When we talk about leadership, the first word we think of probably leans towards masculine characteristics. However, women today have been able to change these gender stereotypes. To celebrate their achievement and help jump start your leadership effort, we compiled the best female leadership quotes.
These roundup of female leadership quotes are from some of the most extraordinary female of the world. They come from different walks of life; business, politics, activist, and more; but their words will resonate with all of you. Scroll down.
Related post: Simon Sinek quotes on leadership.
Leadership quotes by women
A good leader inspires people to have confidence in the leader, a great leader inspires people to have confidence in themselves. — Eleanor Roosevelt
Stepping up as a leader can feel risky. The relationships you invest in and the people you bring along with you are your safety net. — Jo Miller
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 his strength to others that they may have the strength to stand on their own. — Beth Revis
Without passion, a person will have very little influence as a leader. — Michele Payn-Knoper
From this point forward, the tasks you let go of will define you more as a leader than what you take on. — Jo Miller
Feedback, if you’re willing to hear it and even if it stings at first, can be one of the most powerful engines behind your development as a leader. — Jo Miller
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 ability to learn is the most important quality a leader can have. — Padmasree Warrior
A good leader is able to paint a picture of a vision for the future and then enlist others to go on the journey with her. A truly conscious leader recognizes that it is not about her, but that the team is looking to her for inspiration and direction. Keeping her ego in check is essential. — Tamra Ryan
Leadership should be more participative than directive, more enabling than performing. — Mary D. Poole
Quotes from inspirational female leaders
You may not always have a comfortable life, and you will not always be able to solve all of the world’s problems at once but don’t ever underestimate the importance you can have because history has shown us that courage can be contagious and hope can take on a life of its own. — Michelle Obama
Leadership is about making others better as a result of your presence, and making sure that impact lasts in your absence. — Sheryl Sandberg
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
We are not interested in the possibilities of defeat; they do not exist. — Queen Victoria
With kids, they don’t do what you want them to do when you want them to do it. Organizations don’t necessarily, either. You’ve got to listen. You’ve got to learn how to influence. — Ellen J. Kullman
Part of leadership is knowing when to go ahead with a decision that’s within your authority because you’re really convinced it’s the right thing, even if other people don’t understand it at that point. — Dr. Ingrid Mattson
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
To handle yourself, use your head; to handle others, use your heart. — Eleanor Roosevelt
I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the water to create many ripples. — Mother Teresa
Leadership is not about doing more. It’s about switching from doing to leading. — Jo Miller
Inspirational quotes for women leaders
People will say to me, ‘You’ve played so many strong women,’ and I’ll say, ‘Have you ever said to a man, ‘You’ve played so many strong men?’ No! Because the expectation is men are varied. Why can’t we have that expectation about women? — Meryl Streep
Dreams are lovely but they are just