169 Motivational Quotes for Students About Real Success

Today, we are featuring motivational quotes for students to help them through periods of procrastination, study sessions, and beyond. 

To succeed in school, it is essential that you stay motivated.

Using the comment section below, share any motivational stories about succeeding in school with us.

What are the benefits of reading these motivational quotes for students?

Dealing with school can be a struggle, whether in graduate or elementary school.

You are juggling extracurriculars, family life, friends, and your studies.

At Everyday Power, we are here to provide you with nuggets of knowledge from profound people throughout history.

You will find authors, educators, artists, entrepreneurs, and more on this list. 

These motivational quotes for students will:

  • keep you motivated when times are tough
  • help you recognize when you might need a break
  • make sure you understand the value of being a life-long learner

Get inspired by the insightful quotes listed below. 

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

Check out our inspirational quotes category page for more inspirational life quotes.

Motivational quotes for students

1. “There are no shortcuts to any place worth going.” – Beverly Sills

Motivational Quotes for Students about shortcuts

2. “Be a student as long as you still have something to learn, and this will mean all your life.” — Henry L. Doherty

Motivational Quotes for Students about learning

You will also enjoy our article on challenge quotes.

3. “All progress takes place outside the comfort zone.” – Michael John Bobak

Motivational Quotes for Students about leaving your comfort zone

4. “The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones..” – Confucius

powerful Motivational Quotes for Students

5. “Nothing can dim the light which shines from within.” – Maya Angelou

Motivational Quotes for Students about life

6. “Believe in yourself and all that you are. Know that there is something inside you that is greater than any obstacle.” – Christian D. Larson

7. “Though no one can go back and make a brand-new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand-new ending.” – Carl Bard

8. “You’ve got to get up every morning with determination if you’re going to go to bed with satisfaction.” – George Lorimer

9. “Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now.”— Goethe

10. “If you don’t go after what you want, you’ll never have it. If you don’t ask, the answer is always no. If you don’t step forward, you’re always in the same place.” – Nora Roberts

11. “So many of our dreams at first seem impossible, then they seem improbable, and then, when we summon the will, they soon become inevitable.” – Christopher Reeve

12. “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.” – Les Brown

Don’t forget to also check out these motivational quotes of the day for daily rejuvenation.

Motivational quotes for students about perseverance 

13. “There are two kinds of people in this world: those who want to get things done and those who don’t want to make mistakes.” – John Maxwell

Motivational Quotes For Students About Perfectionism

14. “Develop success from failures. Discouragement and failure are two of the surest stepping stones to success.” – Dale Carnegie

Motivational Quotes For Students About Failure

15. “Challenges are what make life interesting. Overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.” – Joshua J. Marine

Motivational Quotes For Students About Overcoming Challenges

16. “By perseverance, the snail reached the ark.” – Charles Spurgeon

Motivational Quotes For Students About Perseverance

17. “A winner is just a loser who tried one more time.” – George Augustus Moore

Motivational Quotes For Students About Winners

18. “Persist and persevere, and you will find most things that are attainable, possible.” – Lord Chesterfield

Motivational Quotes For Students About Persistence

You will also enjoy our article on comfort zone quotes.

19. “Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after another.” – Walter Elliott

Motivational Quotes For Students About Not Giving Up

You will also enjoy our article on motivational.

20. “Perseverance is a great element of success. If you only knock long enough and loud enough at the gate, you are sure to wake up somebody.” – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Motivational Quotes For Students About Being Persistent

You will also enjoy our article on John D Rockefeller Quotes.

Motivational quotes for students about success

21. “Success doesn’t come to you, you’ve got to go to it.” – Marva Collins

motivational Quotes for Students Who Need Success

22. “Successful and unsuccessful people do not vary greatly in their abilities. They vary in their desires to reach their potential.” – John Maxwell

Motivational Quotes For Students About Being Successful

23. “Success means having the courage, the determination, and the will to become the person you believe you were meant to be.” – George Sheehan

Motivational Quotes For Students About Courage

24. “The secret of your success is determined by your daily agenda.” – John C. Maxwell

Motivational Quotes For Students About Success

25. “Action is the foundational key to all success.” – Pablo Picasso

Motivational Quotes For Students About Action

26. “However difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at.” – Stephen Hawking

Motivational Quotes For Students About Succeeding


If you’re enjoying these quotes, you’ll love our collection of Stephen Hawking quotes on life, religion, and the universe

27. “The secret of success is to do the common things uncommonly well.” – John D. Rockefeller

Motivational Quotes For Students About The Secret Of Success

Motivational quotes for students about procrastination

28. “Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone.” – Pablo Picasso

Motivational Quotes For Students About Putting Things Off

29. “Do not wait to strike till the iron is hot; but make it hot by striking.” — William Butler Yeats

30. “Know the true value of time; snatch, seize, and enjoy every moment of it. No idleness, no laziness, no procrastination: never put off till tomorrow what you can do today.” – Philip Stanhope

31. “If you put off everything till you’re sure of it, you’ll never get anything done.” – Norman Vincent Peale

32. “You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.

