74 Inspirational Quotes From Women in Business (2020)

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Doing business is not for the faint-hearted. One has to be ready to pay the sacrifice and persevere in order to enjoy the fruits of their labor. That said, don’t you think that being a woman in business adds even more unique challenges?

Based on their unique experiences, several admirable women entrepreneurs have shared their nuggets of wisdom. These words are evidence that the journey is often not easy but is well worth it. The different perspectives also paint a beautiful picture of the joys of success and triumph.

So, to give you a boost of inspiration, here are some motivational quotes on starting up and maintaining steady growth in business, dealing with triumphs and failures, and how to handle other challenges. Read on.

On Vision and Purpose

“Stay true to yourself and your vision. Don’t let any one person’s opinion move you; listen, but be confident.” – Amanda Kahlow, Founder of 6sense Insights Inc.
“My husband always tells me that I’m the most unrelenting person he’s ever met, and it’s true. If I make a commitment to something I will stick to it no matter what.” – Jenny Craig, Co-Founder, Jenny Craig, Inc.
“There is nothing like a concrete life plan to weigh you down. Because if you always have one eye on some future goal, you stop paying attention to the job at hand, miss opportunities that might arise, and stay fixedly on one path, even when a better, newer course might have opened up.” – Indra Nooyi, former CEO of PepsiCo
“To love what you do and feel like it matters, how could anything be more fun?” – Katharine Graham, first American female Fortune 500 CEO
“Trying to do it all and expecting it all can be done exactly right is a recipe for disappointment. Perfection is the enemy.” – Sheryl Sandberg, COO Facebook
“Life-fulfilling work is never about the money – when you feel true passion for something, you instinctively find ways to nurture it.” – Eileen Fisher, fashion designer
“Decide … whether or not the goal is worth the risks involved. If it is, stop worrying.” – Amelia Earhart, aviation pioneer and author
“Don’t limit yourself. Many people limit themselves to what they think they can do. You can go as far as your mind lets you. What you believe, remember, you can achieve.” – Mary Kay Ash, founder Mary Kay Cosmetics

On Challenges, Fears, and Failure

“I don’t believe in failure. It’s not failure if you enjoyed the process.” – Oprah Winfrey, Media Mogul
“You never lose in business, either you win or you learn.” – Melinda Emerson, the “SmallBizLady”
“Every time you succeed, you learn a little. Every time you fail, you learn a lot!” – Carole Baskin, Founder and CEO, Big Cat Rescue
“My best successes came on the heels of failures.” – Barbara Corcoran, real estate magnate and “Shark Tank” investor
“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, founder of Spanx
“I invented my life by taking for granted that everything I did not like would have an opposite, which I would like.” – Coco Chanel, founder of Chanel
“We must develop a thick skin. With an unshakeable sense of self – and a commitment to being compassionate – nothing will faze you.” – Mari Smith, social media marketer known as the “Facebook Queen”
“On my own, I will just create, and if it works, it works, and if it doesn’t, I’ll create something else. I don’t have any limitations on what I think I could do or be.” – Oprah Winfrey, Media Mogul
“You will be defined not just by what you achieve, but by how you survive.” – Sheryl Sandberg, COO, Facebook
“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, Co-Founder of The Huffington Post, Founder and CEO of Thrive Global
“Run to the fire; don’t hide from it.” – Meg Whitman, CEO of Quibi
“If you push through that feeling of being scared, that feeling of taking a risk, really amazing things can happen.” – Marissa Mayer, Former CEO, Yahoo
“It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all, in which case, you fail by default.” – JK Rowling, author
“Do not be afraid to make decisions. Do not be afraid to make mistakes.”- Carly Fiorina, first female CEO of a Fortune 20 company
“The price of inaction is far greater than the cost of a mistake.” – Meg Whitman, CEO of Quibi

