Quotes About Leadership

The Prime Minister's meaning was clear enough: the Fleet Train was the horse, and the fighting Fleet the cart. They must be kept in their proper order. As the size of the horse was fixed, it was pointless to plan an ambitious cart.

Talent will get you to the top, but it takes character to keep you there.

A coach's primary function should be not to make better players, but to make better people.

A strong leader accepts blame and gives the credit. A weak leader gives blame and accepts the credit.

I thought treating everyone the same was being fair and impartial. Gradually I began to suspect that it was neither fair nor impartial. In fact, it was just the opposite. That's when I began announcing that team members wouldn't be treated the same or alike; rather, each one would receive the treatment they earned and deserved.

Sposobnost može da te dovede na vrh al da bi opstao na vrhu, potreban ti je karakter.

Coach Wooden never mentioned winning. It was always, "Fellas, we've got to play to our best. Let's do that." That's a lot different from saying, "Fellas, we've got to win." A lot different.

The locker rooms were clean when we departed because I asked the players to pick up after themselves. I believe this is just common courtesy. Somebody's going to have to clean it up, and I see no reason why it shouldn't be the person who messed it up.

The best leaders are lifelong learners; they take measures to create organizations that foster and inspire learning throughout. The most effective leaders are those who realize it's what you learn after you know it all that counts most.

As a leader you must be sincerely committed to what's right rather than who's right.

A leader who is through learning is through.

The telephone operator and all others who may perform less "important" tasks will not feel important unless you, the leader, teach that them they are valued and explain how their contribution helps the company as a whole. Individuals who feel they don't matter will perform their jobs as if they don't count.

Before You Can Lead Others, You Must Be Able to Lead Yourself.

EXPLAIN TO EACH TEAM MEMBER PRECISELY HOW HIS OR HER CONTRIBUTIONS CONNECT TO THE WELFARE AND SUCCESS OF THE ENTIRE ORGANIZATION

The joy and great satisfaction I derived from leadership—working with and teaching others, helping them reach their potential in contributing to the team's common goals

Seek Players Who Will Make the Best Team Rather Than the Best Players.

Set your standards high; namely, do the absolute best of which you are capable. Focus on running the race rather than winning it. Do those things necessary to bring forth your personal best and don't lose sleep worrying about the competition. Let the competition lose sleep worrying about you. Teach your organization to do the same.

Organizations Succeed When They Become More Than the Sum of Their Players. That's one of the real tests of any leader, making the whole more than the sum of its parts. No team will consistently succeed unless the leader is able to achieve this critical goal.

Remember That a Great Quarter in Basketball or Business Starts with a Great Minute.

A person who values winning above anything will do anything to win. And such people are threats to their organizations.

A leader in sports, business, or any other field of endeavor should possess and provide the same qualities inherent in a good parent: character, consistency, dependability, accountability, knowledge, good judgment, selflessness, respect, courage, discipline, fairness, and structure.

And that, in my opinion, is the first goal of leadership—namely, getting the very best out of the people in your organization, whether they have talent to spare or are spare on talent.

Alertness, the ability to be constantly observing, absorbing, and learning from what's going on around you, is a critical component for the individual in charge, the leader who strives for continuous improvement. You must constantly be awake, alive, and alert in evaluating yourself as well as the strengths and weaknesses of your organization and your competitors.

Drawing up plans such as these diagrams is the easy part. I did it thousands of times. Creating a successful organization with people who execute the plans at a level of Competitive Greatness—now, that's the challenge of leadership.