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Motivational posters don't work - but our Demotivator posters don't work even better.

Motivational Posters Don't Work - But our Demotivator Posters don't work even better.

MOTIVATION. Psychologists tell us it comes from within. Common sense tells us it can’t be manufactured.

So how is it that a multi-billion dollar industry thrives through the sale of motivational products and services? Because, now as in ages past, people desperately long to believe in simple solutions to complex problems. And when desperation has disposable income, market opportunities abound.

At Despair Inc., we believe it's time people face the truth- that any kind of motivation you can buy isn't worth owning, and in the end will result only in further demoralization. Given that inevitable fact, we'd like to invite you to skip the delusions that motivational products induce and head straight for the disappointment that follows!

Our legendary Demotivators® posters invented and perfected The Art of Demotivation™. They're virtually guaranteed to leave you feeling every bit as depressed and uninspired as even the most sappy and insipid motivational poster might, without first subjecting you to the agonizing indignity of misplaced hope! Plus, they make great gifts! Enjoy! (As if that's really possible...)

Browse the complete collection below! (Then buy something. We ain't running a giggle charity here.)

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The Demotivators® Collection
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    • Accomplishments Demotivational Poster

      You can fool all of the people all of the time if your effects budget is large enough.

    • Achievement Demotivational Poster

      You can do anything you set your mind to when you have vision, determination, and an endless supply of expendable labor.

    • Acquisition Demotivational Poster

      The discovery that you're no longer a big fish in a small pond, or even a small fish in a big pond, but a small fish in a big fish.

    • Adaptation Demotivational Poster

      The bad news is robots can do your job now. The good news is we're now hiring robot repair technicians. The worse news is we're working on robot-fixing robots- and we do not anticipate any further good news.

    • Adversity Demotivational Poster

      That which does not kill me postpones the inevitable.

    • Agony Demotivational Poster

      Not all pain is gain.

    • Ambition Demotivational Poster

      The journey of a thousand miles sometimes ends very, very badly.

    • Apathy Demotivational Poster

      If we don't take care of the customer,maybe they'll stop bugging us.

    • Arrogance Demotivational Poster

      The best leaders inspire by example. When that's not an option, brute intimidation works pretty well, too.

    • Bailouts Demotivational Poster

      From each according to his ability,
      to each according to his lack thereof.

    • Beauty Demotivational Poster

      If you're attractive enough on the outside, people will forgive you for being irritating to the core.

    • Believe in Yourself Demotivational Poster

      Because the rest of us think you're an idiot.

    • Bitterness Demotivational Poster

      Never be afraid to share your dreams with the world, because there's nothing the world loves more than the taste of really sweet dreams.

    • Blame Demotivational Poster

      The secret to success is knowing who to blame for your failures.

    • Blogging Demotivational Poster

      Never before have so many people with so little to say said so much to so few.

    • Bravery Demotivational Poster

      Every man dies. But not every man truly lives only to die of sheer stupidity.

    • Burnout Demotivational Poster

      Attitudes are contagious. Mine might kill you.

    • Challenges Demotivational Poster

      I expected times like this - but I never thought they'd be so bad, so long, and so frequent.

    • Change Demotivational Poster

      Politicians are like diapers. They need to be changed often and for the same reason.

    • Change (winds) Demotivational Poster

      When the winds of change blow hard enough, the most trivial of things can become deadly projectiles.

    • Cluelessness Demotivational Poster

      There are no stupid questions, but there are a LOT of inquisitive idiots.

    • Collaboration Demotivational Poster

      When a motivated group of people join together, they can turn problems into opportunities. Especially drinking problems.

    • Committees Demotivational Poster

      Just like teamwork. Only without the work.

    • Compromise Demotivational Poster

      Let's agree to respect each others views, no matter how wrong yours may be.

    • Conformity Demotivational Poster

      When people are free to do as they please, they usually imitate each other.

    • Congress Demotivational Poster

      Proudly defending the status quo long after the quo has lost its status.

    • Consistency Demotivational Poster

      It's only a virtue if you're not a screwup.

    • Consulting Demotivational Poster

      If you're not a part of the solution, there's good money to be made in prolonging the problem.

    • Corruption Demotivational Poster

      I want either less corruption or more opportunity to participate in it.

