Doris Kearns Goodwin Quotes

Powerful Doris Kearns Goodwin for Daily Growth

About Doris Kearns Goodwin

Doris Kearns Goodwin is an acclaimed American historian, political commentator, and author, recognized for her insightful biographies of significant U.S. figures. Born on January 4, 1943, in Brooklyn, New York, Goodwin's passion for history was sparked early when she read a book about the Civil War at the age of ten. This interest led her to Harvard University, where she earned her B.A., and then to Cambridge University, where she received her Ph.D. in Government. Goodwin's career began in academia, teaching political science at various institutions before transitioning into television journalism. She has served as a political analyst for NBC News and PBS NewsHour, offering insightful commentary on contemporary politics. Her breakthrough as an author came with the publication of "No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt: The Home Front in World War II" in 1994. This Pulitzer Prize-winning work offers a deeply personal look at the Roosevelts during one of America's most challenging periods. Subsequent works, such as "Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln," "The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft, Two Friends Who Became Rivals" (both Pulitzer Prize winners), and "Leadership in Turbulent Times," delve into the lives and leadership styles of other influential U.S. presidents. Goodwin's biographies are praised for their vivid storytelling, deep research, and insightful analysis. Her work has earned her a reputation as one of America's foremost presidential historians, and she continues to captivate audiences with her compelling narratives about American leadership.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"Leadership is a series of choices, not a fixed set of attributes."

This quote by Doris Kearns Goodwin emphasizes that leadership is not solely about inherent traits or qualities, but rather a collection of decisions made over time. It suggests that effective leaders are those who consistently make thoughtful, strategic choices in various situations. In other words, anyone can demonstrate leadership abilities when faced with challenges, as long as they possess the will to make the right choices.


"The art of communication is the language of leadership."

This quote by Doris Kearns Goodwin emphasizes that effective leadership relies heavily on strong communication skills. In essence, leaders must be able to express their ideas, vision, and expectations clearly and persuasively to influence others. The ability to communicate articulately is not only crucial in motivating team members but also in building trust, fostering collaboration, and driving organizational success. Thus, mastering the art of communication is essential for successful leadership.


"The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one that gets the people to do the greatest things."

This quote emphasizes that true leadership lies not in personal accomplishments, but in the ability to inspire others to achieve greatness. It suggests that a leader's impact is measured by the collective efforts and achievements of their followers rather than their own deeds alone. Effective leaders empower and motivate individuals to reach their full potential, fostering a culture of productivity, innovation, and progress.


"It's not about the individual, it's about the team."

This quote by Doris Kearns Goodwin emphasizes the importance of a collective effort over personal success. It suggests that for any project or endeavor to be successful, it requires the cooperation, collaboration, and synergy among its members, i.e., the team. The focus is not on individual brilliance or talent alone but rather on how those qualities can contribute effectively within a collaborative framework to achieve common goals. In other words, the strength of the group as a whole is more significant than any single member's contributions.


"Leadership requires two basic skills: the ability to get things done and the ability to make others want to get them done."

This quote by Doris Kearns Goodwin highlights that effective leadership combines the capacity for action (getting things done) with the ability to inspire and motivate others (making them want to get things done). A successful leader not only possesses the skills to execute tasks efficiently but also has the charisma to influence others, fostering a shared commitment towards achieving common goals.


The past is not simply the past, but a prism through which the subject filters his own changing self-image.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Through, Which, His, Self-Image

That is what leadership is all about: staking your ground ahead of where opinion is and convincing people, not simply following the popular opinion of the moment.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Ahead, Convincing, About, Popular Opinion

'The bully pulpit' is somewhat diminished in our age of fragmented attention and fragmented media.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Pulpit, Diminished, Somewhat, Bully

Those who knew Lincoln described him as an extraordinarily funny man. Humor was an essential aspect of his temperament. He laughed, he explained, so he did not weep.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Knew, Explained, Laughed, Essential

Where's the progress that we're going to see in Afghanistan? You have to keep public support both on the economy and the war or these things will really become troubling.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

War, Will, Going, Public Support

People tease me about knowing somehow that Obama would put Clinton into the cabinet, and everybody would talk about a team of rivals.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Everybody, About, Obama, Tease

I think after Sandy Hook, when Obama went out, and he talked a lot about gun control and met with the parents, there was a sense that something was going to happen. But then, I guess, the power of special interests was greater than public sentiment.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Gun, I Think, Sentiment, Sandy

My recurring nightmare is that someday I will be faced with a panel: Franklin Roosevelt, John Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson all of whom will be telling me everything I got wrong about them. I know that Johnson's out there saying, 'Why is it that what you wrote about the Kennedys is twice as long as the book you wrote about me?'

