Its almost the end of April. For students that means one thing: finals are coming. And for seniors in college, graduation seems only minutes away and while some know where they're going after they toss the mortar board caps, others are still in full panic mode, searching for jobs or waiting to hear back from graduate programs. Its a time where stress spreads like the common cold at a daycare and some are on the verge of a complete break down. It's times like these where we could all use some extra motivation to make it to the finish line.

Some of the world's brightest individuals faced severe obstacles and multiple failures. It's important to remember that failure and stress are a part of life. If you look past the obstacles and keep your goals in sight you can succeed, even if you've failed dozens of times before. Finals week and job hunting are just minor obstacles on the path to making our mark in society and the education we are working toward is a gift. So, here I present to you a list of motivational quotes from the world's greatest minds to think to yourself on the days when you're ready to throw in the towel.

1. "There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind." – C.S. Lewis

2. "Keep your eyes on the stars, and your feet on the ground." - Theodore Roosevelt

3. "Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire." – William Butler Yeats

4. "I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.’ "– Muhammad Ali

5. "If you’re going through hell, keep going." – Winston Churchill

6. "Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising up every time we fail." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

7. "With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts." – Eleanor Roosevelt

8. "Perseverance is failing 19 times and succeeding the 20th." - Julie Andrews

9. "It is impossible to live without failing at something unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all, in which case you have failed by default." - J. K. Rowling

10. "The best way to predict the future is to create it." - Abraham Lincoln

11. "Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence." - Helen Keller

12. "No matter what people tell you, words and ideas can change the world." - Robin Williams

13. "Vitality shows in not only the ability to persist but the ability to start over." - F. Scott Fitzgerald

14. "When you reach the end of your rope, tie a knot in it and hang on." - Franklin D. Roosevelt