Best Quotes About Excuses and Taking Responsibility

Do you ever catch yourself falling back on excuses instead of moving forward? It’s easy to justify delays, mistakes, or missed opportunities. But excuses keep you stuck.

That’s why so many people turn to quotes. The right words can spark reflection, push you to act, and remind you that progress happens when excuses stop. If you’re here, you might be looking for motivation to stop making excuses and start taking control.

How Excuses Quotes Reveal the Core Concept of Success

Quotes capture wisdom in a few short words. They cut through noise and make lessons easy to remember.

When you engage with powerful quotes:

• You gain perspective on your own patterns
• You strengthen discipline and accountability
• You feel encouraged to take consistent action

Without these reminders, it’s easy to slip into an excuse-driven mindset. You convince yourself you’ll start later, try tomorrow, or wait for the “right time.” That cycle rarely ends well.

But when you surround yourself with words that challenge you, you create an environment that supports growth and responsibility.

Short Quotes About Excuses to Challenge Your Thinking

1. “It is better to offer no excuse than a bad one.” – George Washington
2. “He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else.” – Benjamin Franklin
3. “Ninety-nine percent of the failures come from people who have the habit of making excuses.” – George Washington Carver
4. “Ninety-nine percent of failures come from people who make excuses.” – George Washington Carver
5. “You can make excuses or you can make progress.” – Brian Tracy
6. “Excuses will always be there for you. Opportunity won’t.” – Unknown
7. “An excuse is worse and more terrible than a lie, for an excuse is a lie guarded.” – Alexander Pope
8. “He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else.” – Benjamin Franklin
9. “Don’t make excuses—make good.” – Elbert Hubbard
10. “Excuses are the enemy of excellence.” – Unknown
11. “An excuse is worse and more terrible than a lie.” – Alexander Pope
12. “Excuses are the crutches of the uncommitted.” – Unknown
13. “Excuses change nothing, but make everyone feel better.” – Mason Cooley
14. “Excuses destroy success.” – Unknown
15. “You can make excuses or you can make progress.” – Brian Tracy
16. “If it is important to you, you will find a way. If not, you will find an excuse.” – Anonymous
17. “Excuses are contagious, like a disease.” – Unknown
18. “Excuses are a time thief. They steal away today’s opportunities.” – Unknown
19. “A man who makes excuses is seldom good for anything else.” – Benjamin Franklin
20. “Difficulty is the excuse history never accepts.” – Edward R. Murrow
21. “There is always a way—if you’re not looking for an excuse.” – Unknown
22. “Excuses are lies we tell ourselves.” – Robin Sharma
23. “Stop making excuses. Start making changes.” – Unknown
24. “Excuses are a waste of time. Just get it done.” – Unknown
25. “No more excuses. Only results matter.” – Unknown

Motivational Quotes About Excuses and Success

26. “A man can fail many times, but he isn’t a failure until he begins to blame somebody else.” – John Burroughs
27. “He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else.” – Benjamin Franklin
28. “The only thing standing between you and your goal is the story you keep telling yourself as to why you can’t achieve it.” – Jordan Belfort
29. “Excuses are monuments of nothingness, and those who use them seldom amount to anything.” – Traditional Saying
30. “You will find that the more successful the individual, the less inclined he is to make excuses.” – David J. Schwartz
31. “Everything you want is on the other side of fear.” – Jack Canfield
32. “Don’t make excuses for why you can’t get it done. Focus on all the reasons why you must make it happen.” – Ralph Marston
33. “Successful people don’t have fewer problems. They have determined that nothing will stop them from going forward.” – Ben Carson
34. “If you want to achieve success, stop asking for permission and stop making excuses.” – Unknown
35. “Excuses are easy to make, but hard to live with.” – Robert Kiyosaki
36. “Success occurs when your dreams get bigger than your excuses.” – Anonymous
37. “You can make money or you can make excuses, but you can’t make both.” – Unknown
38. “Success is your duty, obligation, and responsibility.” – Grant Cardone
39. “Don’t let the reasons why it won’t work stop you from doing what you know will work.” – Les Brown
40. “Ninety-nine percent of failures are people who have the habit of making excuses.” – George Washington Carver
41. “The day you stop making excuses is the day you will start seeing results.” – Steve Maraboli
42. “Do not wait for extraordinary circumstances to do good action; try to use ordinary situations.” – Jean Paul Richter
43. “Success is dependent upon effort, not excuses.” – Sophocles
44. “Stop looking for excuses and start looking for success.” – Zig Ziglar
45. “Don’t wait. The time will never be just right.” – Napoleon Hill
46. “Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.” – John Wooden
47. “The price of success is hard work, dedication, and a refusal to make excuses.” – Vince Lombardi
48. “Do not look for excuses to fail. Look for reasons to succeed.” – Denis Waitley
49. “Making excuses only makes failure comfortable. Success requires discomfort.” – T. Harv Eker
50. “When you take accountability for your actions, you take control of your life.” – Unknown

