75 inspirational leadership quotes you haven’t heard yet
For something to inspire and support your work, take a look at these quotes from true leaders.
When you need a leadership quote (whether it’s for your personal mood board or an all-hands presentation), you want it to express something profound – to encapsulate a deeper truth that aligns with your message. And we can only get so much inspiration from Vince Lombardi.
Here are 75 fresh leadership quotes to inspire you, with nary a clichéd platitude in sight.
Leadership quotes about the essence of leadership
“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, ancient Chinese philosopher and writer
“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, former First Lady of the United States
“Instruction does much, but encouragement, everything.”
– Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, German poet, playwright, and novelist
“Leadership is not about a title or a designation. It’s about impact, influence, and inspiration.”
– Robin S. Sharma, leadership expert and author
“The function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers.”
– Ralph Nader, political activist and author
“The essence of leadership is essentially taking the responsibility of trying to interpret the future to the present.”
– Paul Keating, former Prime Minister of Australia
“A good leader inspires people to have confidence in the leader; a great leader inspires people to have confidence in themselves.”
– Eleanor Roosevelt, former First Lady of the United States
“A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.”
– John C. Maxwell, leadership author and speaker
“A man who wants to lead the orchestra must turn his back on the crowd.”
– Unknown
Leadership quotes about teamwork
“The strength of the team is each individual member. The strength of each member is the team.”
– Phil Jackson, former NBA coach
“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.”
– Helen Keller, author and activist
“When you hand good people possibility, they do great things.”
– Biz Stone, American entrepreneur
“Cooperation is the thorough conviction that nobody can get there unless everybody gets there.”
– Virginia Burden, author
“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”
– African proverb
“I can do things you cannot, you can do things I cannot; together we can do great things.”
– Mother Teresa, missionary and saint
“The way to achieve your own success is to be willing to help somebody else get it first.”
– Iyanla Vanzant, inspirational speaker and author
“None of us is as smart as all of us.”
– Ken Blanchard, author, business consultant, and motivational speaker
Leadership quotes about learning and growth
“Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.”
– John F. Kennedy, 35th President of the United States
“Every time you are tempted to react in the same old way, ask if you want to be a prisoner of the past or a pioneer of the future.”
– Deepak Chopra, alternative medicine advocate, public speaker, and author
“Success in management requires learning as fast as the world is changing.”
– Warren Bennis, author and leadership scholar
“The ability to learn is the most important quality a leader can have.”
– Sheryl Sandberg, Former COO of Meta
“If you are not willing to learn, no one can help you. If you are determined to learn, no one can stop you.”
– Zig Ziglar, author and motivational speaker
“Change is the end result of all true learning.”
– Leo Buscaglia, author and motivational speaker
“The expert in anything was once a beginner.”
– Helen Hayes, actress and first lady of American theatre
“The purpose of learning is growth, and our minds, unlike our bodies, can continue growing as we continue to live.”
– Mortimer Adler, philosopher and educator
Leadership quotes about resilience and perseverance
“You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.”
– Margaret Thatcher, former British Prime Minister
“The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”
– Nelson Mandela, former President of South Africa
“Resilience is accepting your new reality, even if it’s less good than the one you had before.”
– Elizabeth Edwards, American attorney and suthor
“You just can’t beat the person who never gives up.”
– Babe Ruth, American baseball player
“Resilience is knowing that you are the only one that has the power and the responsibility to pick yourself up.”
– Mary Holloway, author and speaker
“Do not judge me by my success, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.”
― Nelson Mandela, former President of South Africa
“It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer.”
― Albert Einstein, theoretical physicist
“Champions keep playing until they get it right.”
– Billie Jean King, American tennis player
Leadership quotes about humility
“True humility is not thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of yourself less.”
– Rick Warren, pastor and author
“Pride is concerned with who is right. Humility is concerned with what is right.”
— Ezra Taft Benson, government official and religious leader
“A great leader is one who serves others, not himself.”
– Harold S. Geneen, former CEO of ITT Corporation
“We come nearest to the great when we are great in humility.”
— Rabindranath Tagore, Indian polymath
“The greatest wisdom consists in knowing one’s own follies.”
