116 Goals Quotes: Inspirational Sayings on Setting Goals

We have an inspirational collection of goals quotes to help you on your road to success, whichever direction that may be!

Setting goals and putting yourself on the path to achieving them is something that anyone and everyone can benefit from.

Goals can encompass all sorts of things, both personally and professionally.

The most important thing is that they are realistic.

We need to have a plan, and that we can break them down into more sensible, small and manageable steps.

Too often, we only celebrate a finished product and not all the small successes along the way.

If we allow ourselves to do that, it keeps us motivated, proud, and moving forward.

Always remember, the journey is just as important as achieving the goal.

Below is our collection of inspirational, wise, and thought-provoking goals quotes, goals sayings, and goals proverbs, collected from a variety of sources over the years.

Also, read these powerful Law of Attraction quotes that will help you achieve your goals.

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

If you enjoy this collection, check out our inspirational quotes category page.

Famous Goals Quotes for Success

1. “The significance of a man is not in what he attains but in what he longs to attain.” – Kahlil Gibran

2. “A goal is a dream with a deadline.” – Napoleon Hill

3. “A goal properly set is halfway reached.” – Zig Ziglar

4. “Failures do what is tension relieving, while winners do what is goal achieving.” – Denis Waitley (as quoted in Brian Tracy’s book, Eat That Frog)

5. “Things won are done; joy’s soul lies in the doing.” – William Shakespeare

6. “In all things that you do, consider the end.”- Solon

7. “Everybody has their own Mount Everest they were put on this earth to climb.” – Seth Godin

8. “To reach a port, we must sail—Sail, not tie at anchor—Sail, not drift.” – Franklin Roosevelt

9. “Setting goals is the first step in turning the invisible into the visible.” – Tony Robbins

10. “Intention without action is an insult to those who expect the best from you.” – Andy Andrews

Goals quotes to help you pursue your dreams

11. “Life is short, fragile and does not wait for anyone. There will NEVER be a perfect time to pursue your dreams and goals. ” – Unknown

12. “I am here for a purpose and that purpose is to grow into a mountain, not to shrink to a grain of sand. Henceforth will I apply all my efforts to become the highest mountain of all and I will strain my potential until it cries for mercy.” – Og Mandino

13. “Life can be pulled by goals just as surely as it can be pushed by drives.”- Viktor Frankl
If you’re enjoying these quotes, you’ll love our collection of Viktor Frankl quotes on life, suffering and success.

14. “If you raise your standards but don’t really believe you can meet them, you’ve already sabotaged yourself. You won’t even try; you’ll be lacking the sense of certainty that allows you to tap the deepest capacity that’s within you… Our beliefs are like unquestioned commands, telling us how things are, what’s possible and impossible and what we can and cannot do. They shape every action, every thought and every feeling that we experience. As a result, changing our belief systems is central to making any real and lasting change in our lives.” – Anthony Robbins

15. “You cannot change your destination overnight, but you can change your direction overnight.” – Jim Rohn

16. “My philosophy of life is that if we make up our mind what we are going to make of our lives, then work hard toward that goal, we never lose – somehow we always win out.” – Ronald Reagan

17. “It’s better to be at the bottom of the ladder you want to climb than at the top of the one you don’t.” –  Stephen Kellogg

18. “If you don’t design your own life plan, chances are you’ll fall into someone else’s plan. And guess what they have planned for you? Not much.” – Jim Rohn

19. “A man should have any number of little aims about which he should be conscious and for which he should have names, but he should have neither name for, nor consciousness concerning, the main aim of his life.” – Samuel Butler

You might also like these Colin Powell quotes that will inspire and motivate you to work hard for your dreams.

Goal Setting Quotes About Achievement

20. “Aim at the sun, and you may not reach it; but your arrow will fly far higher than if aimed at an object on a level with yourself.” – J. Howes

21. “Goals are the fuel in the furnace of achievement.” – Brian Tracy, Eat that Frog

22. “Most “impossible” goals can be met simply by breaking them down into bite size chunks, writing them down, believing them, and then going full speed ahead as if they were routine.” – Don Lancaster

23. “Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp, or what’s a heaven for?” – Robert Browning

24. “All who have accomplished great things have had a great aim, have fixed their gaze on a goal which was high, one which sometimes seemed impossible.” – Orison Swett Marden

25. “Every ceiling, when reached, becomes a floor, upon which one walks as a matter of course and prescriptive right.” – Aldous Huxley

26. “He who would arrive at the appointed end must follow a single road and not wander through many ways.” – Seneca (see more quotes from Seneca)

27. “Some men give up their designs when they have almost reached the goal; while others, on the contrary, obtain a victory by exerting, at the last moment, more vigorous efforts than before.” – Polybius

28. “Our goals can only be reached through a vehicle of a plan, in which we must fervently believe, and upon which we must vigorously act. There is no other route to success.” – Pablo Picasso

29. “The virtue lies in the struggle, not in the prize.” – Richard Monckton Milnes

30. “Our plans miscarry because they have no aim. When a man does not know what harbor he is making for, no wind is the right wind.” – Seneca

Also check out these actions speak louder than words quotes that will empower you.

