Feature Image by Ivana Cajina

From the wise words of Melinda Gates, “If you are successful, it is because somewhere, sometime, someone gave you a life or an idea that started you in the right direction.” So if you’ve been feeling uninspired, check out these quotes from successful women to help you feel motivated again (because empowered women empower women, right?).

“Understanding that failure is not the opposite of success, it’s part of success.” — Arianna Huffington, Former Co-Founder & Editor-in-Chief of The Huffington Post

“I learned to always take on things I’d never done before. Growth and comfort do not coexist.” — Virginia Rometty, CEO of IBM

“A voice is a human gift; it should be cherished and used, to utter fully human speech as possible. Powerlessness and silence go together.” — Margaret Atwood, Author

“Be less curious about people and more curious about ideas.” — Marie Curie, Physicist and Chemist

“Power is being told you’re not loved and not being destroyed by it.” — Madonna, Singer-Songwriter

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, ‘Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?’ Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”  — Marianne Williamson, Author

“My mother told me to be a lady. And for her, that meant be your own person, be independent.” — Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the U.S.

“My mother always told me, ‘Hide your face people are looking at you.’ I would reply, ‘It does not matter; I am also looking at them.’” — Malala Yousafzai, Activist for Female Education

“I really think a champion is defined not by their wins but by how they can recover when they fall.” — Serena Williams, Tennis Champion

“I didn’t really know what I wanted to do, but I knew the woman I wanted to become.” — Diane von Furstenberg, Fashion Designer

xx, The FabFitFun Team