96 Motivational Michael Jordan Quotes

Michael Jordan, born on February 17, 1963, in Brooklyn, New York, is the greatest basketball player ever. He played 15 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Chicago Bulls and the Washington Wizards.

Basketball Career:

Jordan’s basketball career began in college, where he played three seasons with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, leading them to a national championship in 1982. He was drafted by the Chicago Bulls in 1984 and quickly made an impact, earning the NBA Rookie of the Year award.

During his career with the Bulls, Jordan led the team to six NBA championships and won the NBA Finals MVP award each time. Known for his scoring ability, athleticism, and competitiveness, he was a ten-time scoring champion and earned five regular-season MVP awards.

After retiring briefly, Jordan returned to play two seasons with the Washington Wizards before retiring for good in 2003. He was a 14-time All-Star inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009.

Business Career:

Off the court, Michael Jordan has been a successful businessman. He became part-owner of the Charlotte Bobcats (now Hornets) in 2006. He became the majority owner in 2010, making him the first former NBA player to become a franchise’s majority owner.

Jordan’s business acumen also extends to endorsements. He signed a groundbreaking deal with Nike in the 1980s, creating the Air Jordan sneaker line, one of the most successful and enduring endorsements in sports history. The brand continues to generate significant revenue.

He has also been involved in various other business ventures and endorsements, including restaurants, automotive dealerships, and a stake in the Miami Marlins of Major League Baseball.

Philanthropy:

Jordan’s influence reaches beyond basketball and business. He has been involved in various philanthropic efforts, contributing to causes such as education, health care, and community services.

Legacy:

Michael Jordan’s impact on basketball is immeasurable, having set numerous records and leaving a lasting legacy as one of the game’s best players. His success as a businessman and owner has been pioneering, making him one of the world’s most recognized and influential athletes. His net worth is estimated to be in the billions, and his name is synonymous with excellence both on and off the court.

 

96 Quotes from Michael Jordan about achieving SUCCESS in life and business.

 

1. “I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times, I’ve been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”

2. “Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen.”

3. “I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can’t accept not trying.”

4. “Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships.”

5. “Obstacles don’t have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don’t turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.”

6. “My attitude is that if you push me towards something that you think is a weakness, then I will turn that perceived weakness into a strength.”

7. “I play to win, whether during practice or a real game. And I will not let anything get in the way of me and my competitive enthusiasm to win.”

8. “If you quit once, it becomes a habit. Never quit.”

9. “You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them.”

10. “The key to success is failure.”

11. “You must expect great things of yourself before you can do them.”

12. “I never looked at the consequences of missing a big shot… When you think about the consequences, you always think of a negative result.”

13. “Success isn’t something you chase. It’s something you have to put forth the effort for constantly.”

14. “I’ve never been afraid to fail.”

15. “To be successful, you have to be selfish, or else you never achieve. And once you get to your highest level, then you have to be unselfish.”

16. “I’ve always believed that if you put in the work, the results will come.”

17. “I’ve never lost a game. I just ran out of time.”

18. “You can practice shooting eight hours a day, but if your technique is wrong, then all you become is very good at shooting the wrong way. Get the fundamentals down and the level of everything you do will rise.”

19. “Failure is acceptable. but not trying is a whole different ball park.”

20. “If you do the work, you get rewarded. There are no shortcuts in life.”

21. “The game has its ups and downs, but you can never lose focus of your individual goals and you can’t let yourself be beat because of lack of effort.”

22. “The more you sweat in practice, the less you bleed in battle.”

23. “The minute you get away from fundamentals – whether it’s proper technique, work ethic or mental preparation – the bottom can fall out of your game, your schoolwork, your job, whatever you’re doing.”

24. “There’s only one Michael Jordan.”

25. “Don’t let them drag you down by rumors just go with what you believe in.”

26. “Every time I step on the basketball court, even now, I always look at the other end and visualize Michael Jordan running towards me. It’s very motivating to me.”

27. “The best come from the worst.”

28. “I realize that I’m black, but I like to be viewed as a person, and this is everybody’s wish.”

29. “I know fear is an obstacle for some people, but it is an illusion to me.”

30. “Champions do not become champions when they win an event, but in the hours, weeks, and years they spend preparing for it. The victorious performance itself is merely a demonstration of their championship character.”

31. “You reach a point in your life where it’s not so much about the materialistic things. They’re nice, but when you look at the inner person – the soul – are you content with who you are and what you are?”

32. “I think the good will always outweigh the bad. It’s just the bad has a profound impact because it’s what you try to ignore.”

33. “It’s not about the shoes. It’s about knowing where you’re going.”

34. “I never thought a role model should be negative.”

35. “I want to be the bridge to the next generation.”

36. “In any investment, you expect to have fun and make money.”

37. “Just play. Have fun. Enjoy the game.”

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

39. “Even when I’m old and grey, I won’t be able to play it, but I’ll still love the game.”

40. “I want to wake up every day and do whatever comes in my mind, and not feel pressure or obligations to do anything else in my life.”

41. “Everybody has talent, but ability takes hard work.”

42. “You have competition every day because you set such high standards for yourself that you have to go out every day and live up to that.”

43. “Sometimes, things may not go your way, but the effort should be there every single night.”

