Leadership Quotes

There’s something special about a great quote.  It captures an idea in the span of a few short words and that idea is so much bigger than we would expect.  It inspires.  It stirs the soul.  It elicits unexpected emotions from the depths of our being.  There’s a reason we love quotes: they work.

So without further preamble, here are some of my all-time favorite leadership quotes:

- “Never mistake a clear view for a short distance.” – Paul Saffo

- “Equality is not only a right, it is also a noun.” – George Merriam of Merriam-Webster*

- “Run!” – Major General George Armstrong Custer*

- “Golf is like leadership – it’s hard as hell but everyone thinks they can do it.” – Chi Chi Rodriguez*

- “Old man, I’m gonna come at you like a spider monkey!” – Texas Ranger

- “Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large numbers.” – Homer Simpson
Love that one-

- “Never sneak up on a man who’s been in a chemical fire.” – Ian McShane as Frank Powell

- “A committee is a group that keeps minutes and loses hours.” – Milton Berle
Love this one too

- “Good artists copy, great artists steal. And we have always been shameless about stealing great ideas.” – Steve Jobs

- “I pretty much operate on adrenaline and ignorance.” – Johnny Knoxville

- “Vision without action is a daydream. Action without vision is a nightmare.” – Japanese Proverb

- “Every rose has its thorn.” – Poison

- “You won’t like me when I’m angry.” – Bruce Banner

- “One man alone can be pretty dumb sometimes, but for real bona fide stupidity, there ain’t nothin’ can beat teamwork.” – Edward Abbey

- “Underpromise; overdeliver.” – Tom Peters

- “Pain is temporary, quitting lasts forever.” – Lance Armstrong (he totally said this)