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Leadership Quotes

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Leadership Quotes

“The leaders we revere and the businesses that last are generally not the result of a narrow pursuit of popularity or personal advancement, but of devotion to some bigger purpose. That's the hallmark of real success. The other trapping of success might be the by product of this larger mission, but it can't be the central thing.”

RealMightMotivationalLastsSuccessPurposeLeadershipResultsLeaderProductsBiggerMissionsPursuitDevotionPopularityAdvancementHallmarkReal Success
Author:Barack Obama
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“Leadership is creating a state of mind in others. The difference between being a leader and manager, all due respect to managers, is that leaders have to create states of mind. But a leader, first of all, has to have a clear state of mind, which is usually her own vision, which energizes her, motivates others, and then creates that state of mind in others.”

MindFirstsStatesLeadershipDifferencesLeaderVisionClearCreatingDuesManagersState Of MindBeing A Leader
Author:Barbara Mikulski
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“the point of educating instead of blaming seems to me very important. For nothing stultifies one more than being blamed. Moreover, if the question is, who is to blame?, perhaps each will want to place the blame on someone else, or on the other hand, someone may try to shield his fellow-worker. In either case the attempt is to hide the error and if this is done the error cannot be corrected.”

IfsWantTryingMayImportantDoneHandsSeemsLeadershipCasesFellowsBlameErrorsWorkersShieldsFellow Workers
Book:Mary Parker Follett--prophet of management: a celebration of writings from the 1920s
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“The ablest administrators do not merely draw logical conclusions from the array of facts of the past which their expert assistants bring to them, they have a vision of the future.”

FactsPastLeadershipVisionDrawsConclusionExpertsLogicalAssistantsAdministratorsVisions Of The Future
Book:Mary Parker Follett--prophet of management: a celebration of writings from the 1920s
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“Leader and followers are both following the invisible leader - the common purpose. The best executives put this common purpose clearly before their group. While leadership depends on depth of conviction and the power coming therefrom there must also be the ability to share that conviction with others, the ability to make purpose articulate. And then that common purpose becomes the leader.”

PurposeLeadershipAbilityCommonLeaderGroupsShareDependsDepthFollowingConvictionInvisibleExecutivesFollowersCommon Purpose
Book:Freedom and Co-ordination (RLE: Organizations): Lectures in Business Organization
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“We often tend to think that the executive wishes to maintain standard, wishes to reach a certain quality of production, and that the worker has to be goaded in some way to do this. Again and again we forget that the worker is often, usually I think, equally interested, that his greatest pleasure in his work comes from the satisfaction of worthwhile accomplishment, of having done the best of which he was capable.”

ThinkingWayDoneCertainWishLeadershipForgetPleasureQualityCapableStandardsWorkersSatisfactionProductionsAccomplishmentExecutivesWorthwhileAgain And AgainGreatest Pleasures
Author:Mary Parker Follett
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“many rules could be made for the giving of orders. Don't preach when you give orders. Don't discuss matters already settled unless you have fresh data. Make your direction so specific that there will be no question whether they have been obeyed or not. Find out how to give directions and yet to allow people opportunity for independent thinking, for initiative. And so on and so on. Order-giving requires just as much study and just as much training as any other skill we wish to acquire.”

PeopleThinkingGivingHas BeensMadeMatterOrderOpportunityWishLeadershipStudySkillsTrainingIndependentManagementDataAcquireInitiativeIndependent Thinking
Author:Mary Parker Follett
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“An order then should always be given not as a personal matter, not because the man giving it wants the thing done, but because it is the demand of the situation. And an order of this kind carries weight because it is the demand of the situation.”

MenWantGivingShouldKindMatterDoneOrderGivenLeadershipSituationHe ManDemandWeightManagementCarrieThings DonePersonal Matter
Book:Freedom and Co-ordination (RLE: Organizations): Lectures in Business Organization
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“The foreman today does not merely deal with trouble, he forestalls trouble. In fact, we don't think much of a foreman who is always dealing with trouble; we feel that if he is doing his job properly, there won't be so much trouble.”

