11 Tony Robbins Quotes That Will Make You Think
One of my favorite Tony Robbins quotes is: “People are not lazy, they simply have impotent goals. That is, goals that do not inspire them.”
When I read it, it reminded me of a story that my mentor Howie told me about his Dad. His Dad, who had a long and distinguished career as a professor and Dean of the NYU Stern School of Business had retired and kind of lost his ‘mojo’ so to speak. So, Howie, the good son he is, prodded and asked questions to stoke the fire within him.
To make a long story short, Howie was able to help his Dad get his “mojo” back by helping him find his passion, which was writing. And he never looked back, writing and publishing prolifically for the rest of his life!
Tony Robbins is an American entrepreneur, author, philanthropist and life coach known for his infomercials, seminars and countless books. He has worked with and mentored both the infamous and famous such as former U.S. President Bill Clinton, ex-hockey superstar Wayne Gretzky, Mother Theresa, tennis superstar Serena Williams, and actor Hugh Jackman – just to name a few.
Which is the subject of our post today, Tony Robbins quotes that will make us think and inspire us. As always, after each quote, I will give my interpretation of the quote and how we can make it actionable in our lives. And as always, please feel free to give your interpretation or thoughts on the quotes in the comments below!
11 Tony Robbins Quotes
(1) “Your past does not equal your future.”
What happened in the past is over and done with. Just because you may have failed at something in the past does not mean you cannot turn things around in the future.
Make it actionable: Instead of dwelling on negative emotions related to whatever happened in the past, use them as calls to action to inspire you to do great things by learning from your previous mistakes.
(2) “The secret of success is learning how to use pain and pleasure instead of having pain and pleasure use you. If you do that, you’re in control of your life. If you don’t, life controls you.”
Many of the actions we take (or don’t take) in life are done to avoid pain and increase pleasure. However, we can also use both pain and pleasure to help us.
Make it actionable: Make pain and pleasure work for you. For example, if you are overweight and want to lose weight, link enough pain to being overweight and enough pleasure to losing weight and it will help you get on track.
(3) “I realized that the main difference between the people who seemed to be successful and those who weren’t was that successful people asked better questions, and as a result, they got better answers.”
It’s all about having a childlike curiosity which leads us to ask questions.
Make it actionable: Constantly question everything! Better questions get better answers, help you focus on what’s important and can change how you feel.
(4) “It’s what you practice in private that you will be rewarded for in public.”
It is easy to bring your “A” game or show up when the lights are on or when people are around. True winners are the ones who hold themselves accountable and are self-disciplined to put in the work when no one is around.
Make it actionable: Be willing to put in the effort and work when the spotlight isn’t on you.
(5) “Every problem is a gift–without problems we would not grow.”
Problems force us to learn and think about things differently, which is what makes us grow.
Make it actionable: Rather than being frustrated or demoralized by problems, instead view them as opportunities to learn, grow and get better.
(6) “I believe most people fail in life because they major in minor things.”
Many times in life we get too wrapped up in things that are of little importance and do not impact the big picture. For example, people who gossip waste valuable time discussing something that won’t get them closer to their goals.
Make it actionable: Utilize the Pareto principle also known as the 80/20 rule that we have discussed previously. This will help you focus on the vital few things that will positively impact your life rather than the trivial many.
(7) “The truth of the matter is that there’s nothing you can’t accomplish if: 1) You clearly decide what it is that you’re absolutely committed to achieving, 2) You are willing to take massive action. 3) You notice what’s working or not, and 4) You continue to change your approach until you achieve what you want, using whatever life gives you along the way.”
A lot of things (clearly I will never be in the NBA) can be accomplished through hard work combined with trial and error.
Make it actionable: Figure out what you want, get after it, then engage in trial and error until you figure it out. The key is persisting until you get what you want.
(8) “It’s not what we do once in a while that shapes our lives, but what we do consistently.”
