Welcome to our collection of inspirational quotes from leaders around the world. Throughout history, leaders from various fields have shared their wisdom, offering insights into leadership, motivation, and success. These quotes encapsulate the essence of effective leadership, guiding principles that have shaped nations, organizations, and individuals alike.
From political figures to business moguls, from spiritual leaders to social activists, the voices of these influential individuals resonate with timeless truths and profound wisdom. Their words have the power to inspire, motivate, and provoke thought, serving as beacons of guidance in both turbulent times and moments of triumph. Whether you seek guidance in your personal life or professional endeavors, these quotes offer invaluable perspectives on leadership and the pursuit of excellence.
Below, you’ll find a curated selection of quotes from leaders across different domains. Feel free to explore, reflect upon, and share these quotes as you see fit. Whether you’re seeking inspiration for a project, a speech, or simply a daily dose of motivation, let the words of these leaders ignite your passion and drive for success.
It is our experience that political leaders do not always mean the opposite of what they say. Abba Eban
Sports build good habits, confidence, and discipline. They make players into community leaders and teach them how to strive for a goal, handle mistakes, and cherish growth opportunities. Julie Foudy
The topic of leadership is a touchy one. A lot of leaders fail because they don’t have the bravery to touch that nerve or strike that chord. Throughout my years, I haven’t had that fear. Kobe Bryant
If one has the answers to all the questions – that is the proof that God is not with him. It means that he is a false prophet using religion for himself. The great leaders of the people of God, like Moses, have always left room for doubt. You must leave room for the Lord, not for our certainties; we must be humble. Pope Francis
Leaders have to act more quickly today. The pressure comes much faster. Andy Grove
The ones who are the smartest are the ones who use us. In other words, they understand the relationship between the press and leaders. Connie Chung
Leaders grasp nettles. David Ogilvy
I am humbled and excited by new opportunities for me to support and share the amazing work NASA is doing to help us travel farther into the solar system and work with the next generation of science and technology leaders. Scott Kelly
Too many leaders act as if the sheep… their people… are there for the benefit of the shepherd, not that the shepherd has responsibility for the sheep. Ken Blanchard
As leaders, it is incumbent on all of us to make sure we are building a world in which every individual has an opportunity to thrive. Understanding what AI can do and how it fits into your strategy is the beginning, not the end, of that process. Andrew Ng
As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others. Bill Gates
We are domesticated animals, revolving in a cage which we have built for ourselves – with its contentions, wranglings, its impossible political leaders, its gurus who exploit our self-conceit and their own with great refinement or rather crudely. Jiddu Krishnamurti
Oh, sure, we have another world war coming, and another great depression, but where are the leaders this time? Kurt Vonnegut
In the world today, we humans have become more self-absorbed, more tribal and tenacious in holding on to our narrow agendas; we have become consumed by the barrage of information inundating us; we are even more fickle when it comes to leaders. Robert Greene
Privacy is dead. We live in a world of instantaneous, globalised gossip. The idea that there is a ‘private’ sphere and a ‘public’ sphere for world leaders, politicians or anyone in the public eye is slowly disintegrating. The death of privacy will have a profound effect on who our leaders will be in the future. Gavin Esler
After two years working with bitcoin and blockchain companies and corporate leaders, we identified that a significant issue hindering the widespread, global adoption of blockchain is the inability to quickly connect with the right combination of partners for testing and deployment of the technology to address real-world business challenges. Meltem Demirors
Inspirational leaders need to have a winning mentality in order to inspire respect. It is hard to trust in the leadership of someone who is half-hearted about their purpose, or only sporadic in focus or enthusiasm. Sebastian Coe
Everywhere I go I find that people… both leaders and individuals… are asking one basic question, ‘Is there any hope for the future?’ My answer is the same, ‘Yes, through Jesus Christ.’ Billy Graham
The Talented Tenth of the Negro race must be made leaders of thought and missionaries of culture among their people. W. E. B. Du Bois
