Quotes on Success

Quotes on Success
Source : Words of wisdom by Dr. Daisaku Ikeda

The real struggle in life is with ourselves. The true secret of success is the refusal to give up, the refusal to fail; it lies in the struggle to win the battle against one's own weaknesses.
What is defeat in life? It is not merely making a mistake; defeat means giving up on yourself in the midst of difficulty. What is true success in life? True success means winning in the battle with yourself. Those who persist in the pursuit of their dreams, no matter what the hurdles, are winners in life, for they have won over their weaknesses.
What is success in life? Who are the truly successful? There are famous and powerful people who become pitiful figures in their old age. There are people who die alone, feeling empty and desolate inside. Just what is success? The person who lives life fully, glowing with life's energy, is the person who lives a successful life.
Though one may seem to have attained success for the moment, one will start to regress the instant one becomes careless and ceases making effort, beginning a slide toward defeat. Those who are continually pressing ahead are genuinely successful.
Knowing that to give up is to be defeated by oneself, continue single-mindedly to take small but significant steps in the shaping of your destiny.
When you devote yourself to achieving your goal, you will not be bothered by shallow criticism. Nothing important can be accomplished if you allow yourself to be swayed by some trifling matter, always looking over your shoulder and wondering what others are saying or thinking. The key to achievement is to move forward along your chosen path with firm determination.
People always have many different roles to play. The crucial thing is to be determined to make a wholehearted effort in everything and be fully engaged in what we are doing at any given moment. The secret to successfully fulfilling a variety of roles is to concentrate fully on the task at hand and give it our best effort with enthusiasm, maintaining a positive, forward-looking attitude and not worrying.
While it is important to win, it's even more important to remain undefeated no matter what happens.
This lifetime will never come again; it is precious and irreplaceable. To live without regret, we must have a concrete purpose, continually setting goals and challenges for ourselves. And we need to keep moving toward those specific targets steadily and tenaciously, one step at a time.
If you lose today, win tomorrow. In this never-ending spirit of challenge is found the heart of a victor.
Human society is made up of people who have met success and those who have not. No one knows for sure whether their life will be blessed by fortune or burdened by fate. The elation of triumph is short-lived, but those who understand that every setback, too, is only temporary and who continue to make steady efforts with confidence and conviction, can achieve truly great things. Ultimately, victory comes from never giving in to defeat.
It takes great effort to build something, but it only takes an instant to destroy it.
When you think, "I can't do anymore. I need a break," that is the time to challenge yourself to keep going another five minutes. Those who persevere for even an extra five minutes will win in life.
The seeds of firm conviction already contain within them the flowers and fruits of happiness. But if we plant the seeds of self-doubt, naturally, only noxious weeds will sprout.
Success, victory and happiness are all to be found in forward motion.
There are times when a victory or success can actually become the cause for future defeat or failure. Likewise, defeat can become the cause for victory in the future.
A pyramid isn't built from the top down. The apex is attained only by laying strong foundation stones, one by one. The same is true of achieving a lofty objective. The crucial thing is to lay the first stone, to take the first step.
Failure is an instrumental part of every success. Whether our life has been a triumph or tragedy can only be judged at its very end.
Do you give up the struggle to overcome your own limitations on the first attempt, or do you keep on with it, trying a second time, a third time, and continuing on in the challenge for the rest of your life? That is the only difference between the genius and the ordinary person.
It is precisely when we have suffered defeat that we can determine to win and open the path to future victory.
All considerations of position, wealth and reputation aside, the greatest and most enduring triumph as a human being lies in knowing that one is doing one's best.


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