John C. Maxwell

We choose what attitudes we have right now. And it's a continuing choice.

Make personal growth a daily priority.

Failed plans should not be interpreted as a failed vision. Visions don't change, they are only refined. Plans rarely stay the same, and are scrapped or adjusted as needed. Be stubborn about the vision, but flexible with your plan.

Remember, man does not live on bread alone: sometimes he needs a little buttering up.

The experience of pain or loss can be a formidably motivating force.

Relational skills are the most important abilities in leadership.

The boss inspires fear the leader inspires enthusiasm.

Enjoyment is an incredible energizer to the human spirit.

As a leader, the first person I need to lead is me. The first person that I should try to change is me.

You have to show people how much you care about them before you can teach them anything.

Policies are many, Principles are few, Policies will change, Principles never do.

Educators take something simple and make it complicated. Communicators take something complicated and make it simple.

Self-centered leaders manipulate when they move people for personal benefit. Mature leaders motivate by moving people for mutual benefit.

Good leaders must communicate vision clearly, creatively, and continually. However, the vision doesn't come alive until the leader models it.

Leadership ability determines a persons level of effectiveness.

The greatest day in your life and mine is when we take total responsibility for our attitudes. That's the day we truly grow up.

To remain a credible leader, I must always work first, hardest, and longest on changing myself. This is neither easy nor natural, but it is essential.

The best leaders are readers of people. They have the intuitive ability to understand others by discerning how they feel and recognizing what they sense.

You will never fulfill your destiny doing work you despise.

A good leader is a person who takes a little more than his share of the blame and a little less than his share of the credit.

Teamwork makes the dream work, but a vision becomes a nightmare when the leader has a big dream and a bad team.

The unsuccessful person is burdened by learning, and prefers to walk down familiar paths. Their distaste for learning stunts their growth and limits their influence.

People dont really know whether they are committed to something until they face adversity.

Everyone has the potential to become an encourager. You don't have to be rich. You don't have to be a genius. You don't have to have it all together. All you have to do is care about people and initiate.

For years I kept a sign on my desk that helped me maintain the right perspective concerning yesterday. It simply said, 'yesterday ended last night'. It reminded me that no matter how badly I might have failed in the past, it's done, and today is a new day.

Encouragement is oxygen for the soul.

Leaders who fail to prune their pride will meet demise. That's not a guess, it's a guarantee. With pride, it's not a matter of 'if' we will fall, but 'when.' There are no exceptions.

Success comes to those who have an entire mountain of gold that they continually mine, not those who find one nugget and try to live on it for fifty years.

When you believe in people, you motivate them and release their potential.

The secret of your success is determined by your daily agenda.

A man must be big enough to admit his mistakes, smart enough to profit from them, and strong enough to correct them.

Dividers seek to make themselves look or feel better by making others feel worse. They damage relationships, fracture teams and organizations, and create havoc in people's lives.

Exceptionally hard decisions can deplete your energy to the point at which you finally cave in. If you mentally crumble and degenerate into negative thinking, you'll magnify the problem to the point where it can haunt you.

The only thing a title can buy is a little time-either to increase your level of influence with others or to undermine it.

Personnel determines the potential of the team. Vision determines the direction of the team. Work ethic determines the preparation of the team. Leadership determines the success of the team.

The truth is that teamwork is at the heart of great achievement.

Time management is an oxymoron. Time is beyond our control, and the clock keeps ticking regardless of how we lead our lives. Priority management is the answer to maximizing the time we have.

It seems the older you get, the more life comes into focus.

Time is more valuable than money, because time is irreplaceable.

Most people don't like change. They revolt against it unless they can clearly see the advantage it brings. For that reason, when good leaders prepare to take action or make changes, they take people through a process to get them ready for it.

Life is a matter of choices and every choice you make makes you.

Every person has a longing to be significant to make a contribution to be a part of something noble and purposeful.

When people respect someone as a person, they admire her. When they respect her as a friend, they love her. When they respect her as a leader, they follow her.

A strategy that doesn't take into account resources is doomed to failure.

