Top 215 Greatness Quotes

Worldly pleasures, such as flow from greatness, riches, honours, and sensual gratifications, are infinitely worse than none.

To achieve greatness one should live as if they will never die.

No, our greatness does not come from our government.

Tonight, we gather to affirm the greatness of our nation – not because of the height of our skyscrapers, or the power of our military, or the size of our economy. Our pride is based on a very simple premise, summed up in a declaration made over two hundred years ago.

Greatness is a spiritual condition worthy to excite love, interest, and admiration; and the outward proof of possessing greatness is that we excite love, interest and admiration.

There’s a price to pay for greatness. The price to pay is doing the right thing.

Greatness lies, not in being strong, but in the right using of strength; and strength is not used rightly when it serves only to carry a man above his fellows for his own solitary glory. He is the greatest whose strength carries up the most hearts by the attraction of his own.

The true way to be humble is not to stoop until you are smaller than yourself, but to stand at your real height against some higher nature that will show you what the real smallness of your greatness is.

I think that the consistency on being great and a top player, you know, it’s always been the goal because it’s not too many people that can sustain greatness for a long time.

No man has come to true greatness who has not felt that his life belongs to his race, and that which God gives to him, He gives him for mankind.

My election to the position of president is the symbol of the greatness of Indian democracy.

After I watched Tom Brady win the Super Bowl, it made me start to think that the only thing that marks greatness is consistency over a long period of time.

Maybe the real secret to America’s greatness is that we hate one another.

With popular rulers, the wife can become the guardian of their greatness: Peter the Great was succeeded by his wife, Catherine I. Sometimes the wives are an improvement.

What kind of country just recycles its old money, reminisces about what used to be, and doesn’t know how to weld, to machine, to cast or to bolt things together? Not one that’s on a path to future greatness, that’s for certain.

If you’re in the UFC, your goal should be to become champion… Just because you have the belt doesn’t mean that you achieve greatness.

When I have had such men before my camera my whole soul has endeavored to do its duty towards them in recording faithfully the greatness of the inner as well as the features of the outer man. The photograph thus taken has been almost the embodiment of a prayer.

The line between greatness and obscurity is very, very small.

You were designed for accomplishment, engineered for success, and endowed with the seeds of greatness.

Greatness comes to those who wait.

The true greatness of a person, in my view, is evident in the way he or she treats those with whom courtesy and kindness are not required.

When I started my podcast, ‘The School of Greatness,’ one of the top three people I wanted to get on the show was Tony Robbins.

I’m not afraid to lose. I’m here for the competition. I’m here to make greatness.

I’m really good at bringing out greatness – in anybody. I don’t even have to be in the studio. What a gift to be able to help people bring out the best qualities in them.

I admire Sachin Tendulkar for being one of the best role models for young cricketers, and no one in Pakistan even doubts his greatness, as his records speak for himself.

I believe Georgia should aspire to nothing less than greatness. And I believe greatness is within our grasp.

Rome has grown since its humble beginnings that it is now overwhelmed by its own greatness.

The conventions of an almighty agency tapping you for greatness and signing you up and telling you this is going to be the next big thing; that has not been my career.

Human relations are built on feeling, not on reason or knowledge. And feeling is not an exact science; like all spiritual qualities, it has the vagueness of greatness about it.

If you break an individual record, it’s because of the greatness that comes before you.

This is the greatest society in all of human history, the greatest country ever. Many of the decisions being made in Washington today by both parties are threatening that greatness. And if we stay on this road we’re on right now, our children are going to be the first Americans ever to inherit a diminished country.

Who is there that can adequately gauge the greatness of the humility, gentleness, self-surrender, revealed by the Lord of majesty in assuming human nature, in accepting the punishment of death, the shame of the cross?

Men who create power make an indispensable contribution to a nation’s greatness. But, men who question power make a contribution just as indispensable.

There is as much greatness of mind in acknowledging a good turn, as in doing it.

Success isn’t always about greatness. It’s about consistency. Consistent hard work leads to success. Greatness will come.

