The 40 Best Leadership Quotes

Need a good quote for your team meeting or that social media post? We’ve got your back. We’ve assembled the best leadership quotes you’ll find. These are some of the most helpful and inspiring quotes from some of the world’s best.
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Great Leaders Think Outside the Box
“If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail.” – Abraham Maslow, Psychologist (1908-70)
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Sometimes the Intangible Things Count Most
“Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts.” – Albert Einstein, Theoretical physicist (1879-1955)
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Lead by Example
“Example is not the main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing.” – Albert Schweiter
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Great Leaders Focus on Others
“When I talk to managers, I get the feeling that they are important. When I talk to leaders, I get the feeling that I am important.” ― Alexander den Heijer
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Carnegie on Sharing the Load
“No man will make a great leader who wants to do it all himself or to get all the credit for doing it.” – Andrew Carnegie, Business Magnate and Philanthropist
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Good Followers Are Good Leaders
“He who cannot be a good follower cannot be a good leader.” – Aristotle
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Wise Words from Ben Franklin
“He that cannot obey, cannot command.” – Benjamin Franklin
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Don't Let Tradition Get in the Way
“You can’t allow tradition to get in the way of innovation. There’s a need to respect the past, but it’s a mistake to revere your past.“ – Bob Iger, Media executive & businessman
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Taking Action is the Key
“We Generate Fears While We Sit. We Overcome Them By Action.” – Dr. Henry Link
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Eisenhower on Leadership
“Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it.” – Dwight D. Eisenhower
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You Can't Force People to Follow You
“You do not lead by hitting people over the head. That’s assault, not leadership.” – Dwight Eisenhower
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Lead with Your Heart
“To handle yourself, use your head; to handle others, use your heart.” – Eleanor Roosevelt
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General MacArthur on Leadership
“Never give an order that can’t be obeyed.” – General Douglas MacArthur
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Don't Tell People How to do Things
“Don’t tell people how to do things, tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results.” – George Patton
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Be Different
“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” – Harold McAlindon
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The Importance of Confidence
“The man who has confidence in himself gains the confidence of others.” – Credit Unknown, Proverb
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Henry Ford on Finding Solutions
“Don’t find fault, find a remedy.” – Henry Ford, Founder of Ford Motor Company
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See Failure as an Opportunity
“Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.”- Henry Ford, Founder of Ford Motor Company
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Positive Thinking is Key
“Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you’re right.” – Henry Ford
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Take Action
“Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Wishing is not enough; we must do.” – Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe
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Leaders Know That Greatness is in Us
“The task of leadership is not to put greatness into humanity, but to elicit it, for the greatness is already there.” – John Buchan
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Maxwell on Motivation
“Leaders must be close enough to relate to others, but far enough ahead to motivate them.” – John C. Maxwell
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Kennedy on Learning
“Leadership and learning are indispensable to one another.” – John F. Kennedy
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John Quincy Adams on Being a Leader
“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.” – John Quincy Adams
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Tzu on Leadership
“To lead people, walk behind them.” – Lao Tzu
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Composure in Leadership
“Leadership has been defined as the ability to hide your panic from others.” – Lao Tzu
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There are Choices Leaders Must Make
“A man who wants to lead the orchestra must turn his back on the crowd.” – Max Lucado
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Leaders are Leaders Rain or Shine
“Anyone can hold the helm when the sea is calm.” – Publilus Syrus
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Leaders Set High Standards
“The quality of a leader is reflected in the standards they set for themselves.” – Ray Kroc
Need even more quotes for inspiration? Click here to troll our list of innovation quotes.
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Dream Big
“People who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.” – Rob Siltanen
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Inspire Others to Do Great Things
“The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one that gets the people to do the greatest things.” – Ronald Reagan
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Steve Jobs on Quality
“Be a yardstick of quality. Some people aren’t used to an environment where excellence is expected.” – Steve Jobs
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Passion Pulls You
“If you are working on something that you really care about, you don’t have to be pushed. The vision pulls you.” – Steve Jobs
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Tony Blair on Saying No
“The art of leadership is saying no, not yes. It is very easy to say yes.” – Tony Blair
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Good Leaders are a Rare Breed
“An army of a thousand is easy to find, but, ah, how difficult to find a general.” – Chinese Proverb
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No More Talk
“The way get started is to quit talking and begin doing.” – Walt Disney
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Moving Forward
“Don’t let yesterday take up too much of today.” – Will Rogers, American actor, cowboy, columnist and social commentator
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Churchill on Optimism
“The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees opportunity in every difficulty.” – Winston Churchill
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Your Words Count
“When you replace ‘lose’ with ‘learn’ in your vocabulary, the thought of failure becomes less daunting and lets you focus on growth.” – Unknown
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