Whenever a high-profile leader dies, people immediately attempt to summarize that person's life in a sentence. Often, critics and commentators get caught up looking at the leader's style, or which political or philosophical camp they represented.

You will never fulfill yourdestiny doing work you despise.

People who add value to others do so intentionally. I say that because to add value, leaders must give of themselves, and that rarely occurs by accident.

Pastors need to find their place in the community of believers by spending time with God.

Doing the right thing daily compounds over time.

Goals may give focus, but dreams give power.

Leadership is not about titles, positions, or flow charts. It is about one life influencing another.

Disappointment is the gap that exists between expectation and reality.

All good leaders are connectors. They relate well and make people feel confident about themselves and their leader.

Positive thinking must be followed by positive doing.

Learn to say 'no' to the good so you can say 'yes' to the best.

Everything rises and falls on leadership.

Without failure there is no achievement.

If you want to reach the top, don't run over others. Likely, the only way you'll reach the top is to be carried there by others.

If you want to do a few small things right do them yourself. If you want to do great things and make a big impact learn to delegate.

Life can be boring unless you put some effort into it.

If you are a parent, you have probably already realized that your children are always watching what you do. And just as children watch their parents and emulate their behavior, so do employees who are watching their bosses.

For more than a decade, I led an organization that put on an elaborate Christmas program each December. It was a big production, with over 250 people participating in more than 20 performances. By the end of the season, everyone who participated was exhausted.

Every person has a longing to be significant; to make a contribution; to be a part of something noble and purposeful.

People who use time wisely spend it on activities that advance their overall purpose in life.

Leaders who are kind of insecure or egocentric, they basically sabotage themselves.

Life is a matter of choices, and every choice you make makes you.

Nobody can motivate himself in a positive direction by continually using negative words.

As negative thoughts produce negative actions, so positive thoughts produce positive actions.

If you're lying, you're lying.

Changing your attitude from self-centerdness to understanding requires desire and commitment to always try to see things from the other persons point of view.

Ideas have a short shelf life. You must act on them before the expiration date.

Dreams don't work unless you do

How do leaders serve their people? They may pay good wages and treat employees with respect.

Growth is the great separator between those who succeed and those who do not. When I see a person beginning to separate themselves from the pack, it's almost always due to personal growth.

The leaders attitude helps determine the attitudes of the followers.

Leaders must be close enough to relate to others but far enough ahead to motivate them.

Leaders must be close enough to relate to others, but far enough ahead to motivate them.

We have to pick and choose between good and a little bit better.

A minute of thought is greater than an hour of talk.

Children astound me with their inquisitive minds. The world is wide and mysterious to them, and as they piece together the puzzle of life, they ask 'Why?' ceaselessly.

If you believe in others and give them a positive reputation to uphold, you can help them to become better than they think they are.

To add value to others, one must first value others.

A highly credible leader under promises and over delivers.

A mistake is a stepping stone to success.

The most successful people in life are the ones who settle their critical issues early and manage them daily.

People buy into the leader before they buy into the vision.

Live to learn, and you will really learn to live.

When your dream is bigger than you are, you only have two choices: give up or get help.

The greatest mistake we make is living in constant fear that we will make one.

To succeed in life we must stay within our strength zone but continually move outside our comfort zone.

The smartest person in the room is never as smart as all the people in the room.

Confidence is a characteristic of a positive attitude. The greatest achievers and leaders remain confident regardless of circumstances.

It's better to prepare than to repair.

When you are full of pride on the inside, it makes you stiff, stubborn, and creates strife with others.

People may hear your words, but they feel your attitude.

If you want to make a positive impact, no matter how far-reaching, start at home. Treat your family members like treasures.

Growth is the great separator between those who succeed and those who do not. When I see a person beginning to separate themselves from the pack, it’s almost always due to personal growth.

Profile of a winning team - They play to win. They have a winning attitude. They keep improving. They make their teammates more successful.

To collaborative team members, completing one another is more important than competing with one another.

Good thinkers always prime the pump of ideas. They always look for things to get the thinking process started, because what you put in always impacts what comes out.