John C. Maxwell > Quotes

“Leadership is not about titles, positions or flowcharts. It is about one life influencing another.”
― John Maxwell

“Seven Steps to Success
1) Make a commitment to grow daily.
2) Value the process more than events.
3) Don't wait for inspiration.
4) Be willing to sacrifice pleasure for opportunity.
5) Dream big.
6) Plan your priorities.
7) Give up to go up.”
― John C Maxwell

“We cannot become what we need by remaining what we are.”
― John C. Maxwell

“Change is inevitable. Growth is optional.”
― 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

“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

“Leaders must be close enough to relate to others, but far enough ahead to motivate them.”
― John C. Maxwell

“Talent is a gift, but character is a choice.”
― John C. Maxwell

“Life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it.”
― John Maxwell

“Success is...
knowing your purpose in life,
growing to reach your maximum potential, and
sowing seeds that benefit others.”
― John C. Maxwell

“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.”
― John C. Maxwell, Be a People Person

“If we are growing we are always going to be outside our
comfort zone.”
― John Maxwell

“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.”
― John C. Maxwell, Developing the Leader Within You

“Learn to say 'no' to the good so you can say 'yes' to the best.”
― John C. Maxwell

“The greatest mistake we make is living in constant fear that we will make one.”
― John C. Maxwell

“Question for God every morning:

What is the main event today? What do you want me to focus on today?”
― John C. Maxwell

“Remember, man does not live on bread alone: sometimes he needs a little buttering up.”
― John C. Maxwell

“To Stay Focused in Life:

You can't know everyone
You can't do everything
You can't go everywhere

We have to pick and choose between good and a little bit better.”
― John C. Maxwell

“A leader who produces other leaders multiples their influences.”
― John C. Maxwell

“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.”
― John C. Maxwell

“The only guarantee for failure is to stop trying”
― John C. Maxwell

“If you start today to do the right thing, you are already a success even if it doesn’t show yet.”
― John Maxwell

“If you don’t change the direction you are going, then you’re likely to end up where you’re heading…”
― John C. Maxwell

“Do not take the agenda that someone else has mapped out for your life.”
― John C. Maxwell

“Stay focused instead of getting offended or off track by others.”
― John C. Maxwell

“You have to live with the people to know their needs, and you have to live with God to know how to solve them.”
― John Maxwell

“In life, the question is not if you will have problems, but how you are going to deal with your problems. If the possibility of failure were erased, what would you attempt to achieve?

The essence of man is imperfection. Know that you're going to make mistakes. The fellow who never makes a mistake takes his orders from one who does. Wake up and realize this: Failure is simply a price we pay to achieve success.

Achievers are given multiple reasons to believe they are failures. But in spite of that, they persevere. The average for entrepreneurs is 3.8 failures before they finally make it in business.

When achievers fail, they see it as a momentary event, not a lifelong epidemic.

Procrastination is too high a price to pay for fear of failure. To conquer fear, you have to feel the fear and take action anyway. Forget motivation. Just do it. Act your way into feeling, not wait for positive emotions to carry you forward.

Recognize that you will spend much of your life making mistakes. If you can take action and keep making mistakes, you gain experience.

Life is playing a poor hand well. The greatest battle you wage against failure occurs on the inside, not the outside.

Why worry about things you can't control when you can keep yourself busy controlling the things that depend on you?

Handicaps can only disable us if we let them. If you are continually experiencing trouble or facing obstacles, then you should check to make sure that you are not the problem.

Be more concerned with what you can give rather than what you can get because giving truly is the highest level of living.

Embrace adversity and make failure a regular part of your life. If you're not failing, you're probably not really moving forward.

Everything in life brings risk. It's true that you risk failure if you try something bold because you might miss it. But you also risk failure if you stand still and don't try anything new.

The less you venture out, the greater your risk of failure. Ironically the more you risk failure — and actually fail — the greater your chances of success.

If you are succeeding in everything you do, then you're probably not pushing yourself hard enough. And that means you're not taking enough risks. You risk because you have something of value you want to achieve.

The more you do, the more you fail. The more you fail, the more you learn. The more you learn, the better you get.

Determining what went wrong in a situation has value. But taking that analysis another step and figuring out how to use it to your benefit is the real difference maker when it comes to failing forward. Don't let your learning lead to knowledge; let your learning lead to action.

The last time you failed, did you stop trying because you failed, or did you fail because you stopped trying?

Commitment makes you capable of failing forward until you reach your goals. Cutting corners is really a sign of impatience and poor self-discipline.

Successful people have learned to do what does not come naturally. Nothing worth achieving comes easily. The only way to fail forward and achieve your dreams is to cultivate tenacity and persistence.

Never say die. Never be satisfied. Be stubborn. Be persistent. Integrity is a must. Anything worth having is worth striving for with all your might.

If we look long enough for what we want in life we are almost sure to find it. Success is in the journey, the continual process. And no matter how hard you work, you will not create the perfect plan or execute it without error. You will never get to the point that you no longer make mistakes, that you no longer fail.

The next time you find yourself envying what successful people have achieved, recognize that they have probably gone through many negative experiences that you cannot see on the surface.

Fail early, fail often, but always fail forward.”
― John Maxwell, Failing Forward

“Everything begins with a decision. Then, we have to manage that decision for the rest of your life.”
― John C. Maxwell

“There was a very cautious man
Who never laughed or played
He never risked, he never tried,
He never sang or prayed.
And when he on day passed away,
His insurance was denied,
For since he never really lived,
They claimed he never really died.

(Anonymous poem)”
― John C. Maxwell, Developing the Leader Within You

“We feel unhappy and confused with our life when we don't do the focus or calling that God has on our life.”
― John C. Maxwell