    • Creativity Demotivational Poster

      Helps artists die young, miserable, and penniless- so their art can have meaning to the old, satisfied, and obscenely rich.

    • Curiosity Demotivational Poster

      Some Places Remain Unknown Because No One Has Ventured Forth. Others Remain So Because No One Has Ever Come Back.

    • Customer Disservice Demotivational Poster

      Because we're not satisfied until you're not satisfied.

    • Customer Care Demotivational Poster

      If we really cared for the customer we'd send them somewhere better.

    • Dare To Slack Demotivational Poster

      When birds fly in the right formation, they need only exert half the effort. Even in nature, teamwork results in collective laziness.

    • Defeat Demotivational Poster

      For every winner, there are dozens of losers. Odds are you're one of them.

    • Delusions Demotivational Poster

      There is no greater joy than soaring high on the wings of your dreams, except maybe the joy of watching a dreamer who has nowhere to land but in the ocean of reality.

    • Demotivation Demotivational Poster

      Sometimes the best solution to morale problems is just to fire all of the unhappy people.

    • Despair Demotivational Poster

      It's always darkest just before it goes pitch black.

    • Destiny Demotivational Poster

      You were meant for me. Perhaps as a punishment.

    • Discovery Demotivational Poster

      A company that will go to the ends of the Earth for its people will find it can hire them for about 10% of the cost of Americans.

    • Disloyalty Demotivational Poster

      There comes a time when every team must learn to make individual sacrifices.

    • Disservice Demotivational Poster

      It takes months to find a customer, but only seconds to lose one... the good news is that we should run out of them in no time.

    • Diversity Demotivational Poster

      Because every person deserves an equal chance to prove their incompetence.

    • Do it Later Demotivational Poster

      The early worm is for the birds.

    • Doubt Demotivational Poster

      In the battle between you and the world, bet on the world.

    • Dreams Demotivational Poster

      Dreams are like rainbows. Only idiots chase them.

    • Dysfunction Demotivational Poster

      The only consistent feature in all of your dissatisfying relationships is you.

    • Economics Demotivational Poster

      The science of explaining tomorrow why the predictions you made yesterday didn't come true today.

    • Effort Demotivational Poster

      Hard work never killed anybody, but it is illegal in some places.

    • Elitism Demotivational Poster

      It's lonely at the top, but it's comforting to look down upon everyone at the bottom.

    • Excuses Demotivational Poster

      If you keep asking others to give you the benefit of the doubt, they'll eventually start to doubt your benefit.

    • Failure Demotivational Poster

      When your best just isn't good enough.

    • Fear Demotivational Poster

      Until you have the courage to lose sight of the shore, you will not know the terror of being forever lost at sea.

    • Flattery Demotivational Poster

      If you want to get to the top, prepare to kiss a lot of the bottom.

    • Freedom Demotivational Poster

      I may not agree with what you say, but I respect your right to be punished for it.

    • Futility Demotivational Poster

      You'll always miss 100% of the shots you don't take, and, statistically speaking, 99% of the shots you do.

    • Get To Work Demotivational Poster

      You aren't being paid to believe in the power of your dreams.

    • Give Up Demotivational Poster

      At some point, hanging in there just makes you look like an even bigger loser.

    • Goals Demotivational Poster

      It's best to avoid standing directly between a competitive jerk and his goals.

    • Government Demotivational Poster

      If you think the problems we create are bad, just wait until you see our solutions.

    • Hazards Demotivational Poster

      There is an island of opportunity in the middle of every difficulty. Miss that, though, and you're pretty much doomed.

    • Hope Demotivational Poster

      May not be warranted at this point.

    • Humiliation Demotivational Poster

      The harder you try, the dumber you look.

    • Idiocy Demotivational Poster

      Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups.

    • Ignorance Demotivational Poster

      It's amazing how much easier it is for a team to work together when no one has any idea where they're going.

    • Incompetence Demotivational Poster

      When you earnestly believe you can compensate for a lack of skill by doubling your efforts, there's no end to what you can't do.

    • Indecision Demotivational Poster

      The mark of the leader is the ability to make decisions. The mark of the survivor is knowing when not to.

    • Indifference Demotivational Poster

      It takes 43 muscles to frown and 17 to smile, but it doesn't take any to just sit there with a dumb look on your face.

    • Individuality Demotivational Poster

      Always remember that you are unique. Just like everybody else.