The greatest lesson I’ve learned is that you have to fight and continue to strive for greatness, as nothing great ever comes easily.

Honestly, I hated Dirk growing up. As I got older and wiser, obviously I was really able to appreciate his greatness as I learned the game of basketball.

It is a rough road that leads to the heights of greatness.

I desire a greatness of soul, an irradiance of mind, a deeper insight, a broader hope.

When you close your eyes to tragedy, you close your eyes to greatness.

Your ego can become an obstacle to your work. If you start believing in your greatness, it is the death of your creativity.

No university in the world has ever risen to greatness without a correspondingly great library… When this is no longer true, then will our civilization have come to an end.

I believe that history has shape, order, and meaning; that exceptional men, as much as economic forces, produce change; and that passe abstractions like beauty, nobility, and greatness have a shifting but continuing validity.

Suffering becomes beautiful when anyone bears great calamities with cheerfulness, not through insensibility but through greatness of mind.

Each of us, every day, through the jobs we do, are offered a shot at greatness, an opportunity to reach immortality.

I’m not afraid of taking long walks. A lot of people want to be great, but they want to cheat to get to the greatness. I’m cool with talking the walk around the block to get to where I want to go as opposed to the cheat, because the cheat has flaws.

As machines become more and more efficient and perfect, so it will become clear that imperfection is the greatness of man.

Great men are rare, poets are rarer, but the great man who is a poet, transfiguring his greatness, is the rarest of all events.

Let’s drink to the spirit of gallantry and courage that made a strange Heaven out of unbelievable Hell, and let’s drink to the hope that one day this country of ours, which we love so much, will find dignity and greatness and peace again.

I believe greatness is an evolutionary process that changes and evolves era to era.

The greatness of America lies not in being more enlightened than any other nation, but rather in her ability to repair her faults.

A retentive memory may be a good thing, but the ability to forget is the true token of greatness.

This is what America is about when it comes to understanding that it is equal opportunity versus equal achievement. Each and every one of us has the opportunity for greatness in this country.

Greatness is so often a courteous synonym for great success.

Greatness is a road leading towards the unknown.

By constant self-discipline and self-control you can develop greatness of character.

The United States is a leader across a broad range of scientific disciplines. Our technological prowess is part of our greatness as a nation. Sadly, among the rich industrialized nations, we also lead by a substantial margin in the rate of poverty among children.

I love being in a spot where not only do I expect my own greatness – I’m also part of an organization that expects greatness from me. Or just think of it this way: Would you want to be the dude who lets Pat Riley down?

To be honest, I hadn’t realised the greatness of film music till I was exposed to film songs after I started living in Mumbai.

You know, quarterbacks, I think greatness in quarterbacks is taking what you’ve got, whether it’s a great team, a good team, or a struggling team and make them better.

Greatness for me is the ability to focus under pressure.

In my own sphere I did everything that could possibly be expected of a man who believes in the greatness of his people and who is filled with fanaticism for the greatness of his country, in order to bring about the victory of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist movement.

If you’re a Freshman, it means you’re ’boutta take off or you’re at the point where you’re already there. Now that I’m a Freshman, I’m gonna keep workin’, keep gettin’ to the top, keep striving for greatness.

Chasing greatness – it’s what I’m about.

I believe in highlighting the ‘greatness’ that I see in every single woman that I come across. There is such beauty in variety. It may not always be evident, when you look at a woman, where her greatness lies. But the truth is that the greatness of women is reflected in the very essence of who we are.

Being named Michael Jordan – I think growing up playing sports and having a name like Michael Jordan – and I was extremely competitive – I used to get teased a lot. But it made me want to strive for greatness and be able to compete at whatever I decided to do.

As human beings, our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world – that is the myth of the atomic age – as in being able to remake ourselves.

Leadership and greatness comes to those who follow-through. Who stand for near-flawless execution.

Some people say pain is a fuel for greatness and if that’s true, then my tank will forever be full.

You see, greatness for a state doesn’t require some huge monument for all to see. It is not a journey to a particular destination – but a commitment to follow a course of constant and never-ending improvement.

