This post is in partnership with Inc., which offers useful advice, resources, and insights to entrepreneurs and business owners. The article below was originally published at Inc.com. I used to hate inspirational quotes, maybe because my wrestling coach used to say, “If you’re not puking or passing out… you’re not trying hard enough.” (Go ahead: bask in the warm glow of that little gem.) Now I think inspirational quotes can indeed be inspirational–but only if we actually apply and live those words. So instead of just grabbing famous quotes we’ve all heard before, I’ve picked things people told me that caused me to act differently. I probably won’t remember what, say, Ben Franklin once said, no matter how poignant or witty, but I definitely remember what certain people said to me at critical moments in my life: 1. “Only a genius can do things his own way. You? You’re no genius.” I worked a construction job one summer and kept questioning what I was told to do. The foreman finally, in no uncertain terms, set me straight. It’s okay to reinvent the wheel, but only after you know how the current wheel works. Never assume you know better when you don’t really know anything. 2. “If you want to know how much you’ll be missed when you are gone, put your finger in a bucket of water and then remove it. The hole that’s left will be how much you are missed.” No one is irreplaceable. No one. Not even this guy. Instead of depressing, the thought we’re professionally replaceable is liberating. You may not leave a hole, but you can leave a mark on a person, a team, or a culture that lives on after you’re gone. You may not be missed but you can be remembered–in the best possible way. 3. “We all have limits. Almost no one reaches theirs. You definitely haven’t.” You could swim faster if a shark was on your tail. You could run faster if your child was in danger. You could work harder if the payoff was truly exceptional. What we think we can do is always–always–less than … Continue reading 14 Inspiration Quotes That Will Change Your Life in 2014