American entrepreneur, author and motivational speaker, Jim Rohn, born to a poor family, defied odds to become a millionaire by age 30.
After an early financial stumble, Rohn rebuilt his wealth and launched a successful career as a motivational speaker, sharing his personal philosophy at seminars worldwide for over 40 years.
He started his career at Sears and transitioned into direct selling, eventually leading a large organization in Nutri-Bio.
After the company’s collapse, he ventured into public speaking, inspiring millions with his story.
Among those influenced by Rohn were Tony Robbins, Mark R. Hughes and authors of the Chicken Soup book series.
An award-winning speaker, Rohn authored 17 works, including “The Power of Ambition” and “Take Charge of Your Life”.
Related: Rhonda Byrne Quotes and Henry Ford Quotes.
He passed away in 2009 from pulmonary fibrosis.
I have compiled the most famous Jim Rohn quotes.
Greatest Quotes by Jim Rohn on Success, Motivation, Change
1. “For things to change, you have to change.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
2. “Formal education will make you a living. Self-education will make you a fortune.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
3. “Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
4. “Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
5. “Either you run the day or the day runs you.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
6. “Success is nothing more than a few simple disciplines, practiced every day.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
7. “If you really want to do something, you’ll find a way. If you don’t, you’ll find an excuse.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
8. “Don’t wish it were easier. Wish you were better.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
9. “We must all suffer one of two things: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret or disappointment.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
10. “You have two choices: You can make a living, or you can design a life.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
11. “Work harder on yourself than you do on your job.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
12. “Don’t wish for less problems; wish for more skills.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
13. “Don’t wish it was easier wish you were better. Don’t wish for less problems wish for more skills. Don’t wish for less challenge wish for more wisdom.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
14. “If you don’t like how things are, change it. You are not a tree.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
15. “You don’t get paid for the hour. You get paid for the value you bring to the hour.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
16. “Focus on the solution, not on the problem.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
17. “Success is doing ordinary things extraordinarily well.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
18. “There are two types of pain you will go through in life, the pain of discipline and the pain of regret. Discipline weighs ounces while regret weighs tonnes.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
19. “When you know what you want, and you want it bad enough, you’ll find a way to get it.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
20. “Your life does not get better by chance, it gets better by change.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
21. “You must either modify your dreams or magnify your skills.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
22. “The difference between where you are today and where you’ll be five years from now will be found in the quality of books you’ve read.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
23. “The more you know, the less you need to say.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
24. “Successful people have libraries. The rest have big-screen TVs.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
25. “Happiness is not by chance, but by choice.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
26. “Time is more valuable than money. You can get more money, but you cannot get more time.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
Best Jim Rohn Quotes
27. “If you are not willing to risk the unusual, you will have to settle for the ordinary.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
28. “The major key to your better future is you.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
29. “Don’t let your learning lead to knowledge. Let your learning lead to action.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
30. “Take care of your body. It’s the only place you have to live.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
31. “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
32. “Success is something you attract by the person you become.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
33. “The challenge of leadership is to be strong, but not rude; be kind, but not weak; be bold, but not bully; be thoughtful, but not lazy; be humble, but not timid; be proud, but not arrogant; have humor, but without folly.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
34. “You cannot change your destination overnight. You can change your direction.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
35. “Without a sense of urgency, desire loses its value.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
36. “If you don’t design your own life plan, chances are you’ll fall into someone else’s plan. And guess what they have planned for you? Not much.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
37. “Work hard at your job and you can make a living. Work hard on yourself and you can make a fortune.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
38. “Learn how to be happy with what you have while you pursue all that you want.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
39. “Miss a meal if you have to, but don’t miss a book.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
40. “The few who do are the envy of the many who only watch.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
41. “You must take personal responsibility. You cannot change the circumstances, the seasons, or the wind, but you can change yourself. That is something you have charge of.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
42. “Set a goal to become a millionaire for what it makes of you to achieve it. Do it for the skills you have to learn and the person you have to become.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
43. “One of the greatest gifts you can give to anyone is the gift of attention.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
44. “Leadership is the challenge to be something more than average.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
45. “Motivation alone is not enough. If you have an idiot and you motivate him, now you have a motivated idiot.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
46. “Excuses are the nails used to build a house of failure.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
47. “You must take personal responsibility. You cannot change the circumstances, the seasons, or the wind, but you can change yourself. ” ~ (Jim Rohn).
