100 Powerful And Inspirational Leadership Quotes

There comes a time in every person's life when they are called to leadership. Of course, this is usually not something drastic, such as suddenly becoming President of the United States, but there are times in everyone's life when we must rise to the challenge and take responsibility.

Throughout history, there have been many charismatic and influential leaders who have passed on their words of wisdom through memorable leadership quotes to help others recognize their power and the responsibility that comes with it. Many people have changed their lives and the lives of those around them with the help of these leadership quotes.

From powerful change leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. to powerful names like Coco Chanel, these leadership quotes will make you feel unstoppable and feel like you can take on the world. Don't forget to add some of them to your vision board or place them in a place where you can always see them and remind yourself how strong you are!

100 Leadership Quotes

1 “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." — Eleanor Roosevelt

2 “You don't lead by pointing and pointing people where to go. You are in the lead by going to this place and making arguments.” — Ken Kesey

3 "All our dreams can come true – if we have the courage to make them come true." – Walt Disney

4 “If you have built castles in the air, your work must not be lost; that's where she should be. Now lay the foundation for them.” – Henry David Thoreau

5 “Many of life's failures are people who didn't realize how close they were to success when they gave up.” – Thomas Edison

6 "Be who you are and say how you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind." — Dr. Seuss

7 “The teacher influences eternity; he can never tell where his influence ends.” — Henry Adams

8 "If you knew how much work went into this, you wouldn't call it genius." – Michelangelo

9 “Leadership and learning are indispensable for each other.” — John F. Kennedy

10 “I never thought about being a leader. I thought very simply in terms of helping people.” — John Hume

11 “Don't follow the crowd, let the crowd follow you” – Margaret Thatcher

12 “The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one who makes people do the greatest things.” – Ronald Reagan

13 "Whenever you do something, act as if the whole world is watching you." — Thomas Jefferson

14 “Leaving your mark on the world is very difficult. If it were easy, everyone would do it. But it's not. It requires patience, determination and comes with many setbacks along the way.” – Barack Obama

15 "It doesn't matter how slowly you go, as long as you don't stop." – Confucius

16 "Be kind, because everyone you meet is fighting an uphill battle." – Plato

17 "My country is the world, and my religion is to do good." — Thomas Paine

18 "Almost all men can endure adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him strength." – Abraham Lincoln

19 “To stay relevant, you must establish yourself as a thought leader in your industry.” — Marc Benioff

20 “Leadership must be focused on expanding opportunities for all.” — Justin Trudeau

21 “The leader must have greater endurance and perseverance and be able to endure what the employees cannot.” — Jack Ma

22 “Our main purpose in this life is to help others. And if you can't help them, at least don't harm them." – Dalai Lama

23 "Power and wisdom are not opposite values." — Bill Clinton

24 “Don't wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person.” – Mother Teresa

25 "It's all about learning; you can do a lot if you're properly trained." – Queen Elizabeth II

26 “Forget the fast lane. If you really want to fly, just use your power for your passion.” – Oprah Winfrey

27 “Communicate deeply with other people. Our humanity is the only thing we all have in common.” — Melinda Gates

28 "Find the smartest people you can and surround yourself with them." — Marissa Meyer

29 “If you really want the key to success, start by doing the opposite of what everyone else is doing.” — Brad Sollose

30 “A good leader is a person who takes on a little more than his share of the blame and a little less than his share of the merit.” — John C. Maxwell

31 "Wise leaders usually have wise advisers, because it takes the wise man himself to distinguish them." – Diogenes

32 “Leaders walk a fine line between self-confidence and humility.” – Stanley McChrystal

33 "Leadership is much more of an art, a belief, a state of mind than a set of deeds." — Max De Pree.

34 “Average leaders raise the bar for themselves; good leaders raise the bar for others; great leaders inspire others to raise their own bar.” — Orrin Woodward

35 “Leadership is not just about giving energy… it releases the energy of other people.” — Paul Polman

36 “I start with the premise that the function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers.” — Ralph Nader

37 "Pity the leader caught between unloving critics and uncritical lovers." — John Gardner

38 "Through chance, circumstance, sheer grit or will, more leaders have been created than by all leadership courses put together." — Warren Bennis

39 "Ninety percent of leadership is the ability to get people what they want." – Diana Feinstein

40 “I am not afraid of an army of lions led by a sheep; I fear an army of sheep led by a lion.” – Alexander the Great

41 “Leadership must be more active than directive, more stimulating than effective.” – Mary D. Pool

42 “It is difficult to do great things; but commanding great things is even more difficult.” – Friedrich Nietzsche

43 "Being a leader means making the people you love hate you more every day." — Patrick Ness

44 "Leaders should not give moral weight to their ideas: do it and you can't compromise." — Peter F. Drucker

45 "A leader operating in enemy territory must always radiate positivity and optimism." – Naval Ravikant

46 “Leaders should encourage their organizations to dance to music yet to be heard.” — Warren Bennis

47 "The most effective way to do it is to do it." — Amelia Earhart

48 "It's hard to lead a cavalry charge if you think you look funny on a horse." — Adlai Stevenson

49 "A man always has two reasons for doing something: a good reason and a real reason." – J.P. Morgan

50 "Lead me, follow me, or get the hell out of my way." — George Patton

51 “In most cases, being a good boss means hiring talented people and then getting out of their way.” — Tina Fey

E-52 "People who like meetings don't have to answer for nothing." — Thomas Sowell

53 "Leaders don't force people to follow them – they invite them on a journey." – Charles S. Lauer

54 “A true leader is not one who seeks consensus, but one who forms consensus.” – Martin Luther King Jr.

