Quotes - Leadership (page 5)

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Leadership is one of the oldest and most distinctive arts in the profession of arms; in its simplest definition, it is the art of directing the actions of others. - Lieutenant General Arthur G. Trudeau

Leadership, if the word has any meaning at all, is a characteristic which inheres in individuals who have energy, faith, and ability in unusual degree. - Henry M. Wriston

Modern leadership demands officers who can accept challenge with initiative, originality, fidelity, understanding, and, above all, the willingness to fully assume the responsibilities of command. - General Bruce C. Clarke

The efficiency of an army depends on many different things, but one is outstanding- and that is morale. You can have all the material in the world, but without morale it is largely ineffective. You must have morale, first and foremost, and morale is determined by a great many things. Primarily it depends, of course, on leadership, the possession of equipment and, in the long run, on the people back home. - General George C. Marshall

Acquiring the art of leadership is simply a matter of mastering certain techniques, understanding men, and building up those sterling qualities that give effective full expression to your natural talents. The average man can be a good potential leader provided he is willing to work diligently at being one. - Lieutenant General Arthur G. Trudeau

Shrewd critics have assigned military success to all manner of things - tactics, shape of frontiers, speed, happily placed rivers, mountains or woods, intellectual ability, or the use of artillery. All in a measure true, but none vital. The secret lies in the inspiring spirit which lifted weary, footsore men out of themselves with an army it is the result of external impetus - leadership. - Major George S. Patton, Jr. (1931)

There are two means of moving men - interest and fear. - Napoleon

Our means of studying war have increased as much as have our tools for waging it, but it is an open question whether this increase in means has not perhaps obscured or obliterated one essential detail, namely, the necessity for personal leadership. - Major George S. Patton, Jr. (1931)

The necessary limitations of map problems inhibit the student from considering the effects of hunger, emotion, personality, fatigue, leadership, and many other imponderable yet vital factors. - Major George S. Patton, Jr.(1931)

Only effective and inspired leadership will carry units to victory in that arduous and finally determining aspect of warfare -- ground combat. - General Matthew B. Ridgway

In preparing for a lifetime of service, our professionally trained military graduates must train not only for leadership in battle, but also to provide leadership for the Nation in adapting the resources of science and education to our national needs. - General Omar N. Bradley

In these perilous times which face mankind the world over, I would like to stress the moral and ethical side of leadership responsibility. For it is in the area of moral courage, truth and honor that the fibers of character are strengthened sufficiently to sustain men under the great stresses and responsibilities facing our military leaders today. - General D.M. Shoup, USMC

Beyond the requirement of a modern Army for technical skill in its people, there is the necessity for judgement and imagination - for leadership. - General Lyman L. Lemnitzer

Much of the coordination, cooperation and tactical efficiency achieved by a unit is a direct result of properly applied leadership techniques. - General Bruce C. Clarke

Neither bars nor stars make an officer. An individual becomes an officer only when he develops those inner qualities of honesty, self--sacrifice, and attention to duty that are always inherent to real leadership. - General Samuel D. Sturgis, Jr

The foundation of leadership is character. - General Alexander M. Patch

Our success over our enemies will depend upon the degree of development of certain essentials of military personnel:
        1.     Skillful and resolute leadership.
        2.     A high morale.
        3.     Well organized and disciplined troops.
If we have the first of these three we are bound to have the last two. - General Alexander M. Patch

Numbers alone do not produce military strength. Soldier quality is essential to our strength. This duality is achieved by good leadership and instruction. - General Maxwell D. Taylor

A Platoon Commander who joins a platoon for the first time will normally have over 150 years experience among his Warrant Officers, Sergeants, Junior NCOs and men. Use them, seek and accept advice from them but remember one thing; it is you the Platoon Commander, the leader that must make the final decision. MWO G.R. Smith, CSMI Leadership Wing

The personality of the general is indispensable; he is the head, he is the all, of an army. The Gauls were not conquered by the Roman Legion, but by Caesar. It was not before the Carthagenian soldiers that Rome was made to tremble, but before Hannibal. It was not the Macedonian phalanx which penetrated into India, but Alexander. - Napoleon

A good leader takes a little more than his share of blame; a little less than his share of credit. - Arnold H. Glasgow

And remember that an honest leader leaves numerous living monuments in the form of leaders he has helped to develop and guide, who in part at least, reflect the guidance and man management to which they have been exposed. - Colonel J.A. Dextraze

Only by full use of your imagination and your initiative will you ever know your own capabilities as a leader. You will never know your capability until you stretch yourself, or are stretched beyond what you think you can do or should do. - Lieutenant General Arthur G. Trudeau

A strong leader knows that if he develops his associates he will be even stronger. - James F. Lincoln

We have good corporals and sergeants, and some good lieutenants and captains, and those are far more important than good generals. - General William Tecumseh Sherman

There is no type of human endeavor where it is so important that the leader understands all phases of his job as that of the profession of arms. - Major General James C. Fry

Everyone recognizes that the priceless qualities of leadership are not possessed by everyone. In the best leaders, certain fundamental qualities such as competence, clear-thinking, self-discipline, impartiality, and decisiveness are apparent. These characteristics give a leader an ability to inspire confidence in his subordinates. It takes these qualities, plus training and experience, to develop good leadership. Should we fail to develop leadership, we are lost. - Assistant Secretary of the Army Hugh M. Milton II

If an army fails, it is because its leaders have failed; if it succeeds, it is because they have succeeded. - General Matthew B. Ridgway

A good soldier, whether he leads a platoon or an army, is expected to look backward as well as forward, but he must think only forward. - General Douglas McArthur (1933)

The Officer Corps is the heart and soul of any military organization. It must be the reservoir of character and integrity, the fountainhead of professional competence, and the dynamo of leadership. - General Matthew B. Ridgway

There are no reluctant leaders. A real leader must really want the job. - Lieutenant General Ira C. Baker (Ret)

Today's officer must have the mental flexibility, the imagination, to utilize to the fullest extent the developments of modern technology. Nevertheless, he must not lose his soldier's soul in the laboratory. Above all he must have the integrity and character of a Washington, the moral conviction of a Lincoln, and the tenacity and fighting ability of an Eisenhower, a MacArthur and a Patton. These are high standards, but they are the standards of our present dedicated leadership, and will always be the hallmarks of the great officer. - Secretary of the Army William M. Brucker

To me, a successful leader is a man who gets people to do something that they may not want to do and gets them to do it willingly, enthusiastically, efficiently, and when he wants it done. - Major General Louis W. Prentiss

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