48. “Success is neither magical nor mysterious. Success is the natural consequence of consistently applying basic fundamentals.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
49. “The rich invest their money and spend what is left; the poor spend their money and invest what is left.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
50. “Service to others leads to greatness.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
Top Jim Rohn Quotes
51. “How long should you try? Until.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
52. “Unless you change how you are, you will always have what you’ve got.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
53. “Personal development – the never ending chance to improve not only yourself, but also to attract opportunities and affect others.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
54. “Attitude drives actions. Actions drive results. Results drive lifestyles.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
55. “I wish for you a life of wealth, health and happiness; a life in which you give to yourself the gift of patience, the virtue of reason, the value of knowledge, and the influence of faith in your own ability to dream about and achieve worthy rewards.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
56. “Big achievements come one small advantage at a time, one step at a time, one day at time.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
57. “One customer, well taken care of, could be more valuable than $10,000 worth of advertising.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
58. “It’s a new day, a new beginning for your new life. With discipline you will be amazed at how much progress you’ll be able to make. What have you got to lose except the guilt and fear of the past?” ~ (Jim Rohn).
59. “Those who seek a better life must first become a better person.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
60. “Remember that all success is based on long-term commitment, faith, discipline, attitude and a few stepping stones along the way.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
61. “Profits are better than wages. Wages make you a living; profits make you a fortune.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
62. “Stand guard at the door of your mind.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
63. “One person caring about another represents life’s greatest value.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
64. “The difficulties you meet will resolve themselves as you advance. Proceed, and light will dawn, and shine with increasing clearness on your path.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
65. “Successful people are action oriented.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
66. “An investment in your personal development is the best investment you can make.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
67. “Indecision is the greatest thief of opportunity.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
68. “If you want things to change, You have to change. If you want things to be better, You have to be better.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
69. “Successful people do what unsuccessful people are not willing to doDon’t wish it were easier, wish you were better.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
70. “Don’t ask for security, ask for adventure.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
Famous Jim Rohn Quotes
71. “Don’t start the day until you have it finished. Don’t start the week until you have it finished. Don’t start the month until you have it finished. Plan your day.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
72. “What is easy to do is also easy not to do.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
73. “Goal-setting is powerful because it provides focus. It shapes our dreams. It gives us the ability to hone in on the exact actions we need to perform to achieve everything we desire in life.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
74. “Life is not just the passing of time. Life is the collection of experiences and their intensity.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
75. “Vocabulary enables us to interpret and to express. If you have a limited vocabulary, you will also have a limited vision and a limited future.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
76. “Don’t let the learning from your own experiences take too long. If you have been doing it wrong for the last ten years, I would suggest that’s long enough!” ~ (Jim Rohn).
77. “Time is our most valuable asset, yet we tend to waste it, kill it and spend it rather than invest it.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
78. “The only healthy communication style is assertive communication.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
79. “If you want to live a top shelf life then you need to stand on the books you have read. Never stop learning, never stop growing.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
80. “Don’t join an easy crowd; you won’t grow. Go where the expectations and the demands to perform are high.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
81. “The same wind blows on us all; the winds of disaster, opportunity and change. Therefore, it is not the blowing of the wind, but the setting of the sails that will determine our direction in life.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
82. “Learn how to separate the majors and the minors. A lot of people don’t do well simply because they major in minor things.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
83. “Days are expensive. When you spend a day you have one less day to spend. So make sure you spend each one wisely.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
84. “Accuracy builds credibility.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
85. “Life and business is like the changing seasons. You cannot change the seasons, but you can change yourself. Therein lies the opportunity to live an extraordinary life, the opportunity to change yourself.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
86. “If you don’t change what you are doing today, all of your tomorrows will look like yesterday.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
87. “If you don’t have a plan for what you want, then you will probably find yourself buying into someone else’s plan and later find out that was not the direction you wanted to go. You’ve got to be the architect of your life.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
88. “Let others lead small lives, but not you. Let others argue over small things, but not you. Let others cry over small hurts, but not you. Let others leave their future in someone else’s hands, but not you.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
89. “Don’t mistake movement for achievement. It’s easy to get faked out by being busy. The question is: Busy doing what?” ~ (Jim Rohn).
