Leadership Quotes

Great Leadership Quotes by CEOs, Presidents, Generals, Athletes, Coaches…  What are your favorite leadership quotes?

“Change before you have to.” ~ Jack Welch

“Leaders don’t create followers, they create more leaders.” ~Tom Peters

 

“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.”  ~John Quincy Adams

“A sense of humor is part of the art of leadership, of getting along with people, of getting things done.”  ~ Dwight D. Eisenhower

“Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.” ~ John F. Kennedy

“Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.”  ~ Steve Jobs

“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Outstanding leaders go out of their way to boost the self-esteem of their personnel. If people believe in themselves, it’s amazing what they can accomplish.”  ~ Sam Walton

“The quality of a leader is reflected in the standards they set for themselves.”  ~ Ray Kroc

“People ask the difference between a leader and a boss. The leader leads, and the boss drives.” ~ Theodore Rooselvelt

Leadership Lessons from Dancing Guy.  This is such a great video.  Fits right into the Leadership section.

“I wouldn’t ask anyone to do anything I wouldn’t do myself.” ~ Indra Nooyi

“The best executive is one who has sense enough to pick good people to do what he wants done, and self-restraint enough to keep from meddling with them while they do it.”  ~ Theodore Roosevelt

“Leadership quotes won’t get you anywhere if you don’t take action.” ~EverythingSupplyChain.com

“The speed of the leader is the speed of the gang.”  ~ Mary Kay Ash

“No man will make a great leader who wants to do it all himself or get all the credit for doing it.”  ~ Andrew Carnegie

“If everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself.” –Henry Ford

 

“The single biggest way to impact an organization is to focus on leadership development. There is almost no limit to the potential of an organization that recruits good people, raises them up as leaders and continually develops them.” ~ John Maxwell

“I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been.”  ~ Wayne Gretzky

Nothing else can quite substitute for a few well-chosen, well-timed, sincere words of praise.  They’re absolutely free and worth a fortune.”  ~ Sam Walton

“A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don’t necessarily want to go, but ought to be.”  ~ Rosalynn Carter

“Don’t tell people how to do things, tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results.”  ~ George S. Patton Jr.

“Everyone has the heart of a champion on game day. It’s the heart you have during the weeks, months, and years of preparation that actually makes a difference.”  ~ John M. Raymond

“Eagles don’t flock – you have to find them one at a time.” ~ H. Ross Perot

“My job is not to be easy on people. My job is to make them better.” ~ Steve Jobs

“Become the kind of leader that people would follow voluntarily; even if you had no title or position.” ~ Brian Tracy

“To have long term success as a coach or in any position of leadership, you have to be obsessed in some way.”   ~ Pat Riley

“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.”   ~ John Quincy Adams

“Outstanding leaders go out of their way to boost the self-esteem of their personnel. If people believe in themselves, it’s amazing what they can accomplish.”  ~ Sam Walton

“To lead people, walk behind them.”   ~ Lao Tzu

“A leader is a dealer in hope.” ~ Napoleon Bonaparte

“Leadership is diving for a loose ball, getting the crowd involved, getting other players involved. It’s being able to take it as well as dish it out. That’s the only way you’re going to get respect from the players.” ~ Larry Bird

“The pessimist complains about the wind. The optimist expects it to change. The leader adjusts the sails.”  ~ John Maxwell

“Leaders aren’t born, they are made. And they are made just like anything else, through hard work. And that’s the price we’ll have to pay to achieve that goal, or any goal.” ~ Vince Lombardi

“You won’t go anywhere if you don’t start moving.” ~SupplyChainToday.com

“Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.”  ~ Dale Carnegie

“Earn your leadership every day.”   ~ Michael Jordan

“One of the true tests of leadership is the ability to recognize a problem before it becomes an emergency.”  ~ Arnold Glasow

“It is better to lead from behind and to put others in front, especially when you celebrate victory when nice things occur.  You take the front line when there is danger. Then people will appreciate your leadership.”  ~ Nelson Mandela

“Things work out best for those who make the best of how things work out.” ~John Wooden

“The leaders who work most effectively, it seems to me, never say “I.” And that’s not because they have trained themselves not to say “I.” They don’t think “I.” They think “we”; they think “team.” They understand their job to be to make the team function. They accept responsibility and don’t sidestep it, but “we” gets the credit. This is what creates trust, what enables you to get the task done.”  ~ Peter Drucker

“People ask the difference between a leader and a boss. The leader works in the open, and the boss in covert. The leader leads, and the boss drives.”  ~ Theodore Roosevelt

“The employer generally gets the employees he deserves.” ~ J. Paul Getty

“A leader is best when people barely know he exists, When his work is done, his aim fulfilled, They will say: We did it ourselves.”  ~ Lao Tzu

“I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been.”  ~ Wayne Gretzky

“A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don’t necessarily want to go, but ought to be.”  ~ Rosalynn Carter

“The best executive is the one who has sense enough to pick good men to do what he wants done, and self-restraint enough to keep from meddling with them while they do it.”  ~ Theodore Roosevelt 

 

“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”  ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.