I kind of feel like God took away Metro Station and the greatness there so I could settle down and have my love life.

I am proud to offer my endorsement of Donald J. Trump for President of the United States. He is a successful executive and entrepreneur, a wonderful father, and a man who I believe can lead our country to greatness again.

When you are in the company of greatness, there is only one thing to do: to raise your game.

The Indians on board said that thence to Cuba was a voyage in their canoes of a day and a half; these being small dug-outs without a sail. Such are their canoes. I departed thence for Cuba, for by the signs the Indians made of its greatness, and of its gold and pearls, I thought that it must be Cipango.

For the most part, boys are very physical. It’s not enough for them to be told they have what it takes and they have greatness. They have to discover for themselves. We learn by doing. The doing has to be somewhat physical.

Never underestimate the power of dreams and the influence of the human spirit. We are all the same in this notion: The potential for greatness lives within each of us.

You are watching what greatness is all about.

I lived in a bubble: my whole entire military career where I thought that everything was perfect. And I thought that every time we went overseas and we fought for this country, we were doing it because we were trying to get other people a sliver of the greatness that we have here in the United States of America.

The greatness of art is not to find what is common but what is unique.

Dennis Bergkamp is, in my eyes, still ‘The Master’. The fact that he never won the Champions League, the European Championship, or the World Cup does not take anything away from his greatness as a player.

I want our leaders to lead our country to greatness, but President Obama and his misguided policies and ideology have really fundamentally changed our country in the wrong way, more so than any president in our history.

Think like a queen. A queen is not afraid to fail. Failure is another steppingstone to greatness.

I love Canada, and I dated someone who was Canadian a few years ago, and she brought me into a deeper understanding of the greatness of the culture.

It is strange. I see all the privileges and greatness of the future. It already looks grand, beautiful. Tell them I went lovingly, trustfully, peacefully.

We expect nothing but greatness from ourselves.

It’s the type of thing where, if you gonna battle somebody to prove your greatness, you wanna go to somebody that shares that same seat with you.

Protection and patriotism are reciprocal. This is the way which has led nations to greatness.

The only greatness for man is immortality.

Ronald Reagan believed in America as the shining city on the hill – Morning in America. But Donald Trump has a much different vision of American greatness, of nationalism – a much darker view, I think, of the world.

The World Trade Center is a living symbol of man’s dedication to world peace… a representation of man’s belief in humanity, his need for individual dignity, his beliefs in the cooperation of men, and, through cooperation, his ability to find greatness.

Failure holds the seeds for greatness – so long as you water those seeds with introspection, they can be the root of your success.

Recognizing poor leadership is a vital skill to help you achieve greatness.

America’s greatness has been the greatness of a free people who shared certain moral commitments. Freedom without moral commitment is aimless and promptly self-destructive.

America’s greatness has always been demonstrated by our moral leadership.

Now and then, I had moments of greatness, but I never knew how to duplicate it consistently.

When everyone is buying into a system and puts their ego to the side, that’s when greatness happens.

Human greatness does not lie in wealth or power, but in character and goodness. People are just people, and all people have faults and shortcomings, but all of us are born with a basic goodness.

The more you rely/trust and believe in your team and the bigger the investment you make in getting them to their greatness, the larger will be the commitment, engagement, and outright devotion they have when it comes to you.

Remember, America’s greatness is based on creating wealth like the rest of the world has never known, and then, making sure it’s shared throughout a middle class and even the underprivileged.

We feel unsatisfied until we know ourselves akin even with that greatness which made the spots on which it rested hallowed; and until, by our own lives, and by converse with the thoughts they have bequeathed us, we feel that union and relationship of the spirit which we seek.

We strive for greatness.

The price of greatness is responsibility.

Many have had their greatness made for them by their enemies.

Greatness, in the last analysis, is largely bravery – courage in escaping from old ideas and old standards and respectable ways of doing things.

I worked for CBS News in the aftermath of all the greatness. I actually brought coffee to Edward R. Murrow.