90. “Direction determines destination.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
91. “Direction determines destination. So the question you must ask yourself; ‘Are all the disciplines that I’m currently engaged in taking me where I want to go?’” ~ (Jim Rohn).
92. “Ignorance is not bliss. Ignorance is poverty. Ignorance is devastation. Ignorance is tragedy. And ignorance is illness. It all stems from ignorance.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
93. “The key to turning dreams into reality is action.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
Inspiring Jim Rohn Quotes
94. “If you don’t change your approach than you will never change your results!” ~ (Jim Rohn).
95. “Learning is the beginning of wealth. Learning is the beginning of health. Learning is the beginning of spirituality. Searching and learning is where the miracle process all begins.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
96. “To be successful you don’t need to do extraordinary things, you just need to do ordinary things extraordinarily well.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
97. “Financial independence is the ability to live from the income of your own personal resources.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
98. “Do whatever you have to do as quickly as you can, so you can do whatever you WANT to do, for as long as you can.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
99. “The best motivation is self-motivation.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
100. “Discipline weighs ounces and regret weighs tons.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
101. “For things to change you need to change. For things to get better you need to get better. The good news is you can change, you can get better and you can start right where you are at and you can go as far as you want to go.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
102. “Network marketing is the big wave of the future. It’s taking the place of franchising, which now requires too much capital for the average person.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
103. “Now is the time to fix the next 10 years.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
104. “Happiness is not something you postpone for the future; it is something you design for the present.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
105. “Only by giving are you able to receive more than you already have.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
106. “We generally change ourselves for one of two reasons: inspiration or desperation.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
107. “Success is nothing more than a few simple disciplines, practiced every day; while failure is simply a few errors in judgment, repeated every day. It is the accumulative weight of our disciplines and our judgments that leads us to either fortune or failure.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
108. “It isn’t what the book costs. It’s what it will cost you if you don’t read it.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
109. “Whatever good things we build end up building us.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
110. “If you don’t design your own life plan, chances are you’ll fall into someone else’s plan. And guess what they have planed for you? Not much.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
112. “Finding is reserved for those that search.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
113. “Activity leads to productivity.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
114. “Don’t just read the easy stuff. You may be entertained by it, but you will never grow from it.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
115. “We can have more than we’ve got because we can become more than we are.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
Jim Rohn Quotes for Motivation
116. “Success Recipe: 2 cups faith, 2 cups love, 1 cup hard work, 1 cup persistence, 1 tbsp vision and a dash of swagger.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
117. “Those who will not read are no better off than those who cannot read.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
118. “I will take care of me for you, if you will take care of you for me.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
119. “You cannot make progress without making decisions.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
120. “Everything you need for better future and success has already been written. And guess what? All you have to do is go to the library.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
121. “Managers help people see themselves as they are; Leaders help people to see themselves better than they are.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
122. “If you want to have more, you have to become more!” ~ (Jim Rohn).
123. “The major value in life is not what you get. The major value in life is what you become.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
124. “My father taught me to always do more than you get paid for as an investment in your future.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
125. “The worst thing one can do is not to try, to be aware of what one wants and not give in to it, to spend years in silent hurt wondering if something could have materialized – never knowing.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
126. “Commit yourself to something bigger than yourself.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
127. “What is powerful is when what you say is just the tip of the iceberg of what you know.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
128. “Goals. There’s no telling what you can do when you get inspired by them. There’s no telling what you can do when you believe in them. There’s no telling what will happen when you act upon them.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
129. “Effective communication is 20% what you know and 80% how you feel about what you know.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
130. “The book you don’t read can’t help.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
131. “Discipline is the foundation upon which all success is built. Lack of discipline inevitably leads to failure.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
132. “The only thing worse than not reading a book in the last ninety days is not reading a book in the last ninety days and thinking that it doesn’t matter.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
133. “Affirmation without discipline is the beginning of delusion.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
134. “Reading is essential for those who seek to rise above the ordinary. We must not permit anything to stand between us and the book that could change our lives.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
Short Jim Rohn Quotes
136. “For every disciplined effort there is a multiple reward.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
135. “Start from wherever you are and with whatever you’ve got.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
137. “You can’t hire someone else to do your push-ups for you.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
138. “If you just communicate, you can get by. But if you communicate skillfully, you can work miracles.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
139. “Failure is not a single, cataclysmic event. You don’t fail overnight. Instead, failure is a few errors in judgement, repeated every day.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
140. “I’m working full time on my job and part time on my fortune.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
141. “Good service leads to multiple sales. If you take good care of your customers, they will open doors you could never open by yourself.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
142. “Some people claim that it is okay to read trashy novels because sometimes you can find something valuable in them. You can also find a crust of bread in a garbage can, if you search long enough, but there is a better way.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
143. “Giving is better than receiving because giving starts the receiving process.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
144. “Income seldom exceeds personal development.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
145. “By constant self-discipline and self-control you can develop greatness of character. Grenville Kleiser Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
147. “Dreams are a projection of the kind of life you want to lead. Dreams can drive you. Dreams can make you skip over obstacles. When you allow your dreams to pull you, they unleash a creative force that can overpower any obstacle in your path.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
148. “The walls we build around us to keep sadness out also keeps out the joy.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
149. “When you invest in people and lift them toward their potential, they will love you for it.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
150. “You cannot change your destination overnight, but you can change your direction overnight.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
151. “None of us is smarter than all of us.” ~ (Jim Rohn).
