27 Inspirational Quotes on Leadership by Women

By
Sara Davis avatar
on April 29#best-practices
challenges of women leadership and quotes to overcome

The smallest words have the power to change your life. Sometimes, it's a line in a book, a quote in a movie, or words from a friend. As a company, Workast is a proud supporter of women in the workforce. We've compiled a list of our favorite 27 quotes on leadership by women, to help inspire and motivate you on your journey to becoming the best leader you can be.

"I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the water to create many ripples.”

- Mother Teresa


"The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched - they must be felt with the heart."

- Helen Keller

 Leslie Yerkes, President - Catalyst Consulting Group, Inc.

 "I don't believe in failure and I don't believe in competition. The only time you can fail is when you stop, and the only person you should consider competition is who you were yesterday."

 JESS GOLDSMITH, Illustrator and Designer - CHICKOFALLTRADE.COM

womens leadership traits and managing work

"Leadership is not a person or a position. It is a complex moral relationship between people, based on trust, obligation, commitment, emotion, and a shared vision of the good."

Piyushi Dhir - Help and Wellness.

"Power isn't control at all - power is strength, and giving that strength to others. A leader isn't someone who forces others to make him stronger; a leader is someone willing to give their strength to others that they may have the strength to stand on their own."  

- Beth Revis

Meg Marrs Founder - Safer Senior Care

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

- Sheryl Sandberg


“I think realizing that you’re not alone, that you are standing with millions of your sisters around the world is vital.”

- Malala Yousafzai

Caroline Lee, Cofounder - Cocosign

"The most effective way to do it is to do it!"

- Amelia Earhart

Essie Button

strong woman strong workforce

"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 Ardern

Jill Canes, NP., Founder - Face Forward Medical Aesthetics

"We need to accept that we won't always make the right decisions, that we'll screw up royally sometimes - understanding that failure is not the opposite of success, it's part of success."

- Arianna Huffington 

"I tell my daughters to have their voice in this world, and it became clear I needed to role-model that."

- Melinda Gates

Alice, Founder - Mommy To Mom


"The quality of your decisions determines the quality of your life."

Tanya Taylor

"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 Pardon

Emily Owen, Founder - EasyBlogEmily.com 

getting things done

"Done is better than perfect."

- Sheryl Sandberg'

Jessica Alderson - CEO & Co-founder - So Syncd

“If you don’t have an evolving growth strategy, then you and your team are just driving around the block. You may be doing well, but you’re not going anywhere.”

- Shannon Byrne Susko


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)

Roy Ferman, Founder & CEO - Seek Capital

"If you are committed to creating value and if you aren’t afraid of hard times; obstacles become utterly unimportant. A nuisance perhaps; but with no real power. The world respects creation; people will get out of your way."

- Candice Carpenter Olson (Co-CEO, Fullbridge)

Benjamin Smith, Founder of Disco

buckle up and lead ladies

"Buckle up, and know that it’s going to be a tremendous amount of work, but embrace it."

- Tory Burch Jori Patton, Marketing Manager and Designer - Fast Food Menu Prices

 "Fight for the things that you care about, but do it in a way that will lead others to join you."

- Ruth Bader Ginsburg


“The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me?”

- Ayn Rand

Jeff Goodwin, Sr. Director Performance Marketing & e-Commerce - Orgain.

"To lead you must first listen with an understanding heart and then act with a decisive mind."

Shannon Peel, Marketapeel

 “Don’t follow the crowd, let the crowd follow you”

- Margaret Thatcher

Eden Cheng, Founder, WeInvoice

women are of great strength - tools women need to grow

"On my own I will just create, and if it works, it works, and if it doesn’t, I’ll create something else. I don’t have any limitations on what I think I could do or be."

- Oprah Winfrey  

If you want to lift the performance of the organization, you have to lift yourself...my message to my team was always meet my bar, and that bar would constantly be moved up."

- Indra Nooyi


“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

Lilia Gorbachik, product manager - effective-product--manager.com

"We may encounter many defeats, but we may not be defeated."

- Maya Angelou

 Alexandra Nima, MA, CEO - The Sophisticated Geek

“Always be a first-rate version of yourself and not a second rate version of someone else.”

- Judy Garland

What's your favorite quote on leadership by women? Let us know we'd love to hear it. Send us a line or drop us a tweet @worksasthq. Here's to strong women!

For further reading, check out our list of top recommended books for entrepreneurs.

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