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Positive and Inspiring Leadership Quotes to Empower Women

Leadership comes in many different forms, from outspoken to solemn to by example, so we have put together a list of all the best leadership quotes for your next post. And if you’re looking for short Leadership quotes for Instagram, we also have you covered.

Now go ahead and browse through to find your favorite.

Leadership Quotes

“The best protection any woman can have is courage.” – Elizabeth Cady Stanton

“I never dreamed about success, I worked for it.” – Estée Lauder

“Leadership is about making others better as a result of your presence and making sure that impact lasts in your absence.” – Sheryl Sandberg

“Leadership is not about being liked; it’s about doing what is right.” – Oprah Winfrey

“I will not have my life narrowed down. I will not bow down to somebody else’s whim or desire.” – Alice Walker

“Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.” – Maya Angelou

“You don’t have to play masculine to be a strong woman.” – Mary Elizabeth Winstead

Short leadership quotes for women by Oprah

“We need to reshape our own perception of how we view ourselves. We have to step up as women and take the lead.” – Beyoncé

“I do not wish women to have power over men, but over themselves.” – Mary Wollstonecraft

“Being powerful is like being a lady. If you have to tell people you are, you aren’t.” – Margaret Thatcher

“Leadership is not about being in charge. It’s about taking care of those in your charge.” – Simon Sinek

“No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

“You are more powerful than you know; you are beautiful just as you are.” – Melissa Etheridge

“Well-behaved women rarely make history.” – Laurel Thatcher Ulrich

“If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun.” – Katharine Hepburn

“Somewhere behind the athlete you’ve become and the hours of practice and the coaches who have pushed you is a little girl who fell in love with the game and never looked back.” – Mia Hamm

“The old saying of work hard, play hard really works for me.” — Danielle LaPorte

“Inspiration usually comes during work rather than before it.” — Madeleine L’Engle

“Work hard, play hard, dream big, love loads, laugh as much as you can, and give back.” — Deirdre O’Kane

“Don’t be intimidated by what you don’t know. That can be your greatest strength.” – Sara Blakely

“We need women at all levels, including the top, to change the dynamic, reshape the conversation, to make sure women’s voices are heard and heeded, not overlooked and ignored.” – Sheryl Sandberg

“A woman with a voice is by definition a strong woman.” – Melinda Gates

Leadership quotes for women by Carter

“I have learned that as long as I hold fast to my beliefs and values – and follow my own moral compass – then the only expectations I need to live up to are my own.” – Michelle Obama

“I have never thought of myself as a woman in the military. I have always just thought of myself as a person doing a job I love.” – Captain Rosemary Mariner

“To handle yourself, use your head; to handle others, use your heart.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

“Above all, be the heroine of your life, not the victim.” – Nora Ephron

“You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated.” – Maya Angelou

“I could never be the woman behind a man. I’m the woman in front of the man.” – Golda Meir

“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

“The only way to do great work is to love what you do.” – Steve Jobs

“When I dare to be powerful, to use my strength in the service of my vision, then it becomes less and less important whether I am afraid.” – Audre Lorde

“I don’t know anything about luck. I’ve never banked on it and I’m afraid of people who do. Luck to me is Hard work – and realizing what is opportunity and what isn’t.” — Lucille Ball

“We learn through experience that leadership is not about rank but about character.” – Grace Hopper

“The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me.” – Ayn Rand

Women empowerment quotes

“There are no shortcuts to any place worth going.” — Beverly Sills

“The way to achieve your own success is to be willing to help somebody else get it first.” – Iyanla Vanzant

“Who runs the world? Girls!” – Beyoncé

“Success isn’t about how much money you make; it’s about the difference you make in people’s lives.” – Michelle Obama

“Stay positive and happy. Work hard and don’t give up hope. Be open to criticism and keep learning. Surround yourself with happy, warm, and genuine people.” — Tena Desae

“If they don’t give you a seat at the table, bring a folding chair.” – Shirley Chisholm