– Madeleine de Souvré, French philosopher and writer
“There is no limit to what can be accomplished when no one cares who gets the credit.”
— John Wooden, basketball coach and author
“A great man is always willing to be little.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson, American essayist
Leadership quotes about leading by example
“Be the leader you wish you had.”
– Simon Sinek, author, speaker, and CEO of The Optimism Company
“The world is changed by your example, not by your opinion.”
– Paulo Coelho, Brazilian writer
“You don’t lead by hitting people over the head — that’s assault, not leadership.”
– Dwight D. Eisenhower, 34th President of the United States
“Example is not the main thing in influencing others, it is the only thing.”
– Albert Schweitzer, German and French polymath
“The growth and development of people is the highest calling of leadership.”
– Harvey S. Firestone, founder of Firestone Tire and Rubber Company
“As a leader, it’s a major responsibility on your shoulders to practice the behavior you want others to follow.”
– Himanshu Bhatia, founder and CEO of Rose International
“The most powerful leadership tool you have is your own personal example.”
– John Wooden, basketball coach and author
“What you do has far greater impact than what you say.”
– Stephen Covey, businessman, author, and speaker
Leadership quotes about listening
“Only if we understand will we care. Only if we care will we help. Only if we help will we all be saved.”
– Jane Goodall, primatologist
“The ear of the leader must ring with the voices of the people.”
– Woodrow Wilson, 28th President of the United States
“The best way to lead people into the future is to connect with them deeply in the present.”
– James M. Kouzes and Barry Posner, leadership scholars
“No man ever listened himself out of a job.”
– Calvin Coolidge, 30th President of the United States
“I think the one lesson I have learned is that there is no substitute for paying attention.”
– Diane Sawyer, television anchor
“Leaders who don’t listen will eventually be surrounded by people who have nothing to say.”
– Andy Stanley, leadership author and speaker
“The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn’t said.”
– Peter Drucker, management consultant and author
“Big egos have little ears.”
– Robert Schuller, American televangelist
“I remind myself every morning: Nothing I say this day will teach me anything. So if I’m going to learn, I must do it by listening.”
– Larry King, television host
Leadership quotes about adaptability
“You can’t change conditions. Just the way you deal with them.”
– Jessica Watson, sailor
“The art of life is a constant readjustment to our surroundings.”
– Kakuzō Okakura, Japanese scholar
“You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.”
– Maya Angelou, poet, memoirist, and civil rights activist
“The pessimist complains about the wind. The optimist expects it to change. The leader adjusts the sails.”
– John C. Maxwell, leadership author and speaker
“No plan survives first contact with the enemy.”
– Helmuth von Moltke the Elder, former chief of staff of the Prussian Army
“Anyone can hold the helm when the sea is calm.”
– Publilius Syrus, Latin writer
“Things are always changing. Part of being successful here is being comfortable with not knowing what’s going to happen.”
– Susan Wojkicki, American business leader
“We are stubborn on vision. We are flexible on details.”
– Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon
“If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading.”
– Lao Tzu, ancient Chinese philosopher and writer
“Wisdom requires a flexible mind.”
– Dan Carlin, podcaster and political commentator
Leadership quotes about focus
“The successful warrior is the average man, with laser-like focus.”
– Bruce Lee, martial artist, actor, and philosopher
“You can do anything, but not everything.”
– David Allen, productivity consultant
“The most effective way to do it is to do it.”
– Amelia Earhart, American aviation pioneer
“Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work in hand. The sun’s rays do not burn until brought to a focus.”
– Alexander Graham Bell, scientist and inventor of the telephone
“There are many things you can do overnight, but there is no overnight success.”
– Tory Burch, fashion designer and businesswoman
“The difference between successful people and really successful people is that really successful people say no to almost everything.”
– Warren Buffett, investor and philanthropist
“People respond well to those that are sure of what they want.”
– Anna Wintour, editor-in-chief of American Vogue
“When you have to make a choice and don’t make it, that is in itself a choice.”
– William James, American philosopher and psychologist
Special thanks to Kat Boogaard for her contributions to this article.