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Book, Telling, About, Recurring

Obama does seem to have what both FDR and Lincoln had, which is the recognition that you have to hold back at times and then wait to come forward.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Wait, Forward, Which, FDR

FDR once said he was like a cat, that he would pounce and then relax. That's much harder to do in the 24-hour cable world, because it's almost like the press demands of you to be saying something or doing something every day.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Doing, Every Day, Almost, FDR

I write about presidents. That means I write about guys - so far. I'm interested in the people closest to them, the people they love and the people they've lost... I don't want to limit it to what they did in the office, but what happens at home and in their interactions with other people.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Love, Other, I Write, Closest

Journalism still, in a democracy, is the essential force to get the public educated and mobilized to take action on behalf of our ancient ideals.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Still, Ideals, Behalf, Journalism

Taft was Roosevelt's handpicked successor. I didn't know how deep the friendship was between the two men until I read their almost four hundred letters, stretching back the to early '30s. It made me realize the heartbreak when they ruptured was much more than a political division.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Deep, Hundred, Successor, Letters

We've got to figure out a way that we give a private sphere for our public leaders. We're not gonna get the best people in public life if we don't do that.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Give, Private, Figure, Sphere

I shall always be grateful for this curious love of history, allowing me to spend a lifetime looking back into the past, allowing me to learn from these large figures about the struggle for meaning for life.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Love, Looking Back, Figures, Struggle

Ironically, the more intensive and far-reaching a historian's research, the greater the difficulty of citation. As the mountain of material grows, so does the possibility of error.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

More, Grows, Historian, Possibility

The only protection as a historian is to institute a process of research and writing that minimizes the possibility of error. And that I have tried to do, aided by modern technology, which enables me, having long since moved beyond longhand, to use a computer for both organizing and taking notes.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Notes, Use, Moved, Possibility

Roosevelt's strength was that he understood he would never get anything through the Republican old guard, his party, unless the public pressured Congress.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Strength, Through, Congress, Understood

Once a president gets to the White House, the only audience that is left that really matters is history.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

White, Audience, Matters, White House

I've been to the White House a number of times.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Number, Been, Times, White House

I had been involved in the March on Washington in 1963. I was with friends carrying a sign, 'Protestants, Jews and Catholics for Civil Rights.'

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Jews, Been, Sign, Carrying

Journalists were at the forefront. From the Civil War until the early 1900s, nothing was being done to solve the problems of the Industrial Age.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

War, Nothing, Civil War, Forefront

My books are written with a strong chronological spine.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Strong, Books, Written, Spine

I really believe that what happens one day affects the next, and I think that came from that experience of learning that if I told the score inning by inning, play by play, it built up to its natural climax.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Play, Think, Next, Climax

I now rely on a scanner, which reproduces the passages I want to cite, and then I keep my own comments on those books in a separate file so that I will never confuse the two again.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Own, Two, Separate, Passages

There are but a handful of times in the history of our country when there occurs a transformation so remarkable that a molt seems to take place, and an altered country begins to emerge.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

History, Country, Handful, Emerge

I wish we could go back to the time when the private lives of our public figures were relevant only if they directly affected their public responsibilities.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

I Wish, Private, Lives, Directly

A lot of times when people are on campaigns, it can be like a movie set.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Set, Lot, Times, Campaigns

As a historian, what I trust is my ability to take a mass of information and tell a story shaped around it.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Trust, Mass, Take, Historian

I am a historian. With the exception of being a wife and mother, it is who I am. And there is nothing I take more seriously.

- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Wife, Exception, More, Historian

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