John C. Maxwell Quotes

A person who has a dream knows what he is willing to give up in order to go up.

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

Sociologists tell us that even the most introverted individual will influence ten thousand other people during his or her lifetime! This amazing statistic was shared with me by my associate Tim Elmore.

THE LAW OF COUNTABILITY Teammates Must Be Able to Count on Each Other When It Counts

To do well at a few things, give up many things.

Ur level of influence is not the same with everyone.

Poem by Howard A. Walter (Character)
I would be true, for there are those who trust me;
I would be pure, for there are those who care;
I would be strong, for there are those who suffer;
I would be brave, for there is much to dare.
I would be friend of all
the foe, the friendless;
I would be giving, and forget the gift;
I would be humble, for I know my weakness;
I would look up, and laugh, and love, and lift.

Birds of a feather really do flock together.

Don't buy into the notion that mistakes can somehow be avoided. They can't be.

Cats do what cats do, ducks do what ducks do, and eagles do what eagles, do. If you take a duck and ask it to do an eagles' job, shame on you. As a leader, your job is to help your ducks to become better ducks and your eagles better eagles - to put individuals in the right places and help them reach their potential.

Effective leaders....always rise to a challenge. That's one of the things that separates winners from whiners.....Walton rose above it by solving his problems with creativity and tenacity.


Anyone who expects the road to be easy will continually find himself in trouble.

Successful people ... focus on the rewards of success: learning from their mistakes and thinking about how they can improve themselves and their situations.

Not everyone will become a great leader, but everyone can become a better leader.

The only way to change how you view life is to change who you are on the inside.

Negative thinking blows everything out of proportion.

Only those who see their dream are able to seize their dream.

To measure a leader, put a tape around his heart, not his head.

When your great players are team players, everybody else follows their lead. The best team doesn't always win - it's usually the team that gets along best.

Connecting is the ability to identify with people and relate to them in a way that increases your influence with them.

Everything begins with a thought.

People need clear objectives set before them if they are to achieve anything of value.

People who wait for the one great opportunity often keep waiting.

Those who profit from adversity possess a spirit of humility and are therefore inclined to make the necessary changes needed to learn from their mistakes, failures, and losses ... When we are focused too much on ourselves, we lose perspective. Humility allows us to regain perspective and see the big picture ... Humility allows us to let go of perfection and keep trying.

Today Matters People create success in their lives by focusing on today. It may sound trite, but today is the only time you have. It's too late for yesterday. And you can't depend on tomorrow. That's why today matters.

Everyone you know and all the people you meet have the potential to be someone important in the lives of others.

When a leader reaches out in passion, he is usually met with an answering passion.

I've never known a person focused on yesterday to have a better tomorrow.

You can't light another's path without casting light on your own.

The one thing you need to know about teamwork is that there is more than one thing you need to know about teamwork.

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

If you really want to be a successful leader, you must develop other leaders around you. You must establish a team.

People can open doors for you, but you ... must walk through.

If you are too attached to your own thinking and how everything is done now, then nothing will change for the better.

Our attitude can give us an uncommonly positive perspective.

The average for entrepreneurs is 3.8 failures before they finally make it in business.

Life is like riding in a taxi. Whether you are going anywhere or not, the meter keeps ticking.

Good ideas have expiration dates. You need to act before they become dated, irrelevant or otherwise spoiled.

To grow yourself, you must know yourself.

Sometimes we hold on to our possessions because we fear we might run out - life seems scarce. But when we believe that giving is the way to live, we will produce more in the future - life seems abundant.

You can change your life if you really want to. You can improve it, make it better. And it all starts with changing the way you think.

How do you identify someone who needs encouragement? That person is breathing. TRUETT CATHEY

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

The effectiveness of your work will never rise above your ability to lead and influence others.

A difficult time can be more readily endured if we retain the conviction that our existence holds a purpose - a cause to pursue, a person to love, a goal to achieve.

If you don't have peace, it isn't because someone took it from you; you gave it away. You cannot always control what happens to you, but you can control what happens in you.

How does a person become productive? Find your strength and then find someone who needs your strength.

Giving is the highest level of living.

Leaders create and inspire new leaders by instilling faith in their leadership abilities and helping them develop and hone leadership skills they don't know they possess.

Good leaders motivate others by their listening skills. We are to: avoid prejudicial first impressions; become less self-centered; withhold initial criticism; stay calm; listen with empathy; be active listeners; clarify what we hear; and recognize the healing power of listening. Then we are to act on what we hear

President Abraham Lincoln said, I don't think much of a man who is not wiser today than he was yesterday.

You'll never find out what you can do, until you do all you can to find out

Yesterday ended last night.

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.

And most important, listen.