33. “Procrastination is the thief of time.” – Edward Young

34. “You may delay, but time will not.” – Benjamin Franklin

35. “I don’t wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has got to get down to work.” – Pearl S. Buck

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36. “Do you know what happens when you give a procrastinator a good idea? Nothing!” – Donald Gardner

37. “Begin while others are procrastinating. Work while others are wishing.” – William Arthur Ward

38. “Procrastination usually results in sorrowful regret. Today’s duties put off until tomorrow give us a double burden to bear; the best way is to do them in their proper time.” – Ida Scott Taylor

39. “Procrastination makes easy things hard, hard things harder.” – Mason Cooley
If you’re enjoying these quotes, make sure to read our collection of procrastination quotes that will help you steal your time back.

40. “The only difference between success and failure is the ability to take action.” – Alexander Graham Bell

Motivational quotes for students about studying

41. “Preparation is the key to success.” – Alexander Graham Bell

42. “Reading is to the mind, as exercise is to the body.” – Brian Tracy

43. “There are no traffic jams on the extra mile.” – Zig Ziglar

44. “Learning is like rowing upstream, not to advance is to drop back.” — Chinese Proverb

45. “It is wiser to find out than to suppose.” — Mark Twain

46. “Education is what survives when what has been learned has been forgotten.” — B. F. Skinner

47. “Acquiring knowledge is the most fruitful effort.” ― Eraldo Banovac

48. “What seems to us as bitter trials are often blessings in disguise.” – Oscar Wilde

49. “To acquire knowledge, one must study; but to acquire wisdom, one must observe.”―  Marilyn Vos Savant

50. “The purpose of learning is growth, and our minds, unlike our bodies, can continue growing as long as we live.” — Mortimer Adler

If you’re enjoying this article, be sure to also check out our collection of inspirational pictures quotes that will help push you to keep moving forward.

Other motivational quotes for students

51. “What really matters is what you do with what you have.” – H. G. Wells

52. “Your life does not get better by chance, it gets better by change.” – Jim Rohn

53. “Nothing worthwhile comes easily. Work, continuous work and hard work, is the only way to accomplish results that last.” – Hamilton Holt

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

55. “One important key to success is self-confidence. An important key to self-confidence is preparation.” – Arthur Ashe

56. “Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.” – Winston Churchill

57. “One of the most important principles of success is developing the habit of going the extra mile.” – Napoleon Hill

58. “No matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow.” – Maya Angelou

59. “It’s not what we do once in a while that shapes our lives. It’s what we do consistently.” – Tony Robbins

60. We would accomplish many more things if we did not think of them as impossible.” – Vince Lombardi

More motivational quotes for students

61. “Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.” – Malcolm X

62. “A little progress each day adds up to big results.” – Satya Nani

63. “There are no secrets to success. It is dedication, hard work and learning from failure.” – Collin Powell

64. “If you want to achieve excellence, you can get there today. As of this second, quit doing less-than-excellent work.” – Thomas J. Watson

65. “To be successful you must accept all challenges that come your way. You can’t just accept the ones you like.” – Mike Gafka

66. “Don’t let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.” – John Wooden

67. “Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Wishing is not enough; we must do.” – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

68. “Procrastination is the art of keeping up with yesterday.” – Don Marquis

69. 96. “Develop a passion for learning. If you do, you will never cease to grow.” – Anthony J. D’Angelo

70. “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.” – Thomas A. Edison

Motivational Quotes for Students to Help them Study Hard

71. “It’s not about perfect. It’s about effort.” – Jillian Michaels

72. “Excellence is not a skill. It is an attitude.” – Ralph Marston

73. “You don’t get what you wish for. You get what you work for.” – Daniel Milstein

74. “Everything you’ve ever wanted is on the other side of fear.” – George Addair

75. “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.” – Steve Jobs

76. “You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.” – Maya Angelou

77. ‘The best way to gain self-confidence is to do what you are afraid to do.” – Swati Sharma

78. “If you hear a voice within you say ‘you cannot paint,’ then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.” – Vincent Van Gogh

79. “Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying ‘I will try again tomorrow’.” – Mary Anne Radmacher

80. “Skill is only developed by hours and hours of work.” – Usain Bolt

Motivational Study Quotes for Students to Help Them Focus

81. “Success is no accident. It is hard work, perseverance, learning, studying, sacrifice and most of all, love of what you are doing or learning to do.” ― Pelé

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82. “There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure.” ― General Colin Powell

