Leadership is first about always improving and growing yourself -- so that you can actually lead effectively. Quotes on leadership from other great leaders are therefore worth consideration. Here we have assembled over 300 meaningful quotes for you to ponder as you hone and refine your leadership skills. Enjoy!
The task of leadership is not to put greatness into humanity, but to elicit it, for the greatness is already there.
The highest of distinctions is service to others.
When the best leader's work is done the people say, 'We did it ourselves.'
If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.
Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.
Leadership is a mindset in action. So don't wait for the title. Leadership isn't something that anyone can give you -- you have to earn it and claim it for yourself.
Leadership should be more participative than directive, more enabling than performing.
The only prerequisites to leadership are that you remain positive, calm, and open-minded.
The best form of saying is being.
Leadership is action, not position.
One secret of leadership is that the mind of a leader never turns off. Leaders even when they are sightseers or spectators, are active; not passive observers.
The art of communication is the language of leadership.
The best boss is the one who bosses the least.
Always remember, Son, the best boss is the one who bosses the least. Whether it's cattle, or horses, or men; the least government is the best government.
The journey of leadership begins outside your comfort zone.
The fastest surging woman leadership position is heading non-profit organizations. Women are not rejecting leadership positions -- they're rejecting politics.
Leadership is not a position but an energy that people love, trust and follow.
Leadership is fixing your eyes not just on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
Leadership is igniting the creative magic within you that adds joy and value to you and others.
You can't move up in the staircase of leadership unless you are emotionally intelligent.
Leadership grows like tall trees. It needs both toughness and flexibility -- toughness for accountability -- flexibility to adapt changes with a compassionate and caring heart for self and others.
Uncertainty is not an indication of poor leadership; it underscores the need for leadership.
Leadership is all about taking people on a journey. The challenge is that most of the time, we are asking people to follow us to places we ourselves have never been.
Uncertainty is a permanent part of the leadership landscape. It never goes away.
And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.
Some people feel, you make your case, if they listen to you, fine, if they don't, that's it. That's not what leadership is. Leadership is trying to continue to make a case.
There are many elements to a campaign. Leadership is number one. Everything else is number two.
Leadership is unlocking people's potential to become better.
True leadership lies in guiding others to success. In ensuring that everyone is performing at their best, doing the work they are pledged to do and doing it well.
Leadership consists of picking good men and helping them do their best.
An army of a thousand is easy to find, but, ah, how difficult to find a general.
True leadership is servanthood. Put the interests of others at the center of your decisions.
Think little goals and expect little achievements. Think big goals and win big success.
A lion never roars after a kill.
The most important thing in good leadership is truly caring.
Be an example, be positive, be enthusiastic, be proactive -- that is proactive leadership.
A leader, you see, is one of the things that distinguishes a mob from a people.
Leadership is practiced not so much in words as in attitude and in actions.
The growth and development of people is the highest calling of leadership.
Leaders are not known by their positions; they are known by their roles in those position. You have many gifts as a leader, but your dominant gift is what you will use to lead.
You cannot climb up to a true leadership position unless you use the ladder of integrity!
True leaders do not make choices with reference to the opinion of the majority. They make choices based on the opinion of the truth and the truth can come from either the majority or the minority!
Leadership is an opportunity to serve. It is not a trumpet call to self-importance.
A leader should have higher grit and tenacity, and be able to endure what the employees can't.
Find the right people, not the best people.
There are no office hours for leaders.
Leadership has a harder job to do than just choose sides. It must bring sides together.
Time is neutral and does not change things. With courage and initiative, leaders change things.
I never thought in terms of being a leader. I thought very simply in terms of helping people.
A leader is one who, out of madness or goodness, volunteers to take upon himself the woe of the people. There are few men so foolish, hence the erratic quality of leadership in the world.
If becoming a high performing organization is the destination, leadership is the engine.
The key to successful leadership is influence, not authority.
Lead, follow, or get out of the way.
I forgot to shake hands and be friendly. It was an important lesson about leadership.
What helps people, helps business.
Leadership is standing with your people. People say you have to live to fight another day, but sometimes you have to show you are a true leader.
The signs of outstanding leadership appear primarily among the followers.
Leadership is much more an art, a belief, a condition of the heart, than a set of things to do.
If you do not look at things on a large scale, it will be difficult to master strategy.
When placed in command, take charge.
You learn far more from negative leadership than from positive leadership. Because you learn how not to do it. And, therefore, you learn how to do it.
Leaders always choose the harder right rather than the easier wrong.
You're only as good as the people you hire.
True leadership is caring about the people who don't care about things you care about.
The most serious failure of leadership is the failure to foresee.
A leadership culture is one where everyone thinks like an owner, a CEO or a managing director. It's one where everyone is entrepreneurial and proactive.
Leadership is a mindset that shifts from being a victim to creating results. Any one of us can demonstrate leadership in our work and within our lives.
Leadership is no longer about your position. It's now more about your passion for excellence and making a difference. You can lead without a title.
Leadership distilled down to 3 words: Make a difference.
Leaders are more powerful role models when they learn than when they teach.
Do more listening than talking; talk more about them than about you.
Leaders are limited by their vision rather than by their abilities.
One of the best ways to influence people is to make them feel important. Most people enjoy those rare moments when others make them feel important. It is one of the deepest human desires.
Leadership is working with goals and vision; management is working with objectives.
Leadership is about vision and responsibility, not power.
Longer Version:
Leadership is about vision and responsibility, not power. And I try to model that in all of my interactions.
Leadership, on the other hand, is about creating change you believe in.
True leadership stems from individuality that is honestly and sometimes imperfectly expressed… Leaders should strive for authenticity over perfection.
Be the leader you wish you had.
A boss has the title, a leader has the people.
The cost of leadership is self-interest.
Leadership is a way of thinking, a way of acting and, most importantly, a way of communicating.
Ability may get you to the top, but it takes character to keep you there.
Organizations exist to serve. Period. Leaders live to serve. Period.
Management is about arranging and telling. Leadership is about nurturing and enhancing.
The art of leadership is saying no, not saying yes. It is very easy to say yes.
The best leaders are servant leaders -- they serve those they lead.
The manager has a short-range view; the leader has a long-range perspective.
Leaders must encourage their organizations to dance to forms of music yet to be heard.
Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality.
Education is the mother of leadership.
Get the best people and train them well.
Leadership -- leadership is about taking responsibility, not making excuses.
Constant, gentle pressure is my preferred technique for leadership, guidance, and coaching.
Empowerment isn't a buzzword among leadership gurus. It's a proven technique where leaders give their teams the appropriate training, tools, resources, and guidance to succeed.
Good leadership is about the company's success, not your own.
Effective leadership is about earning respect, and it's also about personality and charisma.
Leadership demands that we make tough choices.
Leadership requires the courage to make decisions that will benefit the next generation.