Presidential aspirants reach for the highest office to satisfy some yearning for greatness or even immortality.

Barack Obama’s political roots are liberal, but he has always resisted buying into the brand of liberalism that denigrates American greatness and potential.

A part of me looks at life from a dismal perspective, not unlike Woody Allen and Larry David. But I don’t want to look at life like that. It’s bad enough that I have to think it. What works for me is writing against that view. There is God, there is love, there is greatness, there is a plan, and there is beauty.

The truest greatness lies in being kind, the truest wisdom in a happy mind.

The Evolution of Greatness’ was an amazing experience, and it’s something that we hope to have been a steppingstone for us to come back and not only do more NBA All-Star performances, but do halftime performances at events like the Super Bowl.

It is in his knowledge that man has found his greatness and his happiness, the high superiority which he holds over the other animals who inhabit the earth with him, and consequently no ignorance is probably without loss to him, no error without evil.

Sometimes in greatness you fall short, only to rise again.

Kindness is the essence of greatness and the fundamental characteristic of the noblest men and women I have known.

Neither wealth or greatness render us happy.

Do not trust people. They are capable of greatness.

I can’t speak of anything but greatness for Roman Reigns. He’s one of the all-time greats.

If we cannot see the possibility of greatness, how can we dream it?

Having a story is what people connect with, but the story alone doesn’t allow you to achieve greatness and results. It’s the day-to-day consistency of providing value to your audience.

Chicago is an incredibly great city, but it was clear to me that greatness wasn’t being spread to all our neighborhoods.

Jesus Christ belonged to the true race of prophets. He saw with open eye the mystery of the soul. Drawn by its severe harmony, ravished with its beauty, he lived in it and had his being there. Alone in all history, he estimated the greatness of man.

Investment in public infrastructure is key to America’s greatness and essential to our national security.

Reach for greatness, nothing less. And make sure you have some fun along the way.

My father had always identified himself as a writer to my mother when they met. When they met, he was writing this great novel, there was no doubt about it. Part of why she left him was this delusion of greatness and identifying it very directly with being an artist.

I want to be known as ‘The Big Shakespeare.’ It was Shakespeare that said, ‘Some men are born great, some achieve greatness, some have greatness thrust upon them.’

Other famous men, those of much talk and few deeds, soon evaporate. Action is the dignity of greatness.

Many have forged a path to greatness lit only by a vision in their minds.

Whoever renders service to many puts himself in line for greatness – great wealth, great return, great satisfaction, great reputation, and great joy.

Rome has grown since its humble beginnings that it is now overwhelmed by its own greatness.

The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated.

We Harvard students live in a tourist attraction with movie stars and geniuses; we’re recognized on all continents as the creme of the brulee, the syrup on the pancakes of greatness. Yet most of us complain like vegans at a barbecue cook-off.

The final proof of greatness lies in being able to endure criticism without resentment.

You can never let anything distract you from your main objective. My only goal is to be great. That’s all I want. That’s all I ever aspire to be. Greatness is something nobody can ever take away from you, no matter what happens. So I put all my energy and focus into my craft.

It takes a good car for anybody to be good, but it takes a good car and a special driver to achieve greatness.

There aren’t many people in the world that are as respected and loved when it comes to entertainment and as big as Pac. But the greatness that I adore the most is him as a man.

There is no calamity which a great nation can invite which equals that which follows a supine submission to wrong and injustice and the consequent loss of national self-respect and honor, beneath which are shielded and defended a people’s safety and greatness.

When you get two guys that gel together, you can feel greatness in the ring.

Always in all my books I’m trying to reveal or help to reveal the hidden greatness of the small, of the little, of the unknown – and the pettiness of the big.

We have, I fear, confused power with greatness.

Movies such as ‘Mr. Smith Goes to Washington’ in 1939 to ‘Dave‘ in 1993 portray Washington leaders as the ultimate Everymen – decent people just like you and me, only thrust onto greatness.

