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Sometimes, being asked the right question at the right moment is a powerful motivator. Case in point: My dad said to me at college graduation, "We know what you can do. But who are you going to be?" At the time, I wanted a job and hadn’t yet realized how connected employment is with happiness and life’s purpose. I was a bit too hungover to come up with a good answer in the moment. However, the question stuck with me, and it resurfaces when I'm off-track.

Rudeness and bad behavior have all grown over the last decades, particularly at work. How we treat one another at work matters. Insensitive interactions have a way of whittling away at people’s health, performance and souls.

Much like most people, I've faced multiple instances where there was nothing keeping me at a job, but bills and responsibilities meant quitting wasn't an option either. In such cases, it's difficult to show up, let alone do your work to your best ability. But a few strategies have helped.

Stop Blaming Yourself, But Take Responsibility

Motivation is intrinsic. While external factors affect it, your reaction to those factors is what ultimately leaves you demotivated. But there's a difference between taking responsibility for this and blaming yourself for this—and far too often, we do the latter.

Companies spend a lot of time and money trying to motivate their employees.

But when was the last time a mug with your company’s logo or a coffee shop gift card made you truly excited? Real motivation doesn’t come from external rewards--it comes from making some shifts in how you think about your situation, says San Diego, California-based personal empowerment expert Susan Fowler. 

“Give a whale a fish and it’ll jump as high as you want. Give a pigeon a pellet and it’ll turn 360 degrees. That whole animal behavior theory is what the workplace is built on. We’ve got to get away from that because we’re not pigeons and we’re not whales,” she says.

As hard as we might try to accomplish everything we've set our minds to do, obstacles and roadblocks can stand in the way of our success. While we may normally take these obstacles and roadblocks in stride, some days it seems like nothing goes right for us. The result? We feel down and wonder what it's going to take to get ourselves back on track.

This is when it's time to take a step back from whatever it is we're doing, recharge our batteries, and inspire ourselves to try again and again--until we achieve our goal. Here are 17 super positive quotes that will inspire you to be exceptional--and to reach for the stars (and catch them!).

Here's the central law of employee motivation, of coaxing a great performance from your employees, day after day: Employees who are selected, oriented, and reinforced properly, and who are surrounded by peers of the same caliber, will thrive when given significant autonomy. Otherwise, they'll wither.

There are dozens of studies to support this, inside and outside of business life.

The case for autonomy: just look in the mirror.