“A good objective of leadership is to help those who are doing poorly to do well and to help those who are doing well to do even better.”  ~ Jim Rohn

“It’s hard to beat a person who never gives up.” ~Babe Ruth

“Leaders don’t create followers, they create more leaders.”  ~ Tom Peters

“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.”  ~ John Quincy Adams

“The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one that gets the people to do the greatest things.”   ~ Ronald Reagan

• “Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.”  ~ Abraham Lincoln
• “A true leader has the confidence to stand alone, the courage to make tough decisions, and the compassion to listen to the needs of others. He does not set out to be a leader, but becomes one by the equality of his actions and the integrity of his intent.”  ~ Douglas McCarther
• “A good leader inspires people to have confidence in the leader, a great leader inspires people to have confidence in themselves.”  ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

 

Leadership quotes by Presidents.

John Quincy Adams

“Try and fail, but don’t fail to try.” ― John Quincy Adams

Dwight D. Eisenhower

“What counts is not necessarily the size of the dog in the fight- it’s the size of the fight in the dog.” ~ Dwight D. Eisenhower

Thomas Jefferson

• “On matters of style, swim with the current, on matters of principle, stand like a rock.” ~ Thomas Jefferson
• “Do you want to know who you are? Don’t ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you.” ~ Thomas Jefferson

Lyndon Johnson

• “A president’s hardest task is not to do what is right, but to know what is right.” ~ Lyndon Johnson

John F. Kennedy (1917–1963) Leadership Quotes.

• “My fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.”  ~ John F. Kennedy
• “The Chinese use two brush strokes to write the word ‘crisis.’ One brush stroke stands for danger; the other for opportunity. In a crisis, be aware of the danger–but recognize the opportunity.” ~ John F. Kennedy
• “Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.” ~ John F. Kennedy
• “The hottest places in hell are reserved for those who, in times of great moral crisis, maintain their neutrality.” ~ John F. Kennedy
• “We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills.”  ~ John F. Kennedy
• “As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.” ~ John F. Kennedy
• “Forgive your enemies, but never forget their names.”  ~ John F. Kennedy
• “One person can make a difference, and everyone should try.” ~ John F. Kennedy
• “Mankind must put an end to war — or war will put an end to mankind. ” ~ John F. Kennedy

Abraham Lincoln Leadership Quotes.

• “I am a slow walker, but I never walk backwards” ~ Abraham Lincoln

• “Leave nothing for tomorrow which can be done today.” ~ Abraham Lincoln

• “Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” ~ Abraham Lincoln
• “In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years” ~ Abraham Lincoln
• “Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.” ~ Abraham Lincoln
• “Whatever you are, be a good one.” ~ Abraham Lincoln

Richard Nixon

“The greatness comes not when things go always good for you, but the greatness comes when you are really tested, when you take some knocks, some disappointments, when sadness comes; because only if you’ve been in the deepest valley can you ever know how magnificent it is to be on the highest mountain… Always give your best. Never get discouraged. Never be petty. Always remember: Others may hate you. But those who hate you don’t win, unless you hate them. And then, you destroy yourself.” ~ Richard Nixon

Ronald Reagan

• “We the people tell the government what to do, it doesn’t tell us.” ~ Ronald Reagan
• “Each generation goes further than the generation preceding it because it stands on the shoulders of that generation. You will have opportunities beyond anything we’ve ever known.” ~ Ronald Reagan

Franklin D. Roosevelt  (1882–1945) Leadership Quotes.

• “Let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” ~ Franklin D. Roosevelt
• “So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself – nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance. In every dark hour of our national life a leadership of frankness and vigor has met with that understanding and support of the people themselves which is essential to victory. ” ~ Franklin D. Roosevelt
• “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” ~ Franklin D. Roosevelt

• “Happiness lies in the joy of achievement and the thrill of creative effort.”  ~ Franklin D. Roosevelt

Theodore Roosevelt Leadership Quotes.

• “It is hard to fail, but it is worse never to have tried to succeed.” ~ Theodore Roosevelt
• “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” ~ Theodore Roosevelt
• “Speak softly and carry a big stick.”  ~ Theodore Roosevelt
• “It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” ~ Theodore Roosevelt.

Harry S. Truman

“It’s amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.” ~ Harry S. Truman

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