It has to do with the fact that Ford, for all his greatness, is an Irish egomaniac, as anyone who knows him will say.

Goodness makes greatness truly valuable, and greatness makes goodness much more serviceable.

I want to go out and chase greatness. That’s all I want to do.

The aim of literary ambition is to demonstrate one’s greatness of soul.

It takes a certain courage and a certain greatness to be truly base.

Just do what must be done. This may not be happiness, but it is greatness.

Big Thief is destined for greatness.

We have a presidential nominee in Hillary Clinton who knows that, in a time of stunningly wide disparities of wealth in our nation, America’s greatness must not be measured by how many millionaires and billionaires we have, but by how few people we have living in poverty.

What enables us to achieve our greatness contains the seeds of our destruction.

Whenever there’s a role that scares me, I get panicked and nervous. I know that greatness might come because I’m going to get out of my own element and comfort zone.

I’m trying to stay focused – trying to open up again – and the music really did a lot of greatness for me and meeting a lot of people that really had concern and compassion for me.

Hitler was so modern, in that he was obsessed with being famous. He was caught up with this rush to be have achieved greatness before turning 30.

Being around greatness is always a thrill.

The greatness of a man is measured by the way he treats the little man. Compassion for the weak is a sign of greatness.

When one guy is doing good, it makes all the others want to achieve greatness.

Greatness, generally speaking, is an unusual quantity of a usual quality grafted upon a common man.

The U.S. military is known the world over for its advanced technology as well as the prowess, skill, and dedication of its service members. When you grow up in the company of its leaders, as I did, you understand that this greatness is something that is cultivated.

The patriot subordinates himself to his State in order to raise it above all other States and thus, as it were, to find his personal sacrifice repaid with ample interest through the might and greatness of his fatherland.

Greatness will come by looking forward – untethered from the politics of the past and anchored by our shared values – and by changing our nation’s future.

Just as a child respects his father even when he perceives his weaknesses and faults, so a German will not despise the old Germany which was once a symbol of greatness to him.

It is criminal to steal a purse, daring to steal a fortune, a mark of greatness to steal a crown. The blame diminishes as the guilt increases.

The idea that you have to pursue greatness… it’s up to you; it’s your life.

Keep me away from the wisdom which does not cry, the philosophy which does not laugh and the greatness which does not bow before children.

There is no greatness where there is no simplicity, goodness and truth.

The contemporary form of true greatness lies in a civilization founded on the spirituality of work.

Inaugural speeches are supposed to be huge and stirring. Presidents haul our heroes onstage, from George Washington to Martin Luther King Jr. George W. Bush brought the Liberty Bell. They use history to make greatness and achievements seem like something you can just take down from the shelf.

The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively.

Like, I’m not enjoying LeBron‘s greatness right now. I mean, I have no fun playing against him. So you don’t get to enjoy it until you look back.

Our destiny is greatness and we must return to its fulfillment.

It’s only when you grow up, and step back from him, or leave him for your own career and your own home – it’s only then that you can measure his greatness and fully appreciate it. Pride reinforces love.

The real test of business greatness is in giving opportunity to others. Many business men fail in this because they are thinking only of personal glory.

When the legends die, the dreams end; there is no more greatness.

I don’t necessarily want to hear about my talent or my greatness as an actor.

Ask yourself whether the dream of heaven and greatness should be waiting for us in our graves – or whether it should be ours here and now and on this earth.

Of all vices, drinking is the most incompatible with greatness.

Listening is a master skill for personal and professional greatness.

Marino was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2005, and his name always comes up when the conversation centers on the greatest quarterbacks of all time. But his greatness comes with an asterisk: He never won the Big Game.

Difficulty, my brethren, is the nurse of greatness – a harsh nurse, who roughly rocks her foster – children into strength and athletic proportion.

I think greatness is found within mundanity, those boring little ticks throughout the day.

Through all the hardships and all the operations and all the hospitals, all that stuff each part of my life, there’s been some goodness, some greatness that comes in here and helps me to be strong, to continue what I’m doing.