“You can’t be what you can’t see.” – Marian Wright Edelman

 “My coach said I run like a girl, and I said if he ran a little faster he could too.” – Mia Hamm

“If you don’t love what you do, you won’t do it with much conviction or passion.” – Mia Hamm

“It doesn’t matter what your background is or where you come from, if you have dreams and goals, that’s all that matters.” – Serena Williams

Short empowering quotes for women

 “The most effective way to do it, is to do it.” – Amelia Earhart

“You get in life what you have the courage to ask for.” – Oprah Winfrey

“Women, if the soul of the nation is to be saved, I believe you must become its soul.” – Coretta Scott King

“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

“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

“It’s not about the gender, it’s about the ability to deliver.” – Major General Michelle Rose

“Champions keep playing until they get it right.” – Billie Jean King

“I am building a fire, and every day I train, I add more fuel. At just the right moment, I light the match.” – Mia Hamm

“You must never be fearful about what you are doing when it is right.” – Rosa Parks

“I think that my biggest attribute to any success that I have had is hard work. There really is no substitute for working hard.” — Maria Bartiromo

“A woman with a voice is, by definition, a strong woman.” – Melinda Gates

“the small things are often the ones that matter most.” – Lt. Col. Tammy Duckworth

“It’s not about getting a seat at the table, it’s about owning the entire building.” – Ava DuVernay

“I am a woman with thoughts and questions and shit to say. I say if I’m beautiful. I say if I’m strong. You will not determine my story – I will.” – Amy Schumer

Person looking at lake with uplifting quotes for women by Hillary Clinton

“Success is getting what you want, happiness is wanting what you get.” – Ingrid Bergman

“We do not need magic to transform our world. We carry all the power we need inside ourselves already.” – J.K. Rowling

“I am not afraid of storms, for I am learning how to sail my ship.” – Louisa May Alcott

“A true champion works hard and never loses sight of her dreams.” – Gabby Douglas

“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” – Muriel Strode

“I learned to always take on things I’d never done before. Growth and comfort do not coexist.” – Virginia Rometty

“I’m not bossy. I’m the boss.” – Beyoncé

“Don’t be the girl who fell. Be the girl who got back up.” – Jenette Stanley

“Courage is the most important of all the virtues, because without courage you can’t practice any other virtue consistently.” – Maya Angelou

“There are still many causes worth sacrificing for, so much history yet to be made.” – Michelle Obama

“I think the best role models for women are people who are fruitfully and confidently themselves.” – Meryl Streep

Person looking at lake with powerful quotes for women by Serena Williams

“Opportunities are usually disguised as hard work, so most people don’t recognize them.” — Ann Landers

 “A strong woman looks a challenge dead in the eye and gives it a wink.” – Gina Carey

“Power’s not given to you. You have to take it.” – Beyoncé

“I’m tough, ambitious, and I know exactly what I want. If that makes me a bitch, okay.” – Madonna

“If you want to lead, you must first know how to follow.” – General Janet Wolfenbarger

“The art of leadership is saying no, not yes. It is very easy to say yes.” – Margaret Thatcher

“It takes a strong woman to take charge in a situation where lives are at risk.” – General Lori Robinson

“If your dream is a big dream, and if you want your life to work on the high level you say you do, there’s no way around doing the work it takes to get you there.” — Joyce Chapman

“No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

Person looking at ocean with positive quotes for women by Simone Biles

“When we speak, we are afraid our words will not be heard or welcomed. But when we are silent, we are still afraid. So it is better to speak.” – Audre Lorde

“The world needs strong women. Women who will lift and build others, who will love and be loved, women who live bravely, both tender and fierce.” – Amy Tenney

“Do not bring people in your life who weigh you down. And trust your instincts – good relationships feel good.” – Oprah Winfrey

“I always did something I was a little not ready to do. I think that’s how you grow.” – Marissa Mayer

“The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.” – Alice Walker

“If you want something said, ask a man; if you want something done, ask a woman.” – Margaret Thatcher

“Our strength as a military community comes from our diversity.” – General Nadja West