IfsThinkingFeelsDoeFactsTodayJobsLeadershipDealsTrouble
Book:Freedom and Co-ordination (RLE: Organizations): Lectures in Business Organization
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“the leader releases energy, unites energies, and all with the object not only of carrying out a purpose, but of creating further and larger purposes. And I do not mean here by larger purposes mergers or more branches; I speak of larger in the qualitative rather than the quantitative sense. I mean purposes which will include more of those fundamental values for which most of us agree we are really living.”

MeanPurposeValuesEnergySpeakLeadershipLeaderObjectsCreatingAgreeFundamentalsReleaseBranchesMergersQualitativeReally Living
Book:Dynamic administration: the collected papers of Mary Parker Follett
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“Our first responsibility as a leader is to create an attractive dream, to proclaim a destination, communicating it in detail to others who might be interested in joining our expedition.”

FirstsDreamMightLeadershipResponsibilityLeaderDetailsCommunicateAttractiveDestinationJoiningExpeditions
Book:Our Children Are Watching: Ten Skills for Leading the Next Generation to Success
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“in most important ways, leaders of the future will need the traits and capabilities of leaders throughout history: an eye for change and a steadying hand to provide both vision and reassurance that change can be mastered, a voice that articulates the will of the group and shapes it to constructive ends, and an ability to inspire by force of personality while making others feel empowered to increase and use their own abilities.”

WayNeedsFeelsImportantEndsUseHandsEyeForceVoiceLeadershipAbilityLeaderVisionGroupsInspirePersonalityShapesIncreaseCapabilityTraitsEmpoweredConstructiveReassurance
Author:Rosabeth Moss Kanter
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“Recognizing the good, not just in one's own personal circumstances, but in the world, makes anything possible. When I am asked about the important characteristics of leadership, being of good, positive mind is at the top of my list. If a leader can focus on the meritorious characteristics of other people and try to play to their strengths as well as find value in even the most difficult situation, she can inspire hope and faith in others and motivate them to move forward.”

PeopleIfsWorldTryingMindWellsImportantPlayMovingValuesDifficultLeadershipSituationLeaderFocusInspireCircumstancesListsMoving ForwardCharacteristicsRecognizingHope And FaithDifficult SituationsPositive MindGood Positive
Author:Wilma Mankiller
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“Sometimes I'll trust my gut more than my head. Logical information might lead me in one direction and my feelings in another. Whereas I would have followed my head ten years ago, now I'm as likely or more likely to go with my gut feeling. It's ironic - you'd think the opposite would be true as you move to the top but it's not.”

ThinkingYearsSometimesFeelingsMightWould BeMovingLeadershipInformationTenYears AgoOppositesIntuitionBeing TrueGutsLogicalIronicLeading MeOne DirectionGut Feelings
Author:Donna Shalala
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“Successful leaders develop effective strategies for maintaining their boundaries. ... Most time bandits don't know any better. And being a time bandit is a matter of context. One person's time bandit is another person's pleasant diversion. ... Instead of gritting our teeth to be polite and resenting the time bandit for holding us up, the best choice is to be honest. We cannot expect another person to honor our needs unless we affirm them ourselves.”

KnowsNeedsPersonsMatterTimeChoicesLeadershipLeaderSuccessfulHonestHonorStrategyBoundariesTeethBeing HonestPleasantPoliteMaintainingDiversionOf ContextBanditsSuccessful Leaders
Author:Diane Dreher
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“An effective leader is willing to think about what's happening and how to understand what's going on. Facilitating flow and making others more conscious of it, the leader communicates an awareness of process to the group, making them more aware of their energies and options. One important principle is to keep track of who has not spoken. ... It's also important to notice when people do speak out but are not heard. Effective leaders practice patience, reminding themselves to wait and observe, remembering that there's always more going on in a group than we're consciously aware of.”