Doing the right things consistently equals self-discipline.
Make it actionable: Whatever you want to do in life you can pretty much figure out how to do by Googling it. Successful people are the ones who have the self-discipline to take consistent action.
For example, losing weight. The hard part isn’t the how – Google losing weight and I guarantee you will find the perfect strategy to get it done.
The hard part is the mental part which is the self-discipline of taking consistent action to make it happen.
(9) “Once you have mastered your time, you will understand how true it is that most people overestimate what they can accomplish in a year and underestimate what they can achieve in a decade.”
What do YOU have in common with Helen Keller, Michelangelo, Mother Theresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, Albert Einstein, and Mohammed Ali? The answer is, you have the same number of hours as they did every day to accomplish GREAT things!
Make it actionable: Take control of your time. If you need to figure out where your time is going, check out our blog post on time logging!
(10) “If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always gotten.”
If you want to get different results than you have been getting, you need to do things differently.
Make it actionable: Take some time to reflect on the actions you have taken and why they haven’t yielded the results you want. Do a little investigation/research, come up with a new plan, put it into action and then modify it as you go until you get what you want. Remember, the definition of stupidity is doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting to get different results!
(11) “Repetition is the mother of skill.”
Learning new skills is about doing things over and over until you get it.
Make it actionable: Practice, practice, practice!
That’s it for the Tony Robbins Quotes, but before we go…
Let’s quickly go back to the story from the introduction as it is something I think about often.
I believe that many of us are quick to judge people as being lazy, when in reality perhaps they have just got a bit off track and lost their “mojo”.
So, rather than criticizing and judging them, instead, channel your inner-Howie…
Be a leader, help them find their passion, and watch them get their “mojo” back!
Until next time, be a “mojo” enabler, and as always…PYMFP!
–Rick
What Do You Think of These Tony Robbins Quotes
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It is true that you need to find things that interest and challenge you to keep your mojo intact.
Hi Eileen, There is no doubt about it! Thanks for reading and commenting. Best, Rick
Hey Rick – – I had not heard of Tony Robbins before. Upon seeing the name, I thought he was a football player. So thanks for including that first line link that explained who he is and what he does. I seriously doubt anyone in Howie’s family has ever lost their mojo. Maybe temporarily put it aside, but never lost it. My Dad never lost it, but his mojo was entirely different, physical rather than mental. He pruned the bushes, picked the fruit off the apple trees using a grocery grabber, installed a natural gas light in the yard, planted flowers, replaced the windows on the sun porch, installed a new swamp cooler on the roof, and best of all [and I am not making this up] grew a humongous potato vine in the living room that stretched up a pole, then across the curtain rods, and down the other side. Once when we visited him in New Mexico, he and I built a storage shed out behind the house. Dad had already leveled the ground and constructed the wooden skid that served as the floor.
Those are some great quotes by Robbins. We especially like #11 – practice, practice, practice. I definitely need more practice. “That’s what she said”.
My mojo is mental. I read, I write, I do crossword puzzles, we pay scrabble – got to keep the mind from becoming stagnant. I long ago gave up on physical type activities other than walking. If you have never changed a transmission while laying on your back, believe me you are not missing out on anything. Joan’s mojo is designing and building small handmade craft items, many of which she sells on line. One upstairs room has been allotted to her as the “craft cave”. And she will go on- line and watch u-tube videos of how to do something, then try it, and often improve upon the process. Or else she will see something, say “shit, I can do that”, then buy one and disassemble it to see how the parts go together.
So our mojos are both intact and continuing to function. We refuse to set and vegetate, although some amount of trash TV is necessary.
Hey Dave, thanks for the great comment, you made me smile. Damn your Dad definitely never lost his mojo, great story – potato vine in the living room? Amazing! You and Joan definitely have your mojos in tact! It’s awesome to see! Keep it up (that’s what she said!) Be good (and careful!), Rick