Leadership Quotes

Know thyself

Plato 428 BC-347 BC, ancient Greek philosopher

If you are not criticized, you may not be doing much

Donald Rumsfeld 1932-, American Republican politician and businessman

Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things

Peter F. Drucker 1909-2005, American management guru

Anyone can hold the helm when the sea is calm

Publilius Syrus 1st century BC, Latin writer of maxims

All of the great leaders have had one characteristic in common: it was the willingness to confront unequivocally the major anxiety of their people in their time. This, and not much else, is the essence of leadership

John Kenneth Galbraith 1908-2006, influential Canadian-American Keynesian economist

Honest disagreement is often a good sign of progress

Mahatma Gandhi 1869, 1948, Indian deep thinker and constant experimenter

The boss drives people; the leader coaches them.

The boss depends on authority; the leader on good will.

The boss inspires fear; the leader inspires enthusiasm.

The boss says 'I'; the leader says 'we.'

The boss fixes the blame for the breakdown; the leader fixes the breakdown.

The boss knows how it is done; the leader shows how.
The boss says 'go'; the leader says 'let's go!'

H. Gordon Selfridge 1864-1947, American-British retail magnate

A leader is best when people barely know he exists

Lao Tzu 4th century BC, ancient Chinese philosopher

All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing

Edmund Burke 1729 - 1797, Irish-born English political writer

Good leaders make people feel that they're at the very heart of things, not at the periphery. Everyone feels that he or she makes a difference to the success of the organization. When that happens people feel centered and that gives their work meaning

Warren G. Bennis 1925 - , American leadership scholar, consultant and writer

Personal leadership is the process of keeping your vision and values before you and aligning your life to be congruent with them

Stephen R. Covey, American leadership consultant and writer

Effective leadership is putting first things first. Effective management is discipline, carrying it out

Stephen R. Covey, American leadership consultant and writer

Treating people with respect will gain one wide acceptance and improve the business

Tao Zhu Gong 500BC, Assistant to the Emperor of Yue, 2nd Business Principle

Leadership is not about being nice. it's about being right and being strong

Paul Keating 1944-, Australian statesman and Prime Minister in Time, January 9th, 1995

To the person who does not know where he wants to go there is no favorable wind

Lucius Annaeus Seneca 5BC-65AD, Roman tragedian, philosopher, and counselor to Nero

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

Marianne Williamson (A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of "A Course in Miracles", Harper Collins, 1992, Chapter 7, Section 3)

To do great things is difficult; but to command great things is more difficult

Friedrich Nietzsche 1844-1900, German philosopher

Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power

Abraham Lincoln 1809-1865, sixteenth American president

A leader is a dealer in hope

Napoléon Bonaparte 1769-1821, French General and Emperor