Short Biography of Jim Rohn
Jim Rohn, born in Yakima, Washington in 1930, was an influential American entrepreneur, author, and motivational speaker known for his works on achieving wealth and happiness.
Raised on a farm in Idaho by his parents, he faced early financial struggles, becoming a millionaire by 30 and facing bankruptcy just three years later.
Rohn dropped out of college after one year and began his career at Sears.
Full Name | Emanuel James Rohn |
Born | September 17, 1930 Yakima, Washington, U.S. |
Died | December 5, 2009 (aged 79) West Hills, Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
Cause of death | Pulmonary Fibrosis |
Place of burial | Forest Lawn, California, United States |
Occupations | Entrepreneur, Author, Motivational Speaker |
Parents | Emanuel Rohn, Clara Lois Rohn |
His professional path took a significant turn after attending a lecture by John Earl Shoaff, leading him to join and later excel in the direct selling industry with companies like AbundaVita and Nutri-Bio.
Under mentorship from Shoaff, Rohn eventually led one of Nutri-Bio’s largest operations when the company expanded to Canada in 1960.
Quick Facts about Jim Rohn
- Jim Rohn was born in Yakima, Washington, on September 18, 1930, and spent his childhood in Caldwell, Idaho, where his parents owned a farm.
- Rohn dropped out of college after just one year and began his career as a human resource manager at Sears.
- He became a millionaire for the first time at age 30, but faced financial setbacks and lost his wealth by age 33. He later regained his millionaire status.
- Rohn’s professional speaking career began after he was asked to speak at his Rotary Club, leading to invitations to various events and eventually his first public seminar in 1963 at the Beverly Hills Hotel.
- He joined the direct selling company AbundaVita in 1955 but left in 1957 to join Nutri-Bio, another direct selling company, where he was mentored by the founders and built one of the company’s largest organizations.
- Throughout the 1970s, Rohn conducted seminars for Standard Oil and participated in Adventures in Achievement, a personal development business.
- Rohn was a mentor to notable figures such as Tony Robbins, Mark R. Hughes (founder of Herbalife International), and others including authors Mark Victor Hansen and Jack Canfield.
- Over his career, he wrote several books on personal development and success, including “The Power of Ambition” and coauthored “Twelve Pillars” with Chris Widener.
- He received the National Speakers Association CPAE Award for excellence in speaking in 1985.
- Jim Rohn passed away on December 5, 2009, due to pulmonary fibrosis and is buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California.
Top Questions about Jim Rohn
A: Jim Rohn grew up in Caldwell, Idaho, where his family owned and operated a farm.
A: After working as a human resource manager at Sears, Jim Rohn left to join the direct selling industry, initially with AbundaVita in 1955 and later with Nutri-Bio in 1957.
A: By age 30, Jim Rohn became a millionaire for the first time, but he faced financial challenges and lost his wealth by age 33.
A: Jim Rohn’s speaking career began after he delivered a speech at his local Rotary Club, which led to further invitations and his first public seminar at the Beverly Hills Hotel in 1963.
A: Jim Rohn mentored several influential figures, including Tony Robbins and Mark R. Hughes, the founder of Herbalife International. He received the CPAE Award for excellence in speaking from the National Speakers Association in 1985.