Goals quotes to inspire success

31. “Your goal should be just out of reach, but not out of sight.” – Denis Waitley and Remi Witt

32. “I am always more interested in what I am about to do than what I have already done.” – Rachel Carson

33. “However brilliant an action may be, it should not be accounted great when it is not the result of a great purpose.” – François de la Rochefoucauld

34. “A good archer is known not by his arrows but by his aim.” – Thomas Fuller

35. “The going is the goal.” – Horace Kallen

36. “Who aims at excellence will be above mediocrity; who aims at mediocrity will be far short of it.” – Burmese Saying

37. “The greater danger for most of us isn’t that our aim is too high and miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it.” – Michelangelo

38. “It is not enough to take steps which may someday lead to a goal; each step must be itself a goal and a step likewise.” – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

39. “In absence of clearly defined goals, we become strangely loyal to performing daily acts of trivia.” – Author Unknown

40. “Don’t bunt. Aim out of the ballpark.” – David Ogilvy

41. “There are two things to aim at in life; first to get what you want, and after that to enjoy it. Only the wisest of mankind has achieved the second.” – Logan Pearsall Smith

Don’t forget to also check out these graduation quotes from famous films about success.

Goals quotes to help you reach your potential

42. “Think little goals and expect little achievements. Think big goals and win big success.”― David Joseph Schwartz

43. “No desired achievement is gained without any goal setting.”― Wayne Chirisa

44. “I love the challenge of starting at zero every day and seeing how much I can accomplish.”― Martha Stewart

45. “If you don’t know what you want, you’ll never find it.”― Ryū Murakami

46. “We should set our goals; then learn to control our appetites. Otherwise, we will lose ourselves in the confusion of the world.”― Hark Herald Sarmiento

47. “The great secret about goals and visions is not the future they describe but the change in the present they engender.”― David Allen
If you’re enjoying these quotes, make sure to read our collection of The Secret quotes to help you manifest your dreams.

48. “Remember your goals are “better” and “less,” so progress is everything.”― Dana K. White

49. “Your comfort zone is a place where you keep yourself in a self-illusion and nothing can grow there but your potentiality can grow only when you can think and grow out of that zone.”― Rashedur Ryan Rahman

50. “Be visionary about your goals.”― Sayam Asjad

51. “On the way to your goal, you can always stop, rest, go the opposite way for a while; but after a reasonable time you must set off again towards your goal!”― Mehmet Murat ildan

52. “She wasn’t where she had been. She wasn’t where she was going, but she was on her way.”― Jodi Hills

53. “Committed people find nothing more charming than their goals.”― Junaid Raza

54. “The measure of a society is not only what it does but the quality of its aspirations.”― Wade Davis

55. “The way to achieve your goals is step by step, you just need to build enough track, to be ahead of the train.” – John Milton Lawrence

56. “The only goals you don’t achieve in life are the goals you don’t set.”― Matt Fox

More goals quotes and sayings

57. “Take the challenge of your life. Reach out to your goals. There is no limit to what you can achieve.” – Lailah Gifty Akita

58. “If you can dream it up, you can team it up.” – Richie Norton
If you’re enjoying these quotes, you’ll love our collection of team building quotes that promote working together.

59. “Mindfulness helps us to focus on one goal at a time. It helps us to be more relaxed, patient and compassionate towards the goal.” – Amit Ray

60. “Writing and achieving your goals is not failure, not having a goal to write in the first place is the start of failure.” – Onyi Anyado

61. “A goal is not just an object on a pitch; it is also a milestone on your journey of excellence.” – Onyi Anyado

62. “There are no right of wrong answers in goal setting. What works for you?” – Eddie de Jong

63. “Goal-setting is a life skill.” – Richie Norton

64. “A smart person will think first about the outcome of his decision before doing the first step.” – Rojade Silva

65. “If you think you can then you can.” – Stephen Richards

66. Set a goal to achieve something that is so big, so exhilarating that it excites you and scares you at the same time.” – Bob Proctor

Goal quotes to motivate you

66. “Give me a stock clerk with a goal and I’ll give you a man who will make history. Give me a man with no goals and I’ll give you a stock clerk.” – J.C. Penney

67. “Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.” – Jim Rohn

68. “You must take action now that will move you towards your goals. Develop a sense of urgency in your life” – H. Jackson Brown Jr.

69. “Always remember, the goals that we have achieved pale in comparison to the daily commitments it took to get there.” – Dabo Swinney

70. “You need to overcome the tug of people against you as you reach for high goals.” – George S. Patton

71. “There are a lot of people who have dreams, goals, and hopes, but there aren’t a lot who get to see them realized.” – Tyler Perry

72. “It’s important to set your own goals and work hard to achieve them.” – Yuichiro Miura

73. “I have goals, so you’re always trying to see if you’re on the right path to get where you’re trying to go.” – RJ Barrett

74. “I miss many chances, but I always keep trying, and sometimes you score easy goals or difficult goals, but in the end, I am trying to score.” – Mohamed Salah

75. “I never wanted to give in to my condition. My life changed a lot but I didn’t want it to change my dreams or goals.” – Kadeena Cox