    • Ineptitude Demotivational Poster

      If you can't learn to do something well, learn to enjoy doing it poorly.

    • Inflation Demotivational Poster

      Because the easiest way to steal your wealth is by cheapening your money.

    • Innovation Demotivational Poster

      If it can make your job easier, it can probably make it irrelevant.

    • Insanity Demotivational Poster

      It's difficult to comprehend how insane some people can be. Especially when you're insane.

    • Insight Demotivational Poster

      When the going gets tough, the tough get going.
      The smart left a long time ago.

    • Inspiration Demotivational Poster

      Genius is 1 percent inspiration and 99% perspiration, which is why engineers sometimes smell really bad.

    • Intimidation Demotivational Poster

      No one can make you feel inferior without your consent, but you'd be a fool to withhold that from your superiors.

    • Irresponsibility Demotivational Poster

      No single raindrop believes it is to blame for the flood.

    • Laziness Demotivational Poster

      Success is a journey, not a destination. So stop running.

    • Leaders Demotivational Poster

      Leaders are like eagles. We don't have either of them here.

    • Legacy Demotivational Poster

      It took millions of years to create something this extraordinary. You have about seventy-four.

    • Liberty Demotivational Poster

      The price of freedom keeps going up, but the quality keeps deteriorating.

    • Limitations Demotivational Poster

      Until you spread your wings, you'll have no idea how far you can walk.

    • Loneliness Demotivational Poster

      If you find yourself struggling with loneliness, you're not alone. And yet you are alone. So very alone.

    • Losing Demotivational Poster

      If at first you don't succeed, failure may be your style.

    • Madness Demotivational Poster

      Madness does not always howl. Sometimes, it is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, "Hey, is there room in your head for one more?"

    • Marketing Demotivational Poster

      Because making it look good now is more important than providing adequate support later.

    • Maturity Demotivational Poster

      If you're tired of others looking down on you, grow the hell up.

    • Mediocrity Demotivational Poster

      It takes a lot less time and most people won't notice the difference until it's too late.

    • Meetings Demotivational Poster

      None of us is as dumb as all of us.

    • Mercy Demotivational Poster

      Teach every child you meet the importance of forgiveness. It's our only hope of surviving their wrath once they realize just how badly we've screwed things up for them.

    • Misfortune Demotivational Poster

      While good fortune often eludes you, this kind never misses.

    • Mistakes Demotivational Poster

      It could be that the purpose of your life is only to serve as a warning to others.

    • Motivation Demotivational Poster

      If a pretty poster and a cute saying are all it takes to motivate you, you probably have a very easy job. The kind robots will be doing soon.

    • Nepotism Demotivational Poster

      We promote family values here - almost as often as we promote family members.

    • Obstacles Demotivational Poster

      Some things can not be overcome with determination and a positive attitude.

    • Opportunity Demotivational Poster

      I am Dr. Adewole Aremu- a director with the Union Bank of Nigeria in Lagos - and I wish to speak to you most urgently about a matter regarding the sum of $39,000,000 US Dollars...

    • Overconfidence Demotivational Poster

      Before you attempt to beat the odds, be sure you could survive the odds beating you.

    • Perseverance Demotivational Poster

      The courage to ignore the obvious wisdom of turning back.

    • Persistence Demotivational Poster

      It's over, man. Let her go.

    • Perspective Demotivational Poster

      Less is more. Unless you're standing next to the one with more. Then less just looks pathetic.

    • Pessimism Demotivational Poster

      Every dark cloud has a silver lining, but lightning kills hundreds of people each year who are trying to find it.

    • Planning Demotivational Poster

      Much work remains to be done before we can announce our total failure to make any progress.

    • Possibilities Demotivational Poster

      With focus, dedication and steroids, men can achieve impossible dreams. Like breaking a world record. Or growing their own breasts.

    • Potential Demotivational Poster

      Not everyone gets to be an astronaut when they grow up.

    • Power Demotivational Poster

      Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. But it rocks absolutely, too.

    • Pressure Demotivational Poster

      It can turn a lump of coal into a flawless diamond, or an average person into a perfect basketcase.

    • Pretension Demotivational Poster

      The downside of being better than everyone else is that people tend to assume you're pretentious.

    • Pride Demotivational Poster

      The art of calling faith in yourself "Self-Esteem" while calling it "conceit" when you see it in others.

