John C. Maxwell Quotes

If you are a leader, you should never forget that everyone needs encouragement. And everyone who receives it - young or old, successful or less-than-successful, unknown or famous - is changed by it.

- John C. Maxwell

Without failure there is no achievement.

- John C. Maxwell

The best way a mentor can prepare another leader is to expose him or her to other great people.

- John C. Maxwell

Family and friendships are two of the greatest facilitators of happiness.

- John C. Maxwell

Keeping score is for games, not friendships.

- John C. Maxwell

A word of encouragement from a teacher to a child can change a life. A word of encouragement from a spouse can save a marriage. A word of encouragement from a leader can inspire a person to reach her potential.

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

A lack of realism in the vision today costs credibility tomorrow.

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.

- John C. Maxwell

There are two kinds of pride, both good and bad. 'Good pride' represents our dignity and self-respect. 'Bad pride' is the deadly sin of superiority that reeks of conceit and arrogance.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

The difference between average people and achieving people is their perception of and response to failure.

- John C. Maxwell

The dreams and passions stored within hearts are powerful keys which can unlock a wealth of potential.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

Inability to make decisions is one of the principal reasons executives fail. Deficiency in decision-making ranks much higher than lack of specific knowledge or technical know-how as an indicator of leadership failure.

- John C. Maxwell

Positional leaders ignore the fact that every person has hopes, dreams, desires, and goals of his own. And leaders must bring their vision and the aspirations of the people they lead together in a way that benefits everyone.

- John C. Maxwell

When a person starts to talk about their dreams, it's as if something bubbles up from within. Their eyes brighten, their face glows, and you can feel the excitement in their words.

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

Look at our society. Everyone wants to be thin, but nobody wants to diet. Everyone wants to live long, but few will exercise. Everybody wants money, yet seldom will anyone budget or control their spending.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

In the end, people are persuaded not by what we say, but by what they understand.

- John C. Maxwell

Ranking among the greatest Christmas movie classics, 'It's a Wonderful Life' tells a beautiful story about the priceless value of relationships.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

Talent grips us. We are overtaken by the beauty of Michelangelo's sculpture, riveted by Mariah Carey's angelic voice, doubled over in laughter by the comedy of Robin Williams, and captivated by the on screen performances of Denzel Washington.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

I vividly remember a conversation I had many years ago in 1974, which marked a turning point in my leadership journey. I was sitting at a Holiday Inn with my friend, Kurt Campmeyer, when he asked me if I had a personal growth plan. I didn't. In fact, I didn't even know you were supposed to have one.

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

One of the roles of the Presidency is to lead a political party. Having a President in office is usually a huge advantage to a party because it gives the party a mouthpiece and an advocate at the highest level.

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

Everything rises and falls on leadership.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

The most talented do not always end up as celebrities, and those with less talent often do. Upsets are written into our history and occur around us every day.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

All of the people in my life whom I consider to be close friends or colleagues are good thinkers.

- John C. Maxwell

Most people want to avoid pain, and discipline is usually painful.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

We don't mature momentarily, but over the long-term.

- John C. Maxwell

As you get older, time speeds up but life slows down.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

If you're lying, you're lying.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

The first time you say something, it's heard. The second time, it's recognized, and the third time it's learned.

- John C. Maxwell

Your attitude towards failure determines your altitude after failure.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

Pride deafens us to the advice or warnings of those around us.

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

Success is due to our stretching to the challenges of life. Failure comes when we shrink from them.

- John C. Maxwell

Good executives never put off until tomorrow what they can get someone else to do today.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

You will never fulfill your destiny doing work you despise.

- John C. Maxwell

Enjoyment is an incredible energizer to the human spirit.

- John C. Maxwell

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.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

Leadership is influence.

- John C. Maxwell

Have the humility to learn from those around you.

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

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

- John C. Maxwell

We all have done something unethical.

- John C. Maxwell