76. “You don’t quit after you get beat. You pick yourself up, and you start rebuilding to accomplish your goals.” – Daniel Cormier

Thought-provoking goals quotes

77. “I don’t focus on what I’m up against. I focus on my goals and I try to ignore the rest.” – Venus Williams

78. “One way to keep momentum going is to have constantly greater goals.” – Michael Korda

79. “People with clear, written goals, accomplish far more in a shorter period of time than people without them could ever imagine.” – Brian Tracy

80. “I believe in the saying, ‘If you aim at nothing, you’re going to hit nothing.’ So if you don’t set goals, then you have nowhere to go.” – Taylor Lautner

81. “I think goals should never be easy, they should force you to work, even if they are uncomfortable at the time.” – Michael Phelps

82. “But when you come from a large, wonderful family, there’s always a way to achieve your goals.” – Wilma Rudolph

83. “Find something that you’re really interested in doing in your life. Pursue it, set goals, and commit yourself to excellence. Do the best you can.” – Chris Evert

84. “Goal-setting and achieving those goals – that’s just what I do.” – Lisa-Leslie

85. “You need lofty goals. Then cement it with a great work ethic.” – Jerry West

86. “Establishing goals is all right if you don’t let them deprive you of interesting detours.” – Doug Larson

Goal quotes to encourage you

87. “Set your goals high, and don’t stop till you get there.” – Bo Jackson

88. “Stay focused, go after your dreams and keep moving toward your goals.” – LL Cool J

89. “A winner is someone who recognizes his God-given talents, works his tail off to develop them into skills, and uses these skills to accomplish his goals.” – Larry Bird

90. “It really is never too late, it really is never too early to figure out your goals and dreams and what you love.” – Garrett McNamara

91. “You have to have a dream, whether big or small. Then plan well, focus, work hard, and be very determined to achieve your goals.” – Henry Sy

92. “Recast your current problems into proactive goals.” – Suze Orman

93. “I believe that visualization is one of the most powerful means of achieving personal goals.” – Harvey Mackay

94. “Disability should not be considered a hindrance to achieving one’s goals.” – Brian Lara

95. “I’ve always made that push for me to be positive and stay forward with my goals.” – Valerie Jarrett

96. “If what you are doing is not moving you towards your goals, then it’s moving you away from your goals.” – Brian Tracy

Goals quotes for going after your dreams

97. “Successful people do things that the average person is not willing to do. They make sacrifices the average person is not willing to make. But the difference it makes is extraordinary.” – Brian Tracy

98. “Most impossible goals can be met simply by breaking them down into bite-size chunks, writing them down, believing them, and going full speed ahead as if they were routine.” – Don Lancaster

99. “I never dreamed about success. I worked for it.” – Estee Lauder

100. “Without dreams and goals, there is no living, only merely existing, and that is not why we are here.” – Mark Twain

101. “A dream written down with a date becomes a goal. A goal broken down into steps becomes a plan. A plan backed by action makes your dreams come true.” – Greg Reid

102. “Reach high, for stars lie hidden in you. Dream deep, for every dream, precedes the goal.” – Rabindranath Tagore

103. “In order to know where you’re headed, you must be aware of your own personal goals.” – Brian Cagneey

104. “My goal is not to be better than anyone else but to be better than I used to be.” – Wayne Dyer

105. “You can’t be that kid standing at the top of the waterslide, overthinking it. You have to go down the chute.” – Tina Fey

106. “What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.” – Henry David Thoreau

Goals Quotes To Help You Maintain Setting Goals For Your Lifestyle

107. “If you want to be happy, set a goal that commands your thoughts, liberates your energy and inspires your hopes.” — Andrew Carnegie

108. “Success is the progressive realization of a worthy goal or ideal.” — Earl Nightingale

109. “The trouble with not having a goal is that you can spend your life running up and down the field and never score.” — Bill Copeland

110. “You should set goals beyond your reach so you always have something to live for.” — Ted Turner

111. “It must be borne in mind that the tragedy of life doesn’t lie in not reaching your goal. The tragedy lies in having no goals to reach.” — Benjamin E. Mays

112. “When it is obvious that the goals cannot be reached, don’t adjust the goals, adjust the action steps.” — Confucius

113. “There’s nothing better than achieving your goals, whatever they might be.” — Paloma Faith

114. “Without some goals and some efforts to reach it, no man can live.” — John Dewey

115. “Goals are not only absolutely necessary to motivate us. They are essential to really keep us alive.” — Robert H. Schuller

116. “Set realistic goals, keep re-evaluating, and be consistent.” — Venus Williams

Which of these goals quotes inspired you to achieve today?

Accomplishing our goals can be one of the greatest feelings we will ever experience in life.

To achieve a major stepping stone, or to complete a long-term project, is an extremely satisfying feeling.

Most importantly, we must give ourselves credit and celebrate the small victories, as we march towards our goals.

If you want more quotes about goals, check out these Goal Getter quotes.

I hope these goal-setting quotes reminded you of why we need to live with purpose.

Which of these goals quotes resonated with you best?

Do you have any other favorite quotes to add to the list?

Let us know in the comment section below.