    • Priorities Demotivational Poster

      Hundreds of years from now, it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove... But the world may be different because I did something so bafflingly crazy that my ruins become a tourist attraction.

    • Problems Demotivational Poster

      No matter how great and destructive your problems may seem now, remember, you've probably only seen the tip of them.

    • Procrastination Demotivational Poster

      Hard work often pays off after time, but laziness always pays off now.

    • Propaganda Demotivational Poster

      What lies behind us and lies before us are small matters compared to what lies right to our faces.

    • Quality Demotivational Poster

      The race for quality has no finish line- so technically, it's more like a death march.

    • Recognition Demotivational Poster

      Having your moment in the sun isn't always a good thing.

    • Recovery Demotivational Poster

      Time heals all wounds. But it usually leaves a pretty big scar.

    • Regret Demotivational Poster

      It hurts to admit when you make mistakes - but when they're big enough, the pain only lasts a second.

    • Retirement Demotivational Poster

      Because you've given so much of yourself to the company that you don't have anything left we can use.

    • Risks Demotivational Poster

      If you never try anything new, you'll miss out on many of life's great disappointments.

    • The Road Not Taken Demotivational Poster

      Two roads diverged in a yellow wood. And Robert Frost took the one less traveled. Of course, he also heckled his rivals and started fires to disrupt their poetry readings. But that makes for a terrible motivational poster. Unless you're a petty pyromaniac. In which case, here you go.

    • Romance Demotivational Poster

      Love is in the air. And it's pooping on my head.

    • Sacrifice Demotivational Poster

      Your role may be thankless, but if you're willing to give it your all, you just might bring success to those who outlast you.

    • Sacrifice (Temple) Demotivational Poster

      All we ask here is that you give us your heart.

    • Sanity Demotivational Poster

      Minds are like parachutes. Just because you've lost yours doesn't mean you can borrow mine.

    • The Secret Demotivational Poster

      What is The Secret? Pretend you've already achieved it- Then offer to sell The Secret to others.

    • Self-Esteem Demotivational Poster

      Just because you think you're a star doesn't mean you're going anywhere.

    • Service Demotivational Poster

      View all customers as beautiful buds that must be cultivated, watered, and periodically buried under manure.

    • Strife Demotivational Poster

      As long as we have each other, we'll never run out of problems.

    • Stupidity Demotivational Poster

      Quitters never win, winners never quit, but those who never win AND never quit are idiots.

    • Success Demotivational Poster

      Some people dream of success, while other people live to crush those dreams.

    • Survival Demotivational Poster

      The less you stand out, the longer you'll last.

    • Synergy Demotivational Poster

      A code word lazy people use when they want you to do all the work.

    • Teamwork Demotivational Poster

      A few harmless flakes working together can unleash an avalanche of destruction.

    • Tradition Demotivational Poster

      Just because you've always done it that way doesn't mean it's not incredibly stupid.

    • Tranquility Demotivational Poster

      As long as there are children in the world, there will never be any real peace.

    • Trouble Demotivational Poster

      Luck can't last a lifetime unless you die young.

    • Underachievement Demotivational Poster

      The tallest blade of grass is the first to be cut by the lawnmower.

    • Underachievement (Penguin) Demotivational Poster

      Because soaring with the eagles requires so much more effort.

    • Victory Demotivational Poster

      Winners never fly higher than when they're bouncing up and down on the egos of those they defeat.

    • Vision Demotivational Poster

      How can the future be so hard to predict when all of my worst fears keep coming true?

    • Wealth Demotivational Poster

      All I ask is for a chance to prove that money can't buy happiness.

    • Whining Demotivational Poster

      If you expect to score points by whining, join a European soccer team.

    • Winners Demotivational Poster

      Because nothing says "you're a loser" more than owning a motivational poster about being a winner.

    • Wisdom Demotivational Poster

      Sometimes the only difference between a budding genius and a blooming idiot is where they choose to take a stand.

    • Wishes Demotivational Poster

      When you wish upon a falling star, your dreams can come true. Unless it's really a meteorite hurtling to the Earth which will destroy all life. Then you're pretty much hosed no matter what you wish for. Unless it's death by meteor.

    • Worth Demotivational Poster

      Just because you're necessary doesn't mean you're important.