On Starting Out

“Starting a small business has been one of the best choices I ever made. I have grown, and have learned, and have been able to explore my creativity in ways that I could not have been able to, had I not taken that first step.” – Rawa, Founder, Peachhcake LLC
“Be an amateur. Not everything you do has to be good, especially at first.” – Ann Handley, Chief Content Officer, Marketing Profs
“Buckle up, and know that it’s going to be a tremendous amount of work, but embrace it.” – Tory Burch, Fashion Designer
“First and foremost, have fun! My only qualifier would be to make sure there actually is a need for the products or services you have in mind. OK, I do have a 2nd qualifier: bootstrap as much as you can. Never incur debt if at all possible and if you do, make it short-term (under six months).” – Kathy Dannel Vitcak, CEO & Founder, The Blissful Dog Inc.
“Whatever it is that you think you want to do, and whatever it is that you think stands between you and that, stop making excuses. You can do anything.” – Katia Beauchamp, co-founder and CEO of Birchbox.
“Find that niche that you are really passionate about and don’t be afraid to go after it.” – Rebecca Wilson, Owner / Managing Partner, YourBagTag.com
“If you need the user to tell you what you’re selling, then you don’t know what you’re selling, and it’s probably not going to be a good experience.” – Marissa Mayer, businesswoman, investor, former CEO of Yahoo
“If you have an idea, you have to believe in yourself or no one else will.” – Sarah Michelle Gellar, Actress & Entrepreneur
“If you’re clear on what you believe, you have a great foundation to go make a market.” – Virginia “Ginni” Rometty, Executive Chairman of IBM
“If you are committed to creating value and if you aren’t afraid of hard times; obstacles become utterly unimportant. A nuisance perhaps; but with no real power. The world respects creation; people will get out of your way.” – Candice Carpenter, founder of iVillage.com
“Whatever you do, be different – that was the advice my mother gave to me, and I can’t think of better advice for an entrepreneur. If you’re different, you will stand out.” – Anita Roddick Founder, The Body Shop
“The comfort zone is a nice place, but nothing grows there. Take the leap today and start your business!” – Caroline Cummings, Entrepreneur & VP of Business Development, Palo Alto Software

On Gender

“In the future, there will be no female leaders. There will just be leaders.” – Sheryl Sandberg, COO Facebook
“I hope you will find some way to break the rules and make a little trouble out there. And I also hope that you will choose to make some of that trouble on behalf of women.” – Nora Ephron, screenwriter
“The most important factor in determining whether you will succeed isn’t your gender, it’s you. Be open to opportunities and take risks. In fact, take the worst, the messiest, the most challenging assignment that you can find, and then take control.” – Angela Braly, CEO of WellPoint (now Anthem)
“Give us a world where half our homes are run by men, and half our institutions are run by women. I’m pretty sure that would be a better world.” – Sheryl Sandberg, COO Facebook
“What I learn from talking to so many women around the world: If you can empower them with the right things, the right tools, they can lift up their family. And that ultimately lifts up their community and their society” – Melinda Gates, co-founder of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
“Leadership is not about men in suits. It is a way of life for those who know who they are and are willing to be their best to create the life they want to live.” – Kathleen Schafer, Founder of Leadership Connection
“I’m proud of her; she’s proud of me. There is no competition animosity, envy, or jealousy. We’re just secure, confident women doing our thing while supporting each other. I call that a SiSTARship and it is the essence of a Smart Woman Achieving Greatness. (SWAG)” – Sabrina Newby
“I just love bossy women. I could be around them all day. To me, bossy is not a pejorative term at all. It means somebody’s passionate and engaged and ambitious and doesn’t mind learning.” – Amy Poehler, actress and writer
“There are no ugly women, only lazy ones.” – Helena Rubenstein, American businesswoman who started one of the world’s first cosmetic companies
“Men selectively listen. When that happened, I’d stop the conversation and say, ‘Do you realize I said that 10 minutes ago?’ Women have to take responsibility for the dynamic around them. You can’t just say, ‘Woe is me.'” – Maggie Wilderotter, The CEO of Frontier Communications
“It is pure mythology that women cannot perform as well as men in science, engineering, and mathematics. In my experience, the opposite is true: Women are often more adept and patient at untangling complex problems, multitasking, seeing the possibilities in new solutions and winning team support for collaborative action.” – Weili Dai, Director and Co-Founder, Marvell Technology Group
“Our work is still cut out for us. More women are getting college degrees than men, yet women are still a small percentage of people in the US running and starting companies. I hope in that in my lifetime I get to experience the feeling of being one among many female tech CEOs who have leveled the playing field.” – Sabrina Parsons, CEO, Palo Alto Software