44. “I want to be perceived as a guy who played his best in all facets, not just scoring. A guy who loved challenges.”

45. “I built my talents on the shoulders of someone else’s talent.”

46. “I would tell players to relax and never think about what’s at stake. Just think about the basketball game. If you start to think about who is going to win the championship, you’ve lost your focus.”

47. “If you’re trying to achieve, there will be roadblocks. I’ve had them; everybody has had them. But obstacles don’t have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don’t turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.”

48. “Being Michael Jordan means acting the same as I always have.”

49. “Heart is what separates the good from the great.”

50. “Once I made a decision, I never thought about it again.”

51. “I think that not trying is worse than failing. Have you failed? Are you suffering from failing? Good, do it again, fail better.”

52. “The game is my wife. It demands loyalty and responsibility, and it gives me back fulfillment and peace.”

53. “Never say never, because limits, like fears, are often just an illusion.”

54. “When I was playing, they told me there was no one like me. Now they tell these young players the same thing, but it’s not true. They are now the ones who are unique and different, and they are trying to achieve their own greatness. That’s a wonderful thing.”

55. “If you have a love for something, you’ll find a way to do it.”

56. “There is no ‘I’ in team but there is in win.”

57. “I never took the game for granted; I knew it was a gift.”

58. “You can’t be afraid

to fail. It’s the only way you succeed – you’re not gonna succeed all the time, and I know that.”

59. “I hope the millions of people I’ve touched have the optimism and desire to share their goals and hard work and persevere with a positive attitude.”

60. “I’m retired 99.9% of the time.”

61. “I’m a firm believer in goal setting. Step by step. I can’t see any other way of accomplishing anything.”

62. “You have to be able to accept failure to get better.”

63. “The more you understand the game, the game gets more fun. You understand the subtleties of the game.”

64. “When you think of the magnitude of what I did and how many kids copied it, it’s something I’m very proud of.”

65. “Always turn a negative situation into a positive situation.”

66. “There’s no such thing as coulda, shoulda, or woulda. If you shoulda and coulda, you woulda done it.”

67. “I’ve always believed that if you put in the work, the results will come. I don’t do things half-heartedly. Because I know if I do, then I can expect half-hearted results.”

68. “I don’t want to be the guy who missed the shot. I want to be the guy who took it.”

69. “It’s heavy duty to try to do everything and please everybody. My job was to go out there and play the game of basketball as best I can. People may not agree with that. I can’t live with what everyone’s impression of what I should or what I shouldn’t do.”

70. “My body could stand the crutches but my mind couldn’t stand the sideline.”

71. “If I had been playing for money I would have complained a long time ago that I was underpaid.”

72. “I do not have a problem, I enjoy gambling, but I think people are trying to make it seem like I have a problem because people really don’t know.”

73. “Do I need my number retired throughout the course of the league to acknowledge what I’ve done? No.”

74. “If it turns out that my best wasn’t good enough, at least I won’t look back and say that I was afraid to try.”

75. “I’m not out there sweating for three hours every day just to find out what it feels like to sweat.”

76. “I never felt I had anything to prove. I’ll put myself against anyone out there. But it’s not about other people; it’s about you.”

77. “As athletes, we’re used to reacting quickly. Here, it’s ‘come, stop, come, stop.’ There’s a lot of downtime. That’s the toughest part of the day.”

78. “This is a team game, and I’m very appreciative of my teammates and what they’ve meant to me.”

79. “I’m back to playing the game for the reason I started: A love for the game.”

80. “I want to be perceived as a guy who played his best in all facets, not just scoring.”

81. “I’m not really a numbers guy. I played the game for the love of it.”

82. “I’ve been in pressure situations before. All my life it’s been about pressure and having to get it done. Just because you say it publicly, it does not make me afraid of it or make me shy away from it.”

83. “The game of basketball has been everything to me. My place of refuge, place I’ve always gone where I needed comfort and peace. It’s been the site of intense pain and the most intense feelings of joy and satisfaction. It’s a relationship that has evolved over time, given me the greatest respect and love for the game.”

84. “I can no longer jump over cars and do the spectacular dunks I did when I was younger, but I still know the fundamentals of playing the game.”

85. “I think the players have to come to grips with how the game’s going to be played from a rules standpoint, and I think you say the same thing about the owners. They’ve got to come to grips with modern-day athletics and revenues and how it works.”

86. “When I’m old and grey, I won’t be able to play it, but I’ll still love the game.”

87. “People ask me if I could fly, I said, ‘yeah…. for a little while.'”

88. “The basketball court for me, during a game, is the most peaceful place I can imagine. On the basketball court, I worry about nothing. When I’m out there, no one can bother me.”

89. “To learn to succeed, you must first learn to fail.”

90. “I want to be a bridge to the next generation.”

91. “I’m a competitive person. It’s still a competition for me, but it’s not against opponents; it’s against myself.”

92. “When I lose the sense of motivation and the sense of to prove something as a basketball player, it’s time for me to move away from the game.”

93. “I never looked at the consequences of missing a big shot. When you think about the consequences, you always think of a negative result.”

94. “I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”

95. “Live the moment for the moment.”

96. “You can’t hope for a career – you have to work for it.”

 

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