Sometimes it’s difficult to remain inspired, especially in stressful leadership situations. While it’s expected of you to encourage your employees to keep moving forward—as is expected of your position—who’s the one meant to keep you moving forward and inspired to do your job? Unfortunately, the person you can most rely on is often yourself, which means finding ways to keep yourself motivated to do your work. Maybe meditation will re-energize you for the task ahead, or going for a walk around the block.
Perhaps all you need are some encouraging words to help you out. Thankfully, there’s no shortage of leadership quotes in the world that can help you find your mojo again. You can take these and put it on post-it notes around your work station, or just have a list nearby to glance at before moving on. Here are some of those quotes to (hopefully) help you be the best leader you can be.
- 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
- The first responsibility of a leader is to define reality. The last is to say thank you. In between, the leader is a servant. — Max DePree
- Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others. — Jack Welch
- A leader is a dealer in hope. — Napoleon Bonaparte
- Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, concerned citizens can change the world. Indeed it is the only thing that ever has. — Margaret Mead
- He who has never learned to obey cannot be a good commander. — Aristotle
- You don’t lead by pointing and telling people some place to go. You lead by going to that place and making a case. — Ken Kesey
- The very essence of leadership is that you have to have a vision. It’s got to be a vision you articulate clearly and forcefully on every occasion. You can’t blow an uncertain trumpet. — Reverend Theodore Hesburgh
- 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
- Do what you feel in your heart to be right–for you’ll be criticized anyway. — Eleanor Roosevelt
- 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
- What you do has a far greater impact than what you say. — Stephen Covey