With 10 per cent of Nigeria‘s total land mass, 80 per cent of which is arable, Niger state symbolises the hope and greatness of Nigeria and has potential to feed the continent.

Making it to the league, that was my dream. But my mom saw to it that we watched our share of the WNBA too. Greatness is greatness, right?? And as much as I learned about that from seeing Kobe win his rings… I also learned about it from seeing Sheryl Swoopes and Lisa Leslie win theirs.

Governor, why wouldn’t anyone want to say the Pledge of Allegiance, unless they detested their own country or were ignorant of its greatness?

Everyone has their own greatness. Whether you reach your own greatness depends on your environment, your structure, the company you keep and your attitude.

Greatness is not measured by what a man or woman accomplishes, but by the opposition he or she has overcome to reach his goals.

So many people have this idea: I want to achieve something great or be somebody great. And they neglect the step that leads to greatness. They don’t honor this step at this moment because they have this idea of some future moment where they are going to be great.

America was born as a nation of immigrants who have always contributed to its greatness.

Man’s greatness consists in his ability to do and the proper application of his powers to things needed to be done.

Seek not greatness, but seek truth and you will find both.

Now, we occupy a lowly position, both in space and rank in comparison with the heavenly sphere, and the Almighty is Most High not in space, but with respect to absolute existence, greatness and power.

All greatness of character is dependent on individuality. The man who has no other existence than that which he partakes in common with all around him, will never have any other than an existence of mediocrity.

Only in America can someone start with nothing and achieve the American Dream. That’s the greatness of this country.

Stick to your true north – build greatness for the long term.

America’s space program has been the envy and inspiration of the world. It has made landmark scientific discoveries that are a lasting legacy of this nation’s greatness. It has studied Earth in ways no other nation can match.

The great player, so much of the greatness, in my mind, is in his heart and his head. It’s not in his body, in his skill set. It comes from having great talent but wanting to mold that and fit it together into being special. And being special means winning championships.

Privatizing Social Security doesn’t make sense, and it’s out of step with the fundamental value of ensuring that after a life spent working hard and contributing to the greatness of our nation, every American should have a secure retirement.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt eventually became the greatest liberal leader of 20th century United States, but he started as a fiscal conservative. His greatness is founded in his willingness to change his mind to save his country from the Great Depression.

Man’s greatness lies in his power of thought.

Capitalism is the system that has enabled greatness and made America the envy of the world.

The greatness of a musician is measured by the degree of fanaticism he brings to his playing.

In all our quest of greatness, like wanton boys, whose pastime is their care, we follow after bubbles, blown in the air.

America’s greatness is not found in the size of its government. America’s greatness resides in the hearts and the minds of the people.

The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members.

Greatness is accomplishing the unrequired – doing what is right beyond what is expected.

I believe in the greatness of our people.

Progressives really do see America as guilty of crimes against humanity, and to them, our ‘greatness’ must be abandoned to atone for those crimes.

Therefore let men withdraw themselves from errors; and laying aside corrupt superstitions, let them acknowledge their Father and Lord, whose excellence cannot be estimated, nor His greatness perceived, nor His beginning comprehended.

An ignorance of means may minister to greatness, but an ignorance of aims make it impossible to be great at all.

I always believed in myself, and even in the bad times, when I’d do bits of greatness here and there, it was those kinds of things that kept me alive and helped me to get to where I am now.

You need a lot of effort and talent to produce greatness.

No club that wins a pennant once is an outstanding club. One which bunches two pennants is a good club. But a team which can win three in a row really achieves greatness.

All I want is greatness for West Virginia, and I’ll work with anyone who is ready to help me turn this state around.

The task of leadership is not to put greatness into humanity, but to elicit it, for the greatness is already there.

I always knew and my parents always knew I was destined for greatness. I didn’t know what sport it was going to be in. I played football, baseball and wrestling.

Monuments and archaeological pieces serve as testimonies of man’s greatness and establish a dialogue between civilizations showing the extent to which human beings are linked.

The place does not make the man, nor the sceptre the king. Greatness is from within.