Wondering how to get out of a rut and inspire your organization to be great? These are quotes from successful leaders in many fields. They range from poets and proverbs to writers and warriors. There’s something here for everyone, no matter what your style.

 

 

1. “Our chief want is someone who will inspire us to be what we know we could be.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

 

2. “As a leader, you’re probably not doing a good job unless your employees can do a good impression of you when you are not around.” Patrick Lencioni

 

3. “You don’t drown by falling in the water; you drown by staying there.” Edwin Louis Cole

 

4. “Better leaders create a story that inspires people. They do so by keeping things simple, expressing their most important core value, clarifying boundaries of responsibility and staying consistent.” Bruce Avollo and Fred Luthans

 

5. “Wisdom is the reward you get for a lifetime of listening when you’d have preferred to talk.” Doug Larson

 

6. “Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity.” George S. Patton

 

7. “Character consists of what you do on the third and fourth tries.” James A. Michener

 

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

 

9. “A genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus.”
   Martin Luther King, Jr.

 

10. “The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity.” Emelia Earhart

 

11. “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

 

12. “Not the cry, but the flight of a wild duck, leads the flock to fly and follow.” Chinese Proverb

 

13. “Great leaders are almost always great simplifiers, who can cut through argument, debate, and doubt to offer a solution everybody can understand.” General Colin Powell

 

14. “You don’t lead by hitting people over the head—that’s assault, not leadership.” Dwight Eisenhower

 

15. “If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up the people to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.”Antoine de Saint-Exupery

 

16. “We’re here for a reason. I believe a bit of the reason is to throw little torches out to lead people through the dark.” Whoopi Goldberg

 

17. “I don’t look to jump over 7-foot bars; I look around for 1-foot bars that I can step over.” Warren Buffet

What are your favorite quotes? Are they your private pleasure or do you post them to encourage your colleagues? Please share them with us.

And if you found these quotes got you thinking, please share the link with your staff.