down their guards. Successful collaborators still carry a taser.” ― Ryan Lilly

161. “Innovation needs preparation, collaboration and the light of the soul. Every challenge provides that light – a greater depth of understanding about life and truth.” ― Amit Ray

Collaboration Quotes on the Power of Working Together in Harmony

162. “As a collaborative leader, you support people in their work—you remove roadblocks and help them win.” ― Kenneth H. Blanchard

163. “Treat every connection, communication and collaboration as part of a continuous relationship.” ― Kim Chandler McDonald

164. “Peace begins with listening to understand, feeling the suffering of others and valuing collaboration over conflict.” ― Jeffrey A. White

165. “A prosperous and sustainable future can only be secured through greater equality and collaboration.” ― Joseph Rain

166. “It takes a strong leader to collaborate with others in an effort to bring about real change.” ― Germany Kent

167. “Everything in life is collaboration, if you learn this one skill you will grow consistently in your life.” ― Anuj Jasani

168. “Collaboration and partnership are all based on trust, if you can win the trust of a person then you can have them as a partner to invest in anything.” ― Anuj Jasani

Which collaboration quotes were your favorite?

Collaboration is more than a trend or a buzzword.

Collaboration should be the cornerstone (the supporting pillar) of our society.

We won’t always agree on how to do something, when to do it or why it’s important to do it.

Each of us doesn’t possess the same talents, interests, or desires.

We don’t all have the same types or levels of experiences.

We all don’t have the same background, training, or frame of reference.

But, if we all open up and:

• give a little from our hearts
• share a bit of our knowledge
• treat each other with great respect
• be willing to receive as much as we share and give

Then, maybe, just maybe, we can make this collaboration thing a truly empowering way of life!

So, did you enjoy these collaboration quotes?

Which of the quotes on collaboration was your favorite?

Share with us in the comment section below.