On Growth and Success

“I learned to always take on things I’d never done before. Growth and comfort do not coexist.” – Virginia “Ginni” Rometty, Executive Chairman of IBM
“Dear optimist, pessimist, and realist, while you guys were busy arguing about the glass of wine, I drank it! Sincerely, the opportunist!” – Lori Greiner, inventor, QVC host and “Shark Tank” investor
“Being confident and believing in your own self-worth is necessary to achieving your potential.” – Sheryl Sandberg, COO Facebook
“The most successful entrepreneurs I know are optimistic. It’s part of the job description.” – Caterina Fake, Co-Founder of Flickr
“I did not have the most experience in the industry or the most money, but I cared the most.” – Sara Blakely, Founder of Spanx
“Nasty Gal would have surely failed had it been my goal to grow a business to the size that I have today.” – Sophia Amoruso, Nasty Gal founder and author of #GirlBoss
“You can have it all. Just not all at once.” – Oprah Winfrey, Media Mogul
“I always did something I was a little not ready to do. I think that’s how you grow. When there’s that moment of ‘Wow, I’m not really sure I can do this,’ and you push through those moments, that’s when you have a breakthrough.” – Marissa Mayer, Former CEO, Yahoo
“If you’re not [learning], you’re falling behind. Somebody else is getting better as you’re becoming less valuable. I see so many irrelevant salespeople I want to cry. They stopped learning.” – Jill Konrath, Sales Strategist, Keynote Speaker, & Author
“Do something you love, have passion and commitment, but most importantly persistence. Hire slow and fire fast. Business is about people, and sales and marketing. If you have the right people and excellent sales and marketing then you will be successful.” – Renee Brown, Vice-President, Weaver’s Coffee & Tea
“The difference between successful people and others is how long they spend time feeling sorry for themselves.” – Barbara Corcoran, real estate magnate and “Shark Tank” investor
“If you are successful, it is because somewhere, sometime, someone gave you a life or an idea that started you in the right direction. Remember also that you are indebted to life until you help some less fortunate person, just as you were helped.” – Melinda Gates, co-founder of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
“Find another solution. That’s how you move toward success.” – Amber Hurdle, Author
“Define success in your own terms, achieve it by your own rules, and build a life you’re proud to live.” – Anne Sweeney, Co-Chair, Disney Media Networks
“Don’t confuse progress with winning.” – Mary T. Barra, CEO General Motors
“I never dreamed about success; I worked for it.” – Estée Lauder, Cosmetics Mogul
“Some of the best businesses tried and failed many times before they struck gold, and you have to make sure you remain hungry for success, even if the path to it is not straightforward.” – Sheryl Sandberg, COO, Facebook
“It’s your game; make up your own rules.” – Barbara Corcoran, real estate magnate and “Shark Tank” investor

Unique Perspectives

“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, CEO of PepsiCo
“Humans are allergic to change. They love to say, ‘We’ve always done it this way.’ I try to fight that. That’s why I have a clock on my wall that runs counter-clockwise.” – Chien-Shiung Wu, Particle Physics Pioneer
“The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.” – Alice Walker
“Creating the culture of burnout is the opposite of creating a culture of sustainable creativity.” – Arianna Huffington, Co-Founder of The Huffington Post, Founder and CEO of Thrive Global
“Whatever anybody says or does, assume positive intent. You will be amazed at how your whole approach to a person or problem becomes very different.” – Indra Nooyi, CEO of PepsiCo
“I’ve always been a bit of an introvert, but just because you don’t fit the classic mold doesn’t mean you can’t be a leader. You just need to find your own style and someone with a similar style who you can learn from.” – Jess Lee, Co-Founder and former CEO, Polyvore
“One of the best things you can do is stop and listen; that’s why it’s good to not just immediately respond when someone talks to you. Just stop and make sure you internalized what they said.” – Lori Richardson, Founder, Score More Sales
“I like to say it’s an attitude of not just thinking outside the box, but not even seeing the box.” – Safra A. Catz, CO-CEO Oracle
“I try to participate in esteemable acts. I help people. I try to be kind and walk in the shoes of others. It’s really all selfish because it makes me feel great.” – Kristen Bell, Entrepreneur, actress and producer

Final Words

There you have it, the ultimate list of our hand-picked quotes on various aspects of entrepreneurship. And the best part is knowing that the women who said these words have actually gone through the trenches of business – it makes the quotes so much more authentic and inspiring.

So, no matter what stage of business you are in, we hope you’ve got your boost to continue pushing forward.

74 Inspirational Quotes From Women in Business