We are all builders. We are all innovators. I refuse to think otherwise.

When we grow up we are taught that innovation is something special. To be an entrepreneur, you somehow have to be different. Being an entrepreneur and an innovator, they say, requires a particular approach, personality, training, the list goes on. I think this is wrong! It is my sincere belief that we are all entrepreneurs. Even those who work for large organizations can impact true change, they are intrapreneurs. All it takes is passion, curiosity, and strong desire to make even a small impact on the world.

No person is the same. No approach is the same. No view of the world is exactly the same. We need to trust our own personal lens of the world. And no matter what others think, pursue our dreams. That is what brings change and transformation.

It is my hope that these 33 quotes will inspire your inner entrepreneur / intrapreneur:

• “Throughout history, people with new ideas—who think differently and try to change things—have always been called troublemakers.” – Richelle Mead
• “There are no old roads to new directions.” – The Boston Consulting Group
• “You cannot discover new oceans unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore.” – Andre Gide
• “The best way to predict the future is to invent it.” – Alan Kay
• “If at first the idea is not absurd, then there will be no hope for it.” – A. Einstein
• “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” – A. Clarke
• “Don’t worry about people stealing your ideas. If your ideas are any good, you’ll have to ram them down people’s throats.” – Howard Aiken

• “Never innovate to compete, innovate to change the rules of the game.” – David O. Adeife
• “Our wretched species is so made that those who walk on the well-trodden path always throw stones at those
  who are showing a new road.” – Voltaire
• “If you want something new, you have to stop doing something old.” – Peter F. Drucker
• “Dreamers are mocked as impractical. The truth is they are the most practical, as their innovations lead to progress and a better way of life for all of us.” – Robin S. Sharma
• “Remember the two benefits of failure. First, if you do fail, you learn what doesn’t work; and second, the failure gives you the opportunity to try a new approach.” – Roger Von Oech
• “Steve Jobs gave a small private presentation about the iTunes Music Store to some independent record label people. My favorite line of the day was when people kept raising their hand saying, “Does it do [x]?”, “Do you plan to add [y]?”. Finally Jobs said, “Wait wait — put your hands down. Listen: I know you have a thousand ideas for all the cool features iTunes could have. So do we. But we don’t want a thousand features. That would be ugly. Innovation is not about saying yes to everything. It’s about saying NO to all but the most crucial features.” – Derek Sivers
• “It isn’t all over; everything has not been invented; the human adventure is just beginning.” – Gene Roddenberry
• “Bureaucracy destroys initiative. There is little that bureaucrats hate more than innovation, especially innovation that produces better results than the old routines. Improvements always make those at the top of the heap look inept. Who enjoys appearing inept?” – Frank Herbert
• “Innovation is an evolutionary process, so it’s not necessary to be radical all the time.” – Marc Jacobs
• “In a world of change, the learners shall inherit the earth, while the learned shall find themselves perfectly suited for a world that no longer exists.” – Eric Hoffer
• “Where all think alike there is little danger of innovation.” – Edward Abbey
• “Keep in mind that imagination is at the heart of all innovation. Crush or constrain it and the fun will vanish.” – Albert-László Barabási

• “I like to think of innovation as upgrading your current self. This upgrade helps you to more effectively deal with changes happening around you and to be able to think in a more complex manner than before.” – Daniel Willey
• “The willingness to be a champion for stupid ideas is the key to greater creativity, innovation, fulfillment, inspiration, motivation and success.” – Richie Norton
• “Entrepreneurship is when an individual retrieves a red hot idea from the creativity furnace without the constraint of the heat of lean resources, and with each persistent blow of the innovation hammer shapes the still malleable idea against the anvil of passion, vision, insight, strategy, and principles to forge a fitting vessel of a creative concern.” – Amah Lambert
• “Innovative solutions to new challenges seldom come from familiar places.” – Gyan Nagpal
• “Anyone who says failure is not an option has also ruled out innovation.” – Seth Godin

• “To teach that a comparatively few men are responsible for the greatest forward steps of mankind is the worst sort of nonsense.” – Henry Ford
• “Following the rules of your industry will only get you so far.” – Max McKeown
• “The best way to get a good idea is to have a lot of ideas.” – Linus Pauling
• “The innovator’s motto is this: I succeed or I learn but I never fail.” – Paul Sloane
• “There’s a huge misconception that innovation is mostly about inventing or coming up with cool new things. More often than not, innovation is about figuring out what people really need or want but can’t have or afford.” – Ziad K. Abdelnour
• “Implementing best practice is copying yesterday, innovation is inventing tomorrow.” – Paul Sloane
• “Failure isn’t something to be embarrassed about; it’s just proof that you’re pushing your limits, trying new things, daring to innovate.” – Gavin Newsom
• “Vulnerability is the birthplace of innovation, creativity and change.” – Brené Brown
• “Healthy curiosity is a great key in innovation.” – Ifeanyi Enoch Onuoha

Originally published in Inc.