55 “We're here for a reason. I suppose part of the reason is to throw little torches to guide people through the darkness.” — Whoopi Goldberg

56 "The job of a leader is to take his people from where they are to where they haven't been." — Henry Kissinger

57 "Leaders are people who believe so passionately that they can entice other people to share their dream." — Warren Bennis.

58 “Leadership requires faith in the mission and unyielding perseverance to achieve victory.” — Jocko Willink

59 “If you want to build a ship, don't make people gather wood, divide work, and issue orders. Instead, teach them to yearn for the boundless and boundless sea.” – Antoine de Saint-Exupery

60 “It's good to respect a leader. Learn from him. Watch him. Study it. But don't worship him. Believe that you can transcend. Believe that you can go beyond. Those with the second best attitude are consistently the second best performers.” — David J. Schwartz

61 “You can be a leader in your workplace, in your neighborhood, or in your family, all without a title.” – Travis Bradbury

62 “Great leaders are almost always great simplifiers who can overcome controversy, debate, and doubt to come up with a solution that everyone can understand.” — Colin Powell

63 “Make people feel like the hero of their journey and they will do more.” – Maxim Lagache

64 "When you step into positions of trust and power, dream a little before you think." — Toni Morrison

65 "Anyone can hold the helm when the sea is calm." – Publilius Sirus

66 "A winner is a dreamer who never gives up." — Nelson Mandela

67 "Success is often achieved by those who do not know that failure is inevitable." – Coco Chanel

68 “Earn your lead every day.” – Michael Jordan

69 “Leadership involves finding a parade and participating in it.” — John Naisbitt

70 “Today a reader, tomorrow a leader”. — Margaret Fuller

71 “Victims are justified. Leaders get things done.” — Robin Sharma

72 “Leadership reduced to 3 words: Make a difference”. — Robin Sharma

73 “The price of greatness is responsibility.” – Winston Churchill

74 "To lead the people, follow them." – Lao Tzu

75 “All leaders are readers”. — Jim Rohn

76 "Believe that you can, and you're halfway there." — Theodore Roosevelt

77 “Be prepared to be uncomfortable. Feel comfortable with feeling uncomfortable. It may not be easy, but it's a small price to pay to live the dream." — Peter McWilliams

78 "Everyone thinks about changing the world, but no one thinks about changing themselves." – Lev Tolstoy

79 “A leader is like a shepherd. He stays behind the herd, allowing the most agile to come forward, after which the rest follow him, not realizing that all this time they have been led from behind. — Nelson Mandela

80 "Your job is to discover your work, and then give yourself to it wholeheartedly." – Buddha

81 "The only way to do great work is to love what you do." – Steve Jobs

82 “I didn't fail. I just found 10,000 ways that won't work." — Thomas A. Edison

83 “To cope with yourself, use your head; to deal with others, use your heart.” — Eleanor Roosevelt

84 "I realized that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." — Maya Angelou

85 “Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” — Helen Keller

86 “Change won't happen if we wait for some other person, or if we wait for some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for so long. We are the change we strive for.” – Barack Obama

87 "The only safe ship in a storm is leadership." — Fay Wattleton

88 “Don't follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

89 "If I've seen further than others, it's because I've stood on the shoulder of giants." – Isaac Newton

90 "The leader is the merchant of hope." – Napoleon Bonaparte

91 “Leadership unlocks the potential of people to become better.” — Bill Bradley

92 "Leadership is like third grade: it means repeating important things." – Max De Pree

93 “Leadership is about making others better as a result of your presence and ensuring that that influence continues in your absence.” — Sheryl Sandberg

94 “Management does everything right. Leadership is doing the right thing.” — Peter F. Drucker

95 “Leadership is the art of giving people a platform to spread ideas that work.” — Seth Godin

96 “Becoming a leader is synonymous with becoming yourself. It's just so simple and at the same time so difficult." — Warren Bennis

97 “A leader leads people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don't necessarily want to go, but should be." — Rosalynn Carter

98 “If your actions create a legacy that inspires others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, then you are a great leader.” — Dolly Parton

99 “Don't waste your energy trying to enlighten or change opinions; go further, lower, further, and opinions will organically change when you become the boss. Or they won't. Who cares? Do your thing and don't care if they like it." — Tina Fey

100 "The mark of a great man is one who knows when to put aside the important things to do the vital things." — Brandon Sanderson