“People buy into the leader before they buy into the vision.”
―
John C. Maxwell
“The great men and women of history were not great because of what they earned and owned, but rather for what they gave their lives to accomplish.”
―
John C. Maxwell
“How to prepare someone for leadership:
I do it.
I do it and you watch.
You do it and I watch.
You do it.
You do it and someone else watches.”
―
John C. Maxwell
“Our business in life is not to get ahead of others, but to get ahead of ourselves—to break our own records, to outstrip our yesterday by our today.”
―
John C. Maxwell
“Most people’s natural inclination is to judge themselves according to their best qualities while they measure others by their worst. As a result, they point to areas where their teammates need to grow. But the truth is that every person is responsible for his own growth first.”
―
John C. Maxwell
“Charles Schwab: Be friends with everybody. When you have friends you will know there is somebody who will stand by you. You know the old saying, that if you have a single enemy you will find him everywhere. It doesn’t pay to make enemies. Lead the life that will make you kind and friendly to everyone about you, and you will be surprised what a happy life you will live.”
―
John C. Maxwell
“There's a world of difference between a person who has a big problem and a person who makes a problem big.”
―
John C. Maxwell
“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.”
―
John C. Maxwell
“A person who knows how may always have a job, but the person who knows why will always be his boss.”
―
John C. Maxwell
“A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.”
―
John C. Maxwell
“If you don’t know how to add to others, then you probably subtract by default.”
―
John C. Maxwell
“Leaders see everything with a leadership bias. Their focus is on mobilizing people and leveraging resources to achieve their goals rather than on using their own individual efforts. Leaders who want to succeed maximize every asset and resource they have for the benefit of their organization. For that reason, they are continually aware of what they have at their disposal.”
―
John C. Maxwell
“One of my favorite stories is about a newly hired traveling salesman who sent his first sales report to the home office. It stunned the brass in the sales department because it was obvious that the new salesman was ignorant! This is what he wrote: “I seen this outfit which they ain’t never bot a dim’s worth of nothin from us and I sole them some goods. I’m now goin to Chicawgo.” Before the man could be given the heave-ho by the sales manager, along came this letter from Chicago: “I cum hear and sole them haff a millyon.” Fearful if he did, and afraid if he didn’t fire the ignorant salesman, the sales manager dumped the problem in the lap of the president. The following morning, the ivory-towered sales department members were amazed to see posted on the bulletin board above the two letters written by the ignorant salesman this memo from the president: “We ben spendin two much time trying to spel instead of trying to sel. Let’s watch those sails. I want everybody should read these letters from Gooch who is on the rode doin a grate job for us and you should go out and do like he done.”
―
John C. Maxwell