No Excuses Quotes to Inspire Action and Discipline

51. “Do not make excuses, whether it’s your fault or not.” – George S. Patton
52. “Don’t make excuses. Make things happen. Make changes. Then make history.” – Doug Hall
53. “If you don’t want to do something, one excuse is as good as another.” – Yiddish Proverb
54. “No more excuses. Only results matter.” – Unknown
55. “You can have results or excuses. Not both.” – Arnold Schwarzenegger
56. “No excuses. No explanations. You don’t win on emotion. You win on execution.” – Tony Dungy
57. “Champions don’t make excuses, they make adjustments.” – Christine Kane
58. “It’s not about perfect. It’s about effort. And when you bring that effort every single day, that’s where transformation happens.” – Jillian Michaels
59. “Self-discipline begins with the mastery of your thoughts.” – Napoleon Hill
60. “No excuses. Take responsibility for your life.” – Les Brown
61. “Success is not for the weak and uncommitted. Sometimes it’s gonna hurt!” – Eric Thomas
62. “You don’t develop courage by being happy in your relationships every day. You develop it by surviving difficult times and challenging adversity.” – Epicurus
63. “Don’t give yourself permission to make excuses. Making excuses is a form of giving up.” – Unknown
64. “Excuses are the nails used to build a house of failure.” – George Washington Carver
65. “Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.” – Jim Rohn
66. “We have forty million reasons for failure, but not a single excuse.” – Rudyard Kipling
67. “No excuses. No shortcuts. Only hard work and persistence.” – Dwayne Johnson
68. “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” – Theodore Roosevelt
69. “Don’t wait for inspiration. Get up and go to work.” – Thomas Edison
70. “Action expresses priorities.” – Mahatma Gandhi
71. “If something is important enough, you should try, even if the probable outcome is failure.” – Elon Musk
72. “The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.” – Walt Disney
73. “Winners are willing to do what losers won’t.” – Unknown
74. “It always seems impossible until it’s done.” – Nelson Mandela
75. “Don’t make excuses. Own your actions. That’s where freedom starts.” – John C. Maxwell

Personal Reflection on Excuses and Daily Discipline

Think about the times you’ve leaned on excuses. What did they cost you? A missed chance? Slower progress? A broken promise to yourself?

Now imagine how your life could shift if you replaced excuses with action. Which of these quotes speaks most to where you are right now?

Reflection matters because it turns words into change. When you sit with a quote and let it challenge you, you gain more than inspiration—you gain clarity.

By revisiting meaningful quotes often, you give yourself regular reminders to stay focused, motivated, and honest with yourself. This small habit can make a big difference in how you approach challenges and opportunities.

Lasting Lessons from Quotes About Excuses and Growth

Excuses are easy. Growth is harder. But quotes give you a push in the right direction.

You’ve seen how words can call out the trap of excuses and highlight the freedom that comes from accountability.

Use these quotes as tools. Write them down. Repeat them when you’re tempted to fall back. Share them with someone who needs the same reminder.

Every time you choose action over excuses, you build momentum. Keep seeking out words that fuel you and let them guide you forward. Your future depends less on the excuses you make and more on the choices you commit to.