We need a president who will choose to do what’s best for the country, even when it doesn’t personally benefit them.

Anyone who wants to be pope doesn’t care much for themselves, God doesn’t bless them. I didn’t want to be pope.

The first method for estimating the intelligence of a ruler is to look at the men he has around him.

When you give everyone a voice and give people power, the system usually ends up in a really good place. So, what we view our role as, is giving people that power.

Never neglect details. When everyone’s mind is dulled or distracted the leader must be doubly vigilant.

I’ve got a pen and I’ve got a phone – and I can use that pen to sign executive orders and take executive actions and administrative actions that move the ball forward.

I believe in a president whose religious views are his own private affair, neither imposed by him upon the nation or imposed by the nation upon him as a condition to holding that office.

A business that makes nothing but money is a poor business.

High office teaches decision making, not substance. It consumes intellectual capital; it does not create it. Most high officials leave office with the perceptions and insights with which they entered; they learn how to make decisions but not what decisions to make.

If you don’t drive your business, you will be driven out of business.

The events of October 1962 are widely hailed as Kennedy’s finest hour.

With tech companies, whoever’s the leader is always questioned, you know. They say, ‚Is this the end of them?‘ And – there’s more – more times people think that’s the case than it really is the case.

There are those who give with joy, and that joy is their reward.

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.

The most successful politician is he who says what the people are thinking most often in the loudest voice.

A good model of how to ‚work with the enemy‘ internally is presented by the Dalai Lama, in his endless caretaking of his soul as he confronts the Chinese government that invaded Tibet.

The people who are doing the work are the moving force behind the Macintosh. My job is to create a space for them, to clear out the rest of the organization and keep it at bay.

I don’t think that a leader can control, to any great extent, his destiny. Very seldom can he step in and change the situation if the forces of history are running in another direction.

Discipline is the soul of an army. It makes small numbers formidable; procures success to the weak, and esteem to all.

I’m more than comfortable just sitting back and scoring 21, 22 points or whatever and getting 10, 11 assists whatever the case might be. More than comfortable with that. It’s just a matter of the pieces that you have around you and what you can do to elevate everybody else.

I try to lead by example, being conscious of others and being responsible.

One of my direct subordinates, one of my guys that worked for me, he would call me up or pull me aside with some major problem, some issue that was going on. And he’d say, ‚Boss, we’ve got this, and that, and the other thing.‘ And I’d look at him and I’d say, ‚Good.‘

It’d be stupid for me to sit here and say that there aren’t kids who look up to me, but my responsibility is not to them. I’m not a baby sitter.

My game is really played above time. I don’t say that like I’m saying I’m ahead of my time. I’m saying, like, if I’m on the court and I throw a pass, the ball that I’ve thrown will lead my teammate right where he needs to go, before he even knows that that’s the right place to go to.

One of the key qualities a leader must possess is the ability to detach from the chaos, mayhem, and emotions in a situation and make good, clear decisions based on what is actually happening.

The minute you got the Nobel Peace Prize, things that I said yesterday, with nobody paying too much attention, I say the same things after I got it – oh! It was quite crucial for people, and it helped our morale because apartheid did look invincible.

Good management consists in showing average people how to do the work of superior people.

My celebrity status allows me an opportunity, allows me a pulpit to preach and reach out to the people. Not even always preaching but just leading, motivating them by being a leader.

If people lose faith in their government, the result is the same whether or not the loss of confidence is justified.

When the best leader’s work is done the people say, ‚We did it ourselves.‘

No man will make a great leader who wants to do it all himself or get all the credit for doing it.

Great men are like eagles, and build their nest on some lofty solitude.

Now from a distance, I look back on what the Corps taught me: to think like men of action, and to act like men of thought!

Motivation is the art of getting people to do what you want them to do because they want to do it.

None of us has any personal interest above the interests of the country. Our country is more important than our careers.

Look, when you’re the president, there’s all kinds of things said about us. I mean, it’s just the nature of the job.

The eye of the master will do more work than both his hands.

Leadership is a choice, not a position.

So, for example, a country was into recession right after I was sworn in, a dot-com bust had taken place. Then the attacks of September the 11th, and then of course the great financial meltdown in the -the fundamental question facing any presidency is how do you deal with the hand you’re dealt?

I played by the rules of politics as I found them.

But I do not believe that the world would be entirely different if there were more women leaders. Maybe if everybody in leadership was a woman, you might not get into the conflicts in the first place. But if you watch the women who have made it to the top, they haven’t exactly been non-aggressive – including me.

I always tell people that you should only hire people to be on your team if you would work for them.

The philosophy of the school room in one generation will be the philosophy of government in the next.

I often say of George Washington that he was one of the few in the whole history of the world who was not carried away by power.

In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself.

My mother had a saying: ‚Kamala, you may be the first to do many things, but make sure you’re not the last.‘

My observation is that whenever one person is found adequate to the discharge of a duty… it is worse executed by two persons, and scarcely done at all if three or more are employed therein.

Any woman who understands the problems of running a home will be nearer to understanding the problems of running a country.

Leadership to me means duty, honor, country. It means character, and it means listening from time to time.

I just think overall there’s not as many female ministers than there are male ministers.

It is unnecessary to say that Fidel Castro possesses the high qualities of a fighter and statesman: our path, our struggle, and our triumph we owed to his vision.

Until the men of action clear out the talkers we who have social consciences are at the mercy of those who have none.

In the business world, the rearview mirror is always clearer than the windshield.

Many years ago, I concluded that a few hair shirts were part of the mental wardrobe of every man. The president differs from other men in that he has a more extensive wardrobe.

I think our politicians could learn a lot from Mandela.

I can move any crowd.

There were the questions of what kind of First Lady I would be, what issues would I focus on. Those were the questions that were being pounded on me through the campaign. A lot of times, I wondered what in the world Barack was even getting us into.

Nothing that you have not given away will ever be really yours.

I believe in benevolent dictatorship provided I am the dictator.

You may be rich, but there is one thing you can’t afford – that is, if you are a good sort – you can’t afford to spend money on your own luxuries while there are people around you wanting the necessaries of life.

I’ve been so blessed to play for the greatest coach at a time when our organization has done incredible things. I’ve played with the best teammates. Playing for Mr. Kraft and what his influence on the team has been.