PeopleThinkingImportantRememberEnergySpeakWaitingProcessLeadershipLeaderPrinciplesPracticeHeardGroupsAwarenessWillingHappeningsConsciousFlowTrackCommunicateRemindingSpeaks Out
Author:Diane Dreher
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“In Business School they taught us about cash flow, not about corporate politics; about return on equity, not about egos and pride. Oh, there were optional courses on 'Organizational Behavior' and 'Managerial Skills,' but these were a little too bloodless to convey what I learned on the job.”

LittlesSchoolJobsCoursesLeadershipBusinessTaughtPrideReturnSkillsEgoBehaviorFlowManagementCorporateCashEquityTaught UsOrganizationalOptionalCash FlowBusiness SchoolEgo And Pride
Book:Powerplay: what really happened at Bendix
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“Women lead in ways different from men's. Men, I think, have been programmed to give orders. Women have been programmed to motivate people, to educate them, to bring out the best in them. Ours is a less authoritarian leadership. I think women tend to play hardball less often. This is the trend of office politics anyway: the days of warring factions are over. We're talking now in terms of cooperation, and I think that is the game women play best.”

PeopleThinkingMenWayGivingHas BeensDifferentPlayOrderGamesTermLeadershipTalkingOfficeTrendsCooperationEducateFactionsLead In
Author:Muriel Fox
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“A good leader has a plan that consists of changing simple pictures. Just because a group of people has a bunch of boards, hammers, and nails does not mean that they are building a house or even anything recognizable. Sometimes leaders think they are doing their job just because there is a lot of hammering going on. As a society we like the sound of hammering, but we are uncomfortable with the sound of thinking, which is silence.”

PeopleThinkingMeanDoeSometimesJobsHouseSoundLeadershipSimpleSilenceLeaderPlansGroupsBuildingBunchUncomfortableBoardsNailsHammersGood Leader
Book:Jesus, CEO: using ancient wisdom for visionary leadership
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“Belief in oneself is a crucial quality of leadership, because 'a house divided against itself cannot stand.' A leader who fluctuates back and forth sends a very wavery signal. Like the soprano who can shatter glass by finding that high note and holding it, a leader who can hold that high note, without wavering, can shatter walls.”

HouseBeliefLeadershipQualityLeaderWallFindingsNotesGlassesOneselfDividedCrucialSignalsBack And ForthSopranosWaveringHigh NotesHouse Divided
Book:Jesus, CEO: using ancient wisdom for visionary leadership
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“Leadership is the name that people use to make sense out of complex events and the outcomes of events they otherwise would not be able to explain. In other words, people attribute leadership to certain individuals who are called leaders because people want to believe that leaders cause things to happen rather than have to explain causality by understanding complex social forces or analyzing the dynamic interaction among people, events, and environment.”

PeopleWantBelieveUseHappensAbleCertainNamesIndividualForceSocialCausesUnderstandingLeadershipLeaderEnvironmentEventsComplexesMake SenseOutcomesAttributesInteractionAnalyzingCausality
Author:Joseph C. Rost
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“Start by doing what's necessary; then do what's possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.”

InspirationalHumorMotivationalTimeCommunityLeadershipWorkImpossibleSocietyStrengthPossibilityPositiveHard WorkDepressionAchievementSaintProductivityProductiveTime ManagementGood WorkNew BeginningsNot Giving UpImpossibilityStarting OverDoing GoodDon't Give UpWork HarderDoing YouWork DoneImpossible ThingsHard Work Pays OffNew Year New BeginningNew PossibilitiesInspirational GoalNew StartNew Year New StartWork To Be DonePossible And ImpossibleMotivational JobInspirational New BeginningNew Day New BeginningEndings Being New BeginningsEnergizingNew Life New BeginningInspirational AchievementInspired To WorkOvercoming DepressionHard Work MotivationalMotivational AchievementInspirational Hard WorkMotivation And Hard WorkTake Nothing For GrantedStarting A New BeginningProductive LifeFranciscansNew Beginning LifePeople With DepressionFamous Hard WorkingOffice WorkHelp With DepressionDepression InspirationalProductive WorkClinical DepressionGreat Beginnings
Author:Francis of Assisi
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