If you’re like me, you’re always looking for a little inspiration and motivation – especially when it comes to your business. That’s why I’ve put together this compilation of ethic quotes. Whether you’re just starting out or you’ve been in business for a while, these quotes will help get you in the right frame of mind and keep you moving forward.
1. Every war, every revolution, demands the sacrifice of a generation, of a collectivity, by those who undertake it. — Simone de Beauvoir, The Ethics of Ambiguity
2. I wasn’t the biggest, the fastest, the strongest, and then I bought into something called work ethic. — Ray Lewis
3. Savages cling to a local god of one tribe or town. The broad ethics of Jesus were quickly narrowed to village theologies, which preach an election or favoritism. — Ralph Waldo Emerson
4. My biggest flaw is probably my attention span or lack thereof. And while it might seem contradictory, my biggest strength is my work ethic. — Tom Holland
5. I don’t think there’s anything in the compromise that means that there’s a clash of ethics. — Peter Singer
6. Renunciation is the very basis upon which ethics stands. — Swami Vivekananda
7. Ethics seems a morass which we have to cross, but get hopelessly bogged in when we make the attempt. — Peter Singer
8. We cannot respect something just because millions or billions believe in it! We can respect something only if it is complying with the high intelligence and the ethics! — Mehmet Murat ildan
9. My take is that the optimal approach to food, for health and ethical reasons, may be vegetarianism. — Nicholas Kristof
10. The ethic of the journalist is to recognize one’s prejudices, biases, and avoid getting them into print. — Walter Cronkite
11. I do see a big difference in the American work ethic compared to the British work ethic in a lot of artists. — Simon Cowell
12. An ethical person ought to do more than he’s required to do and less than he’s allowed to do. — Michael Josephson
13. In politics, it seems, retreat is honorable if dictated by military considerations and shameful if even suggested for ethical reasons. — Mary McCarthy
14. If ethics is not the engine of success, in the train of growth, it sure is a guard, with a flag, which may be green, or at times red — Priyavrat Thareja
15. In terms of instilling the values of mental toughness and work ethic, discipline is the gift that keeps on giving. — William Baldwin
16. Today, however, we are having a hard time living because we are so bent on outwitting death. — Simone de Beauvoir, The Ethics of Ambiguity
17. Samurai films, like westerns, need not be familiar genre stories. They can expand to contain stories of ethical challenges and human tragedy. — Roger Ebert
18. Guilt at least has a purpose — it tells us we’ve violated some ethical code. Ditto for remorse. Those feelings are educational
19. We don’t need any sort of religious orientation to lead a life that is ethical, compassionate & kind. — Sharon Salzberg, The Force of Kindness: Change Your Life with Love & Compassion
20. As it was, we always misunderstood ourselves and rarely understood others. Experience was of no ethical value. It was merely the name men gave to their mistakes. — Oscar Wilde
21. We should aim for our children to be good people, and to live ethical lives that manifest concern for others as well as for themselves. — Peter Singer
22. The American people voted to restore integrity and honesty in Washington, D.C., and the Democrats intend to lead the most honest, most open and most ethical Congress in history. — Nancy Pelosi
23. Paying attention to the ethical implications of our choices has never been more pressing–or more complicated–than it is today. — Sharon Salzberg, Real Love: The Art of Mindful Connection
24. The ethic of conviction and the ethic of responsibility are not opposites. They are complementary to one another. — Max Weber
25. Every war, every revolution, demands the sacrifice of a generation, of a collectivity, by those who undertake it. — Simone de Beauvoir, The Ethics of Ambiguity
26. … luckily, Eden is soon populated. The ethical dimension begins when the other appears on the scene. — Umberto Eco, Five Moral Pieces
27. To say that life is meaningless is to express an attitude, not to state a fact — Peter Singer, Writings on an Ethical Life
28. Justice and injustice indeed begins and ends with the self. — Syed Muhammad Naquib al–Attas, Islam: The Concept of Religion and The Foundation of Ethics and Morality
29. I was determined if I was going to become a superstar it would be on my terms. I’ve had that ethic since the beginning. — Roy Harper
30. Salander was an information junkie with a delinquent child’s take on morals and ethics. — Stieg Larsson, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
31. Ethics is inescapable. — Peter Singer
32. Where there is not community, trust, respect, ethical behavior are difficult for the young to learn and for the old to maintain. — Robert K. Greenleaf, Servant As Leader
33. Business ethics has always had problems that are distinct from those of other professions, such as medicine, law, engineering, dentistry, or nursing. — Peter Singer
34. If I do eat meat, it’s got to be ethical. I want to know that it lived a great life before it was killed humanely. — Ricky Gervais
35. If ethics is not the engine of success, in the train of growth, it sure is a guard, with a flag, which may be green, or at times red — Priyavrat Thareja
36. Where there is not community, trust, respect, ethical behavior are difficult for the young to learn and for the old to maintain. — Robert K. Greenleaf, Servant As Leader
37. The justification of majority rule in politics is not to be found in its ethical superiority. — Walter Lippmann
38. The world has achieved brilliance without conscience. Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants. — Omar N. Bradley
39. No ethical person wants to be a king or a queen, because there is no ethics and honor in putting yourself in a place higher than others! — Mehmet Murat ildan
40. ….it seems to me that a pleasurable Contemplation of Beauty has certainly an immeasurably greater value than mere Consciousness of Pleasure. — G.E. Moore, Principia Ethica
41. The principle that the end justifies the means is and remains the only rule of political ethics — anything else is just a vague chatter and melts away between one’s fingers.
42. Puritanism carried the ethos of the rational organization of capital and labor. It took over from the Jewish ethic only what was adapted to this purpose. — Max Weber
43. Guilt at least has a purpose — it tells us we’ve violated some ethical code. Ditto for remorse. Those feelings are educational
44. There is no particular Socratic or Dimechian or Kantian way to live your life. They don’t offer ethical codes and standards by which to live your life. — Stephen Fry
45. It’s pretty simple, the ethical life. It’s just demanding. — Terence Mckenna
46. If I do eat meat, it’s got to be ethical. I want to know that it lived a great life before it was killed humanely. — Ricky Gervais
47. In life we are separated by boundaries political, cultural, ethical, linguistical and psychical. But in death we are all united, for all afterlife is similarly unknown — Prabhukrishna M
48. Renunciation is the very basis upon which ethics stands. — Swami Vivekananda
49. To date, embryonic stem cell research has not produced a single medical treatment, where ethical, adult stem cell research has produced some 67 medical miracles. — Mike Pence
50. I believe that we as the leader of the Free World must provide important leadership on the ethical parameters, the ethical constraints that this research requires. — Ron Kind
We have seen the power of ethics in our lives and it is something that should never be forgotten. Ethical behavior is essential to building trust and respect in our society. We should strive to act ethically in all areas of our life, from the smallest decisions to the biggest. We should always strive to do what is right and just, even when it is difficult. These quotes can serve as a reminder of the importance of ethics and the positive impact it can have on our lives.