Person looking at sunrise with motivational quotes for women by Martha Stewart

“I’ve had to learn to fight all my life – got to learn to keep smiling. If you smile, things will work out.” – Serena Williams

“I work hard, and I tend to play hard. I very seldom rest hard.” — Jacqueline Bisset

“Success isn’t about how much money you make, it’s about the difference you make in people’s lives.” – Michelle Obama

“Nothing can dim the light which shines from within.” – Maya Angelou

“True leadership stems from individuality that is honestly and sometimes imperfectly expressed.” – Sheryl Sandberg

“There’s no limit to what we, as women, can accomplish.” – Michelle Obama

“The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity.” – Amelia Earhart

 “Some women fear the fire, some women simply become it.” – R.H. Sin

“There’s something so special about a woman who dominates in a man’s world.” – Rihanna

Person watching sunset with inspirational quotes for women by Michelle Obama

“Never underestimate the power of dreams and the influence of the human spirit. We are all the same in this notion: The potential for greatness lives within each of us.” – Wilma Rudolph

“I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls.” – Audrey Hepburn

“I know that life is much more than medals and trophies. It is the ability to inspire others.” – Allyson Felix

“You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.” – Maya Angelou

“It is not the absence of fear, but the ability to manage and overcome it, that makes a good leader.” – General Ann E. Dunwoody

“Inspiration is the windfall from hard work and focus.” — Helen Hanson

“You have to believe in yourself when no one else does – that makes you a winner right there.” – Venus Williams

“I learned the value of hard work by working hard.” — Margaret Mead

Woman looking over clouds with inspirational quotes about strong women by Gina Carey

“A sign of a hard worker is one who works without complaint.” — Sarah Price

“Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says I’ll try again tomorrow.” – Mary Anne Radmacher

“Success doesn’t come from what you do occasionally, it comes from what you do consistently.” – Marie Forleo

“Dream big and dare to fail.” – Norma Mortenson (Marilyn Monroe)

“Sometimes there’s not a better way. Sometimes there’s only the hard way.” — Mary E. Pearson

“We think, mistakenly, that success is the result of the amount of time we put in at work, instead of the quality of time we put in.” — Ariana Huffington

“A woman is like a tea bag – you can’t tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

“Leadership is not about being in charge. It’s about taking care of those in your charge.” – Simon Sinek

“Don’t wait for opportunities to happen, create them.” – Madame C.J. Walker

Woman looking at sunrise with inspiration for women quotes by Tyra Banks

“Don’t waste a single second. Just move forward as fast as you can, and go for it.” – Rebecca Woodcock

“The most effective way to do it is to do it.” – Amelia Earhart

“I had no idea that history was being made. I was just tired of giving up.” – Rosa Parks

“What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” – Jane Goodall

“Leadership means learning to lead by example, being compassionate, but remaining firm.” – Ret. General Lori Robinson

“I am a woman with thoughts and questions and shit to say.” – Amy Schumer

“The only one who can tell you ‘you can’t win’ is you, and you don’t have to listen.” – Jessica Ennis-Hill

“I always believe I can beat the best, achieve the best. I always see myself in the top position.” – Serena Williams

So that is it for our list of Leadership Quotes. We hope you found the perfect one!

If you like these, you might also want to check out our other lists of Hard Work Quotes, Funny Work Quotes, Teamwork Quotes, Team Building Quotes and Happy Boss Day Quotes.

Woman holding up a clear chunk of ice on the beach

About the Author

Laynni Locke

I am Laynni Locke, a Canadian writer, reader and traveller with a passion for sharing life’s moments on social media. Keeping friends and family in the loop of our lives though photos and videos has become an essential activity for most.

And it doesn’t matter if you are travelling, celebrating a special occasion or just appreciating day-to-day life, when you take that perfect photo you are going to need the perfect caption or quote before you share it. Which is why we started Routinely Shares, providing comprehensive lists of quotes and captions to cover every occasion, adventure or loved one.

With extensive experience as a travel writer, social media specialist and grant writer, I have made it my mission to curate the best and easiest to use lists for your next post.

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