The more intentional you are about your leadership growth, the greater your potential for becoming the leader you're capable of being. Never stop learning.

Our attitude can turn our problems into blessings.

People's purpose in life is always connected to their giftedness.

Leaders should get out of their comfort zone but stay in their strength zone. When their work lies within their natural gifting and strengths, leaders experience the greatest return in productivity and contentment. Life is too short to live in the comfort zone, where growing and accomplishing and achieving your potential takes a back seat. I suggest you refocus if the comfort zone is your leadership priority.

Cooperation is working together agreeably ... Collaboration is working together aggressively; and theres a world of difference between those two.

When people follow a leader because they have to, they will do only what they have to. People don't give their best to leaders they like least. They give reluctant compliance, not commitment. They may give their hands but certainly not their heads or hearts.

Making a difference in your work is not about productivity; it's about people. When you focus on others and connect with them, you can work together to accomplish great things.

You can be a model to the masses, but to go to the higher levels of influence, you have to work with individuals.

People have a seed to success within them. Most never find it and therefore fail to reach their potential. Occasionally, a leader discovers it and helps that individual develop it. For both, they now can fulfill the purpose for which they are born.

There is definitely a connection between finding your passion and reaching your potential. People ask me all the time, 'John, how do I know what I am meant to do in life?' The answer is really simple: Energy and Excellence. When you experience unbounded energy in what you are doing, when you are driven to excellence in your work and love what you do - then you can rest assured that you have found your passion and are definitely in pursuit of your full potential.

The whole idea of motivation is a trap. Forget motivation.
Just do it. Exercise, lose weight, test your blood sugar, or
whatever. Do it without motivation. And then, guess what?
After you start doing the thing, that's when the motivation
comes and makes it easy for you to keep on doing it.

They want to know what's in it for them.

When you find your spiritual gift, God will give you an opportunity to use it.

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

Predetermine a course of action.
Lay out your goals.
Adjust your priorities.
Notify key personnel.
Allow time for acceptance.
Head into action.
Expect problems.
Always point to the successes.

Connecting is vital for any person who wants to achieve success. It is essential for anyone who wants to build great relationships. You will only be able to reach your potential-regar dless of your profession or chosen path-when you learn to connect with other people.

Little progress is better than no progress at all. Success comes in taking many small steps. If you stumble in a small step, it rarely matters. Don't gift wrap the garbage. Let little failures go.

People change when they hurt enough that they have to change, learn enough that they want to change, receive enough that they are able to change.

President Abraham Lincoln once remarked, "Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power." Few people have more power than an American president. Being the so-called leader

Live to learn and you will really learn to live.

Working together precedes winning together ... collaboration is multiplication.

Although it's admirable to be ambitious and hard-working, it's more desirable to be smart-working.

GIVE PEOPLE AN ACTION PLAN

A person who refuses to risk change fails to grow.

Maya Angelou observed you cant use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have. Sadly,too often creativity is smothered rather than nurtured. There has to be climate in which new ways of thinking,perceiving, questioning are encouraged.

Intentional living is the bridge to significance. At the end of every year, I take time out to reflect and evaluate the events of the previous year - what went well and what needed improvement. From that inventory, I lay out my next year - how I intend to live, make the best use of time and maximize adding value to others. Success asks, 'How can I add value to myself?' Significance asks, 'How can I add value to others?' It is your intention that lends itself to significance.

If your desire is to be successful or to make a positive impact on your world, you need to become a person of influence.

You can't avoid fear. No magic potion will take it away. And you can't wait for motivation to get you going. To conquer fear, you have to feel the fear and take action anyway.

Without leadership ability,a person's impact is only a fraction of what it could be with good leadership.

When a person feels encouraged, he can face the impossible and overcome incredible adversity.

He that thinketh he leadeth and hath no one following him is only taking a walk.

Before you can do anything else in the lives of others, you must show them love.

The reason most major goals are not achieved is that we spend our time doing second things first.

If you want to get ahead, leading up is much better than kissing up. - DAN REILAND

The greatest handicap a person has is not realizing his potential.

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

Credibility is a leader's currency. With it, he or she is solvent; without it, he or she is bankrupt.

Collaboration is multiplication.

If you want leaders, you must become a leader yourself!

Realizing your potential as a leader is your responsibility.

If something can be done 80% as well by someone else, delegate!

As a leader, you have to take responsibility for your own failures as well as successes. That's the only way you'll learn.
If you keep learning, you'll improve.
If you improve, your leadership will get better.
And in time, you will earn the right to lead on the level you deserve.

The timing of your decision is just as important as the decision you make.

Acquiring and keeping good people is a leader's most important task.

It's better to give ideas away and contribute to another person's success than to have them lying dormant.

The road to success is long and up hill all the way