Staying motivated can feel nearly impossible, whether it’s for work, hobbies, or your health and wellness. It's only human to fall off a routine or habit — it's how you get up again afterward that matters the most.
Motivation comes to those seeking it, so even by being here, you’ve already taken that first step on the right path! Steve Harvey has given countless powerful motivational speeches, and we’ve collected some of his best quotes here to help you realize that you are more capable than you ever thought.
1. “I was mediocre because I wasn’t doing anything to be exceptional.”
When you have epic dreams but never reach out toward them, you’re missing out on your full potential. When you hold yourself back, you aren’t living up to your true capabilities or true self. Being exceptional means that you aren’t leaving your dreams behind — you’re working every day to propel yourself toward them.
This starts with believing in yourself and being your own cheerleader. Remember this quote when you are hindered by the negative “what ifs” in life. You can be exceptional when you push for your goals and dreams.
2. “The boredom of normalcy and the numbness of mediocrity stiffens your passion.”
Everyday routines can begin to feel mundane and stifling if they center around something you don’t enjoy. Maybe you’ve lost touch with your favorite hobbies, or your plans to achieve that dream of yours have been pushed aside in order to work full-time.
On the other hand, routines can also become comfortable and can even be beneficial — but when your heart yearns for more, this is a sign that you’ve outgrown your current circumstances. Just do a little something for yourself and your dream every day to regain the passion that's smothered by the day-to-day.
3. “You can be successful without an education, you can be successful without coming from a rich family. I don’t care what color you are, what faith you belong to, your sexual preference, I don’t care what’s wrong with you. You can be successful.”
Regardless of your background, you can achieve your own success and dreams. You need to decide what success is for you. You can start from nothing, and you can take nothing and turn it into everything.
It's how you push for what you want that makes you successful. Not a degree, not money, nothing else. Don’t focus on where others start, focus on you.
4. “There is nothing bigger than your dream.”
All we have in life is love and our dreams. There is no game plan besides the one we make for ourselves. We make our lives what we want them to be. Don’t let anything override your dream and what you want out of your life.
Even when it feels like you are being held down by others' thoughts or ideas, remember that your dream for your life is all that matters.
5. “Before you leave this world, before you die, jump, just jump one time.”
Don’t leave this world without taking a risk, especially when it’s one you have been thinking about. Many of us just accept our lives as is, not pushing for more even though we so desperately want it. Maybe you’ve always dreamed of starting your own business, but always assumed it wouldn’t work out. Maybe you’ve let those doubts hold you back.
The truth is that you never know until you try — you could end up opening a wildly successful business that improves your neighborhood and brings joy to those around you. You just have to take the leap.
6. “If an alarm clock goes off in the morning and you ain’t happy about it, you ain’t doing what you want to do. If your job makes you sick to go to, it’s because you ain’t living in your gift.”
In modern society, it can be easy to become stuck in a joy or circumstance that doesn’t bring you the kind of happiness you want or deserve. These situations are often a means to an end, but they aren’t true ways to live your happiest life. If you’re settling in your daily life for less than what you desire, you’re selling yourself short.
Don’t stay in a dead-end job because you think you have to. Try something new, and if that doesn’t work out, you can keep exploring until you find something that speaks to your heart and soul. Life is short, but the opportunities are endless.
7. “All of you are gifted at something. The problem is you keep wanting your gift to be what somebody else's gift is.”
Comparison is the thief of happiness — when we look at those around us and try to become them, rather than owning our own strengths and gifts, we miss out on our true potential.
Each and every one of us is special in our own way, and if we work to turn ourselves into others, we lose the gift that makes us unique. The grass is usually not greener on the other side — it’s just a different shade of green.
8. “You have to make a conscientious decision that you’re going to change. And it's not dependent on anyone else.”
Change is difficult. It's big, and it’s often scary. You can hope and wish for change to come all that you want, but nothing will really, truly change until you put in the work and consciously decide that you, too, play a role in your circumstances.
When you reclaim your agency and acknowledge your power, you can bring about real, meaningful change.
9. “The first way to get focused is to find purpose. The way to find purpose is you must identify what it is that you must be purposeful in.”
Decide what you want out of life, then adjust your focus to achieve it.
Without knowing which direction you want to go in, you may end up lost or at a complete standstill, and both achieve nothing. Find a passion or goal and make the changes needed to achieve it. It may, and probably will, take plenty of trial and error — but once you find something that lights you up, you can start working to make it your reality.
10. “My dreams were bigger than all my problems.”
Life can be tough, and it can beat us down, and this is part of the human condition. What matters is getting back up.
It's realizing what you want out of life, and knowing that your dreams still matter and are still possible. You can have a plethora of problems, but they don’t have to hold you back from what you want and deserve. It's all about your mindset, which can help push through all of the obstacles life throws your way.
For those of us in the thick of it, seeing someone wade through those struggles and come out on top can help give us the courage to keep pushing. Steve Harvey is one of those types of people — he speaks about all that he has learned from the trial and tribulations of life. Steve came out the other side successful, and you can, too.
How Can Motivation Fuel Self-Care?
If you aren’t motivated to do your absolute best in your daily life, there’s a high chance that you may be missing out on key aspects of self-care.
Motivation doesn’t just power us through our bigger goals in life — it also helps fuel us through smaller hurdles, accomplishments, and daily routines. If you’re struggling to find everyday motivation, you can start by adding small goals into your routine as an easy way to build better practices. For example, you can aim to start making your bed every day as a small, achievable goal.
Part of the reason Steve Harvey created L’Evate You was because of his search for answers in his wellness journey. L’Evate You helps make sure people with busy schedules (just like him) have an easy and accessible way to support their health, and the Vitality Daily Greens Powders works to help keep you feeling top-notch while you strive for your dreams.
Adding Vitality Daily Greens to your daily routines is an easy way to care for yourself and stay on track to tackle those goals you’ve had planned out in your head for years. To keep working hard for your goals and passions, you need to care for yourself.
The Bottom Line
By sharing his own story and life struggles, Steve is working to show why having, and keeping, your motivation is so important.
It may take longer than you expected, but your dream is worth dusting yourself off and beginning the chase time and time again. Take charge of your own life and start making moves that you have been dreaming of or putting off. Either way, we are here to experience life to the fullest, don’t let your own doubts stop you.
Sources:
The science of motivation | APA