Quotes About Leadership

The gods gave me a father who ruled over me and rid me of any trace of arrogance and showed me that one can live in a palace without bodyguards, extravagant attire, chandeliers, statues, and other luxuries. He taught me that it is possible to live instead pretty much in the manner of a private citizen without losing any of the dignity and authority a ruler must possess to discharge his imperial duties effectively.

In the minds of great managers, consistent poor performance is not primarily a matter of weakness, stupidity, disobedience, or disrespect. It is a matter of miscasting.

Remember the Golden Rule? "Treat people as you would like to be treated." The best managers break the Golden Rule every day. They would say don't treat people as you would like to be treated. This presupposes that everyone breathes the same psychological oxygen as you. For example, if you are competitive, everyone must be similarly competitive. If you like to be praised in public, everyone else must, too. Everyone must share your hatred of micromanagement.

People leave managers, not companies

The talented employee may join a company because of its charismatic leaders, its generous benefits, and its world-class training programs, but how long that employee stays and how productive he is while he is there is determined by his relationship with his immediate supervisor.

The Four Keys of Great Managers: 1. "When selecting someone, they select for talent ... not simply experience, intelligence or determination." 2. "When setting expectations, they define the right outcomes ... not the right steps." 3. "When motivating someone, they focus on strengths ... not on weaknesses." 4. "When developing someone, they help him find the right fit ... not simply the next rung on the ladder.

The hardest thing about being a manager is realizing that your people will not do things the way that you would. But get used to it. Because if you try to force them to, then two things happen. They become resentful — they don't want to do it. And they become dependent — they can't do it. Neither of these is terribly productive for the long haul.

MICHAEL: Maybe just this: A manager has got to remember that he is on stage every day. His people are watching him. Everything he does, everything he says, and the way he says it, sends off clues to his employees. These clues affect performance. So never forget you are on that stage.

to encourage people to take responsibility for who they really are. And it is the only way to show respect for each person. Focusing on strengths is the storyline that explains all their efforts as managers.

Managers are encouraged to focus on complex initiatives like reengineering or learning organizations, without spending time on the basics.

You will have to manage around the weaknesses of each and every employee. But if, with one particular employee, you find yourself spending most of your time managing around weaknesses, then know that you have made a casting error. At this point it is time to fix the casting error and to stop trying to fix the person.

Even more than the rest, these five questions are most directly influenced by the employee's immediate manager. What does this tell us? It tells us that people leave managers, not companies.

So this is (a manager's) dilemma: The manager must retain control and focus people on performance. But she is bound by her belief that she cannot force everyone to perform the same way. ... The solution is as elegant as it is efficient: Define the right outcomes and let each person find his own route toward these outcomes.

We are not engaged in domestic politics, in church building or in social uplift work, but we are engaged in nation building.

One God, One Aim, One Destiny. (Motto of the UNIA)

Pay no attention to the man who criticizes unless he is doing something better than what he criticizes.

If I die in Atlanta my work shall then only begin, but I shall live, in the physical or spiritual to see the day of Africa's glory.

To have built up a new organization, which was not purely political, among Negroes in America was a wonderful feat, for the Negro politician does not allow any other kind of organization within his race to thrive.

was the crying voice from the grave that said, 'Garvey, we have suffered for 250 years for your day and for your time; we expect something from you at this hour.'"16

There is a clear difference between leadership that is gentle and loving in its strength, and leadership that is forceful and overbearing. Shepherds lead others to walk in the ways of the Lord.

No Christian leader – no leader of any kind – is immune from the dangers of misuse of power and position.

Authentic Christian leaders boast in weakness, not strength.

It is no good pretending that as Christian leaders we have little or no power. We do. Power and power differentials are givens in leadership. Being realistic about this is essential if we are to grasp how we affect others. We need to be as insightful as possible if we want to ensure that we use our power and authority in right and godly ways.

Authority, used correctly, is a deeply positive, nurturing thing.