83. “People always say that I didn’t give up my seat because I was tired, but that isn’t true. I was not tired physically… No, the only tired I was, was tired of giving in.” ― Rosa Parks

84. “Striving for success without hard work is like trying to harvest where you haven’t planted.” ― David Bly

85. “Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out.” ― Robert Collier

86. “Success isn’t overnight. It’s when every day you get a little better than the day before. It all adds up.” ― Dwayne Johnson

87. “Recipe for success: Study while others are sleeping; work while others are loafing; prepare while others are playing; and dream while others are wishing.” ― William A. Ward

88. “Success is the progressive realization of a worthy goal.” ― Earl Nightingale

89. “Power’s not given to you. You have to take it.” ― Beyoncé

90. “You may encounter many defeats but you must not be defeated. In fact, it may be necessary to encounter the defeats, so you can know who you are, what you can rise from, how you can still come out of it.” ― Maya Angelou

Motivational Quotes For Students To Inspire Hard Work

91. “All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them.” — Walt Disney

92. “To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream, not only plan, but also believe.” — Anatole France

93. “Follow your passion. It will lead you to your purpose.” — Oprah

94. “Through hard work, perseverance and a faith in God, you can live your dreams.” — Ben Carson

95. “I find that the harder I work, the more luck I seem to have.” — Thomas Jefferson

96. “Self-belief and hard work will always earn you success.” — Virat Kohli

97. “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” — Benjamin Franklin

98. “Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.” — Jim Ryun

99. “The most successful people are those who are good at plan B.” — James Yorke

100. “If you don’t build your dreams, someone will hire you to help build theirs.” — Tony Gaskin

Motivation Quotes For Students To Put More Effort In Studies 

101. “If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.” — Andy McIntyre

102. “The man who does not read books has no advantage over the one who cannot read them.” — Mark Twain

103. “The beautiful thing about learning is that no one can take it away from you.” — B.B. King

104. “Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.” — BB King

105. “The more that you read, the more things you will know, the more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” — Dr. Seuss

106. “Education is something we have to keep pursuing day after day.” — Premier Brian Gallant

107. “Timing, perseverance, and 10 years of trying will eventually make you look like an overnight success.” ― Biz Stone

108.The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows.” — Sydney J. Harris

109. “He who opens a school door closes a prison.” — Victor Hugo

110. “Learning is the only thing the mind never exhausts, never fears, and never regrets.” — Leonardo da Vinci

Motivational Quotes for Students To Help Them Put Effort

111. “Life is your teacher, and you are in a state of constant learning.” ― Bruce Lee

112. “Luck is a dividend of sweat. The more you sweat, the luckier you get.” ― Ray Kroc

113. “When life stresses you, step back and look for the positive, keep an optimistic attitude.” ― Catherine Pulsifer

114. “You cannot soar with the eagles as long as you hang out with the turkeys.” ― Joel Osteen

115. “The adventure of life is to learn. The purpose of life is to grow. The nature of life is to change. The challenge of life is to overcome. The essence of life is to care. The opportunity of life is to serve.” ― William Arthur Ward

116. “Enjoy all you have while pursuing all you want.” ― Jim Rohn

117. “Even if you are on the right track, you will get run over if you just sit there.” ― Will Rogers

118. “No one starts out on top. You have to work your way up.” ― Muhammad Ali

119. “Doing nothing is very hard to do…you never know when you’re finished.” ― Leslie Nielsen

120. “Choose your friends and mates, not by the money in their bank account, creed, ethnicity, or color; instead, choose character, actions, heart, and soul.” ― Ana Monnar

Motivational Quotes for Students to Fuel Student Achievement

121. “He who asks is a fool for five minutes, but he who does not ask remains a fool forever.” ― Mark Twain

122. You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” ― Wayne Gretzky

123. Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.” ― Robert Kennedy

124. “Believe in yourself! Have faith in your abilities! Without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers you cannot be successful or happy.” ― Norman Vincent Peale

125. “Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” ― Steve Jobs

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126. Education is the ability to listen to almost anything without losing your temper or your self-confidence.” ― Robert Frost

127. Failure defeats losers, failure inspires winners.” ― Robert Kiyosaki

128. “If you can dream it, you can do it. Your limits are all within yourself.” ― Brian Tracy

129. “I am a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work the more I have of it.” ― Stephen Leacock

130. “Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it.  Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.” ― W. H. Murray

Motivational Quotes for Students to Empower  the Future

131. “Don’t take rest after your first victory because if you fail in second, more lips are waiting to say that your first victory was just luck.” ― Abdul Kalam

132. “Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not: nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent.” ― Calvin Coolidge

133. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed.” ― Michael Jordan

134. “Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.” ― Mahatma Gandhi

135. “Learn From Yesterday, Live for Today, hope for tomorrow.” ― Orison Swett Marden

136. “Good things come to those who initiate.” ― Susan RoAne

137. “I do not regret the things I’ve done, but those I did not do.” ― Rory Cochrane

138. “All things come to those who wait.” ― Violet Fane

139. “Education is learning what you didn’t even know you didn’t know.” ― Daniel J. Boorstin

140. “Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.” ― Confucius

Motivational Quotes for Students to Fuel Ambition

141. “Your education is a dress rehearsal for a life that is yours to lead.” ― Nora Ephron

142. “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” ― Eleanor Roosevelt

143. “Your education is a dress rehearsal for a life that is yours to lead.” ― Nora Ephron

144. “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.” ― Winston Churchill

145. “You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose.” ― Dr. Seuss

146. “Believe you can and you’re halfway there.” ― Theodore Roosevelt

147. “The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be.” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson

148. “Hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny.” ― C.S. Lewis

149. “In the middle of every difficulty lies opportunity.” ― Albert Einstein

150. “You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” ― C.S. Lewis

Motivational Quotes for Students to Inspire Student Success

151. “The expert in anything was once a beginner.” ― Helen Hayes

152. “The only way to do great work is to love what you do.” ― Steve Jobs

153. “The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.” ― Franklin D. Roosevelt

154. “Don’t watch the clock; do what it does. Keep going.” ― Sam Levenson

155. “The road to success and the road to failure are almost exactly the same.” ― Colin R. Davis

156. “Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.” ― Albert Schweitzer

157. “You know you are on the road to success if you would do your job and not be paid for it.” ― Oprah Winfrey

158. “Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work in hand. The sun’s rays do not burn until brought to a focus.” ― Alexander Graham Bell

159. “One secret of success in life is for a man to be ready for his opportunity when it comes.” ― Benjamin Disraeli

160. “All I have learned, I learned from books.” ― Abraham Lincoln

161. “You can never be overdressed or overeducated.” ― Oscar Wilde

162. “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” ― Nelson Mandela

163. “I have never let my schooling interfere with my education.” ― Mark Twain

164. “Children must be taught how to think, not what to think.” ― Margaret Mead

165. “Intelligence plus character-that is the goal of true education.” ― Martin Luther King Jr.

166. “Marriage can wait, education cannot.” ― Khaled Hosseini

167. “The educated differ from the uneducated as much as the living differ from the dead.” ― Aristotle

168. “Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young.” ― Henry Ford

169. “Wisdom…. comes not from age, but from education and learning.” ― Anton Chekhov

How do you deal with procrastination? 

I’m a chronic worrywart.

That being the case, I have dealt with procrastination issues my entire life.

What finally helped me stop procrastinating was to decide that my worries weren’t reality.

For example, just because I thought a math assignment was too difficult to work through doesn’t mean that is destined to be what happens. 

Reality rarely is worse than your imagination.

Once you work through that math assignment, completing it will give you the confidence boost you need to not let fear impede your accomplishments. 

Which of these motivational quotes for students is your favorite?

Tell us your thoughts in the comments section below!

If you liked these motivational quotes for students, check out these Make Your Bed Quotes!

Nia Simone McLeod is a writer, content creator, and video editor from Richmond, Virginia. After receiving a Bachelor’s degree in journalism from Virginia Commonwealth University, she began producing professionally edited, eye-catching written and visual content for clients on a variety of different topics such as pop culture, music, technology, business, and mental health. From songs that top the Billboard charts to binge-worthy TV shows on Netflix, she not only understands what’s “hot” in pop culture but how it connects us as a community.As communities, we bond over discussing, critiquing, and expressing our love for pop culture. Developing great digital content is equal parts research and creative ideas. As a content writer, she has helped brands and entrepreneurs create digital content that authentically expresses their brand while staying in touch with current events. Her article topics also include travel, technology, business, and health. When she is not tapping away at her laptop, she is curating her next great Spotify playlist or stuffing her face at the local pho shop.
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6 Comments
  1. Dhairya

    September 18, 2023 at 8:12 AM

    while some are mild
    some are very decent and
    great like the one by bruce lee
    i really liked that

  2. Cindy S-P

    August 25, 2023 at 9:47 AM

    I love the quotes and would love to display the quotes with the images as shown on your website. Is there a way to download the images?

    • Danielle Dahl

      August 31, 2023 at 12:24 AM

      Yes you can! If you are on a desktop you can right click the image and then click ‘save as’ and print it later. (It might be a little small and I don’t think you can blow it up) If you are on an iPhone you can press down and hold the image and then save it in your camera roll. Hope that helps!

  3. myla selfield

    August 23, 2022 at 3:52 PM

    this sucks

    • Danielle Dahl, Lead Contributor

      August 28, 2022 at 10:43 PM

      We are sorry these quotes didn’t resonate with you! Would you like to share some other quotes that have inspired you to succeed in school?

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