People who add value to others do so intentionally. I say that because to add value, leaders must give of themselves, and that rarely occurs by accident. John C. Maxwell
On the day I became Soviet leader, in March 1985, I had a special meeting with the leaders of the Warsaw Pact countries and told them: ‘You are independent, and we are independent. You are responsible for your policies, we are responsible for ours. We will not intervene in your affairs, I promise you.’ Mikhail Gorbachev
Transparency, accountability and sustainability have become the slogans of the market leaders. Companies carry out environmental and social audits to court the consumer, and even the bluest chips woo organisations such as Greenpeace and Amnesty. Noreena Hertz
When you’re one of the leaders of the team, there are no days off. Tom Brady
Good leaders, good team players, know how to make the most of everything. Jalen Brunson
Blind faith in your leaders, or in anything, will get you killed. Bruce Springsteen
Peace with the Palestinians will open ports of peace all around the Mediterranean. The duty of leaders is to pursue freedom ceaselessly, even in the face of hostility, in the face of doubt and disappointment. Just imagine what could be. Shimon Peres
The most dangerous leadership myth is that leaders are born-that there is a genetic factor to leadership. This myth asserts that people simply either have certain charismatic qualities or not. That’s nonsense; in fact, the opposite is true. Leaders are made rather than born. Warren Bennis
We don’t go into journalism to be popular. It is our job to seek the truth and put constant pressure on our leaders until we get answers. Helen Thomas
I think a number of the leaders are, whether you like it or not, in the hip-hop generation. And when they understand enough, they’ll do wonders. I count on them. Maya Angelou
Leaders are visionaries with a poorly developed sense of fear and no concept of the odds against them. Robert Jarvik
Rather than relying on farmers, ranchers, outdoorsmen, lumberjacks, surveyors, oil workers, miners, or community leaders who have decades of land use experience, government policymakers turn to 25-year-olds with master’s degrees in ecology and political science to run the country’s public lands policy. Lauren Boebert
In Iroquois society, leaders are encouraged to remember seven generations in the past and consider seven generations in the future when making decisions that affect the people. Wilma Mankiller
Leaders must be close enough to relate to others, but far enough ahead to motivate them. John C. Maxwell
Leaders must exemplify integrity and earn the trust of their teams through their everyday actions. When you do this, you set high standards for everyone at your company. And when you do so with positive energy and enthusiasm for shared goals and purpose, you can deeply connect with your team and customers. Marillyn Hewson
It is impossible to preserve my friendship with people who are allegedly leaders when they are attacking their own people, shooting at them, using tanks and other forms of heavy weaponry. Recep Tayyip Erdogan
The function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers. Ralph Nader
Xi Jinping is one of the strongest and most capable revolutionary leaders I have met in my life. Fidel Castro
It’s time for political leaders across the ideological spectrum to realize that, while partisanship is understandable, hyper-partisanship is destructive to our country. We need more visionary leaders who will earnestly strive for bipartisanship and finding policy solutions that can move America forward. Martin Luther King III
Great leaders are willing to sacrifice the numbers to save the people. Poor leaders sacrifice the people to save the numbers. Simon Sinek
You become a leader in times of trouble. Leaders emerge when things don’t go well. When everyone else starts pointing fingers, a leader takes responsibility. Steve Young
For years, European leaders have pointed out that Europe is an economic giant, but a military pygmy. Lord Robertson
Most people don’t like change. They revolt against it unless they can clearly see the advantage it brings. For that reason, when good leaders prepare to take action or make changes, they take people through a process to get them ready for it. John C. Maxwell
Outstanding leaders go out of their way to boost the self-esteem of their personnel. If people believe in themselves, it’s amazing what they can accomplish. Sam Walton
We shall never change our political leaders until we change the people who elect them. Mark Skousen
Leaders don’t look backwards to condemn what has already been done; they look forward to create a better future. Mark Cuban
True leaders don’t invest in buildings. Jesus never built a building. They invest in people. Why? Because success without a successor is failure. So your legacy should not be in buildings, programs, or projects; your legacy must be in people. Myles Munroe
Americans… still believe in an America where anything’s possible – they just don’t think their leaders do. Barack Obama
Men make history and not the other way around. In periods where there is no leadership, society stands still. Progress occurs when courageous, skillful leaders seize the opportunity to change things for the better. Harry S Truman
All the ills of mankind, all the tragic misfortunes that fill the history books, all the political blunders, all the failures of the great leaders have arisen merely from a lack of skill at dancing. Moliere
All of the great leaders have had one characteristic in common: it was the willingness to confront unequivocally the major anxiety of their people in their time. This, and not much else, is the essence of leadership. John Kenneth Galbraith
Leaders establish the vision for the future and set the strategy for getting there. John P. Kotter
When bosses, leaders, and powerful men and women ignore or deny the accounts of harassment victims, they reinforce the idea that harassers are playing the game as they should and that the rest of us should fall in line. Pramila Jayapal
The Civil Rights Movement, it wasn’t just a couple of, you know, superstars like Martin Luther King. It was thousands and thousands – millions, I should say – of people taking risks, becoming leaders in their community. Barbara Ehrenreich
Good leaders must first become good servants. Robert K. Greenleaf
In countries where innocent people are dying, the leaders are following their blood rather than their brains. Nelson Mandela
If an organization values innovation, you can assume it’s safe to speak up with new ideas, leaders will listen, and your voice matters. Adam Grant
I think that ego-driven leaders will be a thing of the past because the masses are tired. Louis Farrakhan
Wise leaders generally have wise counselors because it takes a wise person themselves to distinguish them. Diogenes
If I made a commitment, I stood by that commitment – and try to make it real. Because when you become leaders, the most important thing you have is your word, your trust. That’s where respect comes from. Michelle Obama
The political process does not end on Election Day. Young people need to stay involved in the process by continuing to pay attention to the conversation and holding their leaders accountable for the decisions they make. Patrick Murphy
Leaders are people who do the right thing; managers are people who do things right. Warren Bennis
Successful leaders surround themselves with intelligent people. Richard Ojeda
Good business leaders create a vision, articulate the vision, passionately own the vision, and relentlessly drive it to completion. Jack Welch
I come from a long line of strong and confident women out of New Orleans. My grandmother and great-grandmother were women who ran their homes and were leaders in their communities. I was never taught that there was anything that I couldn’t do, and I believed that. Stephanie Allain
We’re the leaders. Look around. Everything we do, we’re gonna see everyone else try to do it. King Von
Most experts and great leaders agree that leaders are made, not born, and that they are made through their own drive for learning and self-improvement. Carol S. Dweck
A lot of people, when a guy scores a lot of goals, think, ‘He’s a great player’, because a goal is very important, but a great player is a player who can do everything on the field. He can do assists, encourage his colleagues, give them confidence to go forward. It is someone who, when a team does not do well, becomes one of the leaders. Pele
We women in Somalia are trying to be leaders in our community. Hawa Abdi
Few things kill likeability as quickly as arrogance. Likable leaders don’t act as though they’re better than you because they don’t think that they’re better than you. Rather than being a source of prestige, they see their leadership position as bringing them additional accountability for serving those who follow them. Travis Bradberry
Time is neutral and does not change things. With courage and initiative, leaders change things. Jesse Jackson
Authenticity is the alignment of head, mouth, heart, and feet – thinking, saying, feeling, and doing the same thing – consistently. This builds trust, and followers love leaders they can trust. Lance Secretan
If our political leaders are to be always a lot of political merchants, they will supply any demand we may create. All we have to do is to establish a steady demand for good government. Lincoln Steffens
It doesn’t take a majority to make a rebellion; it takes only a few determined leaders and a sound cause. H. L. Mencken
If you want to be a great leader, remember to treat all people with respect at all times. For one, because you never know when you’ll need their help. And two, because it’s a sign you respect people, which all great leaders do. Simon Sinek
Leaders who are kind of insecure or egocentric, they basically sabotage themselves. John C. Maxwell
Strong people don’t need strong leaders. Ella Baker
Research shows that when women are empowered as political leaders, countries often experience higher standards of living with positive developments in education, infrastructure, and health care. Miriam Defensor-Santiago
Community begins in mystery and ends in administration. Leaders move away from people and into paper. Jean Vanier
The great leaders are like the best conductors – they reach beyond the notes to reach the magic in the players. Blaine Lee
I think weak leaders start pointing fingers when times get tough. Jason Kelce
Most climate debates have focused on cutting the use of fossil fuels. But besides a few high-profile scuffles over fuel extraction in vulnerable wild places like the offshore Arctic, political leaders have ignored fossil fuel production as a necessary piece of climate strategy. Lydia Millet
As a businessperson, I don’t have the power to change the government. That is in the hands of the political leaders. However, as a taxpayer, we have the right to be critical of the government and demand change. Tadashi Yanai
Our ability to participate in government, to elect our leaders and to improve our lives is contingent upon our ability to access the ballot. We know in our heart of hearts that voting is a sacred right – the fount from which all other rights flow. Stacey Abrams
Many leaders are tempted to lead like a chess master, striving to control every move, when they should be leading like gardeners, creating and maintaining a viable ecosystem in which the organization operates. Stanley A. McChrystal
I think we are afraid to take up space. We are afraid to be amazing. As soon as that fear leaves us and we start building that confidence of being unapologetic about being great, then i think we can get into that space of having a lot of women leaders who are just fearless. Zozibini Tunzi
Leaders don’t create followers, they create more leaders. Tom Peters
We’re the only species who follow unstable leaders. This is true – it has little to do with America – around the world, pack leaders are unstable. Animals don’t follow that. Cesar Millan
A disruptive innovation is a technologically simple innovation in the form of a product, service, or business model that takes root in a tier of the market that is unattractive to the established leaders in an industry. Clayton M. Christensen
Without initiative, leaders are simply workers in leadership positions. Bo Bennett
Great companies in the way they work, start with great leaders. Steve Ballmer
Leaders are made, they are not born. They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile. Vince Lombardi
When the leaders choose to make themselves bidders at an auction of popularity, their talents, in the construction of the state, will be of no service. They will become flatterers instead of legislators; the instruments, not the guides, of the people. Edmund Burke
We should invade their countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity. We weren’t punctilious about locating and punishing only Hitler and his top officers. We carpet-bombed German cities; we killed civilians. That’s war. And this is war. Ann Coulter
In sports and in business, the greatest leaders are those who make the best decisions in the most crucial of situations. They are the ones who focus their energy on turning tough decisions into winning decisions. Don Yaeger
When leaders know how to lead great meetings, there’s less time wasted and less frustration. We have more energy to do the work that matters, realize our full potential, and do great things. Justin Rosenstein
Through mutual understanding, sincerity and goodwill, and with great wisdom and broad views, the leaders on both sides should jointly initiate new opportunities for peace, stability, cooperation and mutual benefit. Chen Shui-bian
Leaders come in many forms, with many styles and diverse qualities. There are quiet leaders and leaders one can hear in the next county. Some find strength in eloquence, some in judgment, some in courage. John W. Gardner
We do not know what lies ahead, yet whatever the challenge, leaders will rise, finding the heart, the language, the caring that embraces and sustains. Frances Hesselbein
A nation which has forgotten the quality of courage which in the past has been brought to public life is not as likely to insist upon or regard that quality in its chosen leaders today – and in fact we have forgotten. John F. Kennedy
I am somebody who believes that every political direction is valid, as with every religion. The basis of Christianity is perfect, just like the basis of Islam. But then the leaders change the direction, and lose the quality. Demis Roussos
