Leadership is not easy. In a large workplace it can be a lonely road to travel with few friends, mixed with sycophants that may or may not be telling you the truth. A real leader has to grasp the nettle… with conviction. And live under a microscope of constant scrutiny. And most people have experienced a leader that had failed upwards and wasn’t really up to the demands of the job. To that point, since childhood, I have always loved this witty poem by Roger McGough… “I wanna be the leaderI wanna be the leaderCan I be the leader?Can I? I can?Promise? Promise?Yippee! I’m the leaderI’m the leaderOK what shall we do?” — Roger McGough To avoid being the hapless “leader” of the poem above, here are some of the most inspiring quotes on leadership for motivation into being even better as a person who others will follow. Inspiring Leadership quotes A leader is a dealer in hope Napoleon Bonaparte I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel. Maya Angelou Do what you feel in your heart to be right, for you’ll be criticised anyway Eleanor Roosevelt The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. Martin Luther King, Jr What I have learned is that people become motivated when you guide them to the source of their own power and when you make heroes out of employees who personify what you want to see in the organisation.Anita Roddick Leaders aren’t born, they are made. And they are made just like anything else, through hard work Vince Lombardi One of the criticisms I've faced over the years is that I'm not aggressive enough or assertive enough, or maybe somehow, because I'm empathetic, it means I'm weak. I totally rebel against that. I refuse to believe that you cannot be both compassionate and strong Jacinda Ahern Don’t find fault, find a remedy. Henry Ford Continuous learning leads to continuous improvement. Commit yourself to advancing your knowledge, skills, and expertise. The business environment is quickly changing, and your understanding of the leading practices, thinking, and emerging tools will help you manage for better results. Be a lifelong student.Pamela Gill Alabaster (Chief Marketing & Communications Officer, Centric Brands) The supreme quality of leadership is unquestionably integrity Dwight Eisenhower You’re never too small to make a difference Greta Thunberg People work better when they know what the goal is and why. It is important that people look forward to coming to work in the morning and enjoy working.Elon Musk Your job as leader is to stay as close in touch as possible with those closest to the action.Kat Cole (COO, Focus Brands) A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves Lao Tzu If your actions create a legacy that inspires others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, then, you are an excellent leader.Dolly Parton Great things in business are never done by one person, they’re done by a team of people Steve Jobs Success isn’t about how much money you make; it’s about the difference you make in people’s lives.Michelle Obama Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm Winston Churchill We need to accept that we don’t always make the right decisions, that we’ll screw up royally sometimes. Understand that failure is not the opposite of success, it’s part of success. Arianna Huffington You don’t lead people by hitting them over the head. That’s assault, not leadership. Dwight Eisenhower Rarely are opportunities presented to you in a perfect way. In a nice little box with a yellow bow on top. 'Here, open it, it's perfect. You'll love it.' Opportunities – the good ones – are messy, confusing and hard to recognize. They're risky. They challenge you. Susan Wojcicki (CEO Youtube) Keep exploring. Keep dreaming. Keep asking why. Don’t settle for what you already know. Never stop believing in the power of your ideas, your imagination, your hard work to change the world. Barack Obama People respond well to those that are sure of what they want.Anna Wintour A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new. Albert Einstein It’s okay to admit what you don’t know. It’s okay to ask for help. And it’s more than okay to listen to the people you lead – in fact, it’s essential. Mary Barra (CEO, General Motors) In most cases being a good boss means hiring talented people and then getting out of their way. Tina Fey A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don’t necessarily want to go, but ought to be.Rosalynn Carter (Former First Lady of the United States) Do, or do not. There is no try Yoda Just because you are CEO, don't think you have landed. You must continually increase your learning, the way you think, and the way you approach the organisation.Indra Nooyi (CEO, PEpsiCo India) Don’t tell people how to do things, tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results. George Patton A good leader is able to paint a picture of a vision for the future and then enlist others to go on the journey with her. A truly conscious leader recognizes that it is not about her, but that the team is looking to her for inspiration and direction. Keeping her ego in check is essential.Tamra Ryan (CEO, Women’s Bean Project) Kites rise highest against the wind, not with it Winston Churchill The ability to learn is the most important quality a leader can have.Padmasree Warrior (CEO & Founder, Fable) If you’re co-founder or CEO, you have to do all kinds of tasks you might not want to do… If you don’t do your chores, the company won’t succeed… No task is too menialElon Musk Ninety percent of leadership is the ability to communicate something people want.Dianne Feinstein It doesn’t make sense to hire smart people and then tell them what to do; we hire smart people so they can tell us what to do Steve Jobs Leadership is about making others better as a result of your presence and making sure that impact lasts in your absence.Sheryl Sandberg If you decide that you’re going to do only the things you know are going to work, you’re going to leave a lot of opportunity on the table.Jeff Bezos We're here for a reason. I believe a bit of the reason is to throw little torches out to lead people through the dark.Whoopi Goldberg You can design and create, and build the most wonderful place in the world. But it takes people to make the dream a reality.Walt Disney I know of no single formula for success. But over the years I have observed that some attributes of leadership are universal and are often about finding ways of encouraging people to combine their efforts, their talents, their insights, their enthusiasm and their inspiration to work together.Queen Elizabeth II Earn your leadership every day.Michael Jordan Our course on Creative Leadership Improve your team's creative thinking will help you: Find new ways of working Improve company culture Run better teams The course shares practical lessons learned from some of the most successful businesses around the world, both big and small. You’ll be inspired by senior leaders at companies such as Google, Microsoft, Black Rock and Pernod Ricard, as well as Dr Jules Goddard from the London Business School. Leadership and Teams will teach you effective leadership qualities, the dynamics of assembling a team, how to gain momentum, how to handle set backs, and the importance of vision, values, perseverance and celebration. The course is led by Caspar Craven who is a seasoned entrepreneur and yachtsman. He’s built and led successful teams in both business and the professional sporting world. You can’t sail around the world twice, and build and sell several companies, without becoming a master of teamwork and leadership.