Three Quotes by Zig Ziglar That Can Change Your Life

This self-help expert’s most important advice? Help yourself.

Zig Ziglar made me decide to leave my marriage.

I was unhappy in my relationship, and deep down, I knew I needed to end things.

The problem was I was young and scared. I was a twenty-two-year-old first-year teacher with barely enough money to pay my bills. In addition, my family, with whom I was (and am) extremely close, were three hours away. To make matters worse, the car I owned barely made it to the school I worked at, much less my hometown.

I felt trapped — until I picked up a copy of Zig Ziglar’s motivational book See You at the Top.

I’ve always been a reader of self-improvement books, and I picked up the book simply because I’ve always had an interest in personal growth. However, the more I read the book, the more it seemed to speak to my specific circumstances. As a result, Ziglar’s words gave me the courage and wisdom to completely transform my life.

A few months after reading the book, I moved back home, ended my engagement, and started over. I promised myself then I would never again allow myself to feel powerless over my future.

I continue to reach for Ziglar’s books when I need inspiration, and I’m hoping his words will have the same positive impact on you they had on me.

Here are some of his wise words and advice on how you can use his messages to improve all aspects of your life.

“Confidence is going after Moby Dick in a rowboat and taking the tartar sauce with you.”

I take ten minutes to get into a pool. I hate cold water, so I’m a dip my toe then dip my other toe then submerge my foot kind of person. I do okay until I’m about thigh deep, and then I stand there for five minutes waiting for the courage to go all in.

It amazes me when some of my friends take running leaps into those same chilly waters. They know it’s going to be cold, but they also know that after a few minutes, their body will adjust.

Long story short.

They’re already having a blast by the time I finally make it into the pool.

And there’s a life lesson there.

Maybe it’s good to go “all in” sometimes in life.

Maybe we’d be better off if we stopped thinking so much and became more confident in ourselves and the universe.

Now, I’m much too cowardly to recommend running like a cheetah straight to your boss and quitting your job to be the next Stephen King — especially if you have a family to support.

There’s a reason they make safety nets.

However, to make big things happen, sometimes you need to decide what you want, pack your suitcase full of things you need, and leave that forty-pound outfit made of fear at home.

After all, so many things we’re afraid to do have relatively low-risk outcomes.

What you should do:

Make a list of scary things that you know might bring you more joy or professional success. Then find the easiest one and do it.

Warning: That inner coward will try to take over.

Don’t let it.

Suggestion: It might help to push those fears and worries aside and look at the situation more logically.

For example, let’s say you want to ask your crush out. What’s the worst that can happen? They say, no? Big deal.

You want to die your hair red and cut it short. What’s the worst that can happen? A few rude people give you that “What in the hell” look or say they liked your old hair better? Big deal.

You want to send your novel off to a publishing company? What’s the worst that can happen? They reject you? Big deal.

End your love affair with safety. Zig when you want to zag. Zag when you want to zig. Live less in the fear and more in the possibilities.

Now keep doing it until it becomes second nature.

If you don’t, you’ll never truly know what gifts the universe may have in store for you.

“Individuals who keep growing in knowledge are the ones who succeed.”

There is always more to be learned. Always. As a matter of fact, I’m pretty sure if you disagree, you’ll never get the happiness and success you deserve.

The good news is we live in the Information Age, so you can acquire knowledge about anything. Better news? You can learn it whenever and wherever you want.

You can learn it while sipping wine at your computer. You can learn it scrolling your phone during lunch. You can learn it running at the gym. You can learn it listening to audio on your way to work or under your blankets when you lie down to go to sleep.

The bad news? While you’re whining that you don’t have the time, someone is gaining the knowledge you say you’re too busy to get. Worse news? These very people are taking away your promotions, raking in more money, and living a life that’s more vibrant and full of potential than you ever will.

The harsh truth: There’s no good excuse for remaining ignorant of the things you know you need to master to move forward.

What you should do:

• Figure out the most critical weaknesses getting in the way of your success. If you’re like me, you probably already know most of them. However, if you’re unsure, ask someone “in the know” for an honest evaluation of your work.
• Do Google searches for articles that can give you sound advice on how to improve. Be sure and look for credible sources in your field of study.
• Search what you need to learn on YouTube.
• Listen to podcasts.
• Take advantage of free courses at places like Coursera or other online learning sites. Here is a list The Muse gives of sites that offer no-pay learning or inexpensive course options.
• Talk to experts in your area. Some of the best people to learn from are those we see every day. Ask them if they have a few minutes to offer you tips or advice.

There’s no finding the key to success if you’re not looking, so learn or get left behind. It’s really as simple as that.

“When obstacles arise, you change your direction to reach your goal; you do not change your decision to get there.”

Knowledge is life-changing. If you put it to use, it will teach you three invaluable things:

• The things you’re doing that are working,
• The things you’re doing that are not working.
• The things you’re doing that are working but need tweaking to create more powerful results.

For example, the knowledge you gather from other sources may not work for you personally. Still, it will always give you food for thought and room for experimentation.

And experimentation is everything.

For example, Harvard Business Review explains how experimentation benefits you in all aspects of life.

“When we live life as an experiment, we are far more willing to take risks, to acknowledge failure, to learn and develop. That’s what experiments are all about: discovery and growth. There is no real failure in an experiment because it’s all data. If something doesn’t work, that’s simply data that leads to changing behavior to see if something else does work.”

Experimentation may be best understood through its connection to the scientific method. It’s a method that has helped scientists make groundbreaking discoveries, and it can help you find solutions to your problems as well.

What you should do:

Step one: Make observations and then formulate questions.

Focus on an area of life where you feel you need to improve. It could be your relationships, career, or any other number of things.

Look at your situation carefully and make observations. What’s working? What’s not working? Keep a record of these things.

Step two: Form a hypothesis (don’t let that fancy word scare you).

Here’s where you use your observations to make an informed “guess” about the main reason for lack of success in your given area of study. For example, after observing your relationship, let’s say you conclude the problem is a lack of intimacy.

Step three: Make a prediction based on your hypothesis.

Now that you have a working theory about why certain situations in your life are failing, you need to dig deeper. What change do you think will be most helpful in solving your problem?

Let’s continue our relationship example. Let’s say that after reflecting on your situation with your lover, you decide the lack of intimacy in your relationship could best be repaired by more physical contact. That’s your prediction.

Step four: Experiment to test the prediction.

A guess is just that. A guess. You think something is true, but you don’t know something is true.

Big difference.

The best way to see if your “guess” is correct is to put it to the test.

For instance, let’s say you make it a point to implement more physical closeness with your partner. Your experiment involves two actions: hugging and kissing them when they leave and come home and going to bed when they do.

Step five: Evaluate the results.

This is where you look at the “data.” Did your actions positively or negatively impact the problem, or did they have no impact at all?

Analyzing your actions and the results gives you valuable information on what to do next.

For example, if your relationship became more intimate because of these actions, you learned an essential key to keeping your partnership happy.

However, suppose your actions had no effect at all. In that case, you need to make a new prediction and experiment to find another way to solve the problem.

The more you experiment, the more you learn. The more you learn, the more progress and success are guaranteed.

The bottom line:

“Many people who want to be great aren’t willing to do the work to make it possible.” — Zig Ziglar

To Ziglar, greatness is founded on three actions:

• believing you’ll reach your destination
• determining the best way to get there
• being willing to turn around and go another way when you encounter a roadblock

Do you want to be great?

Me too.

So then, I guess we’d better part ways. I think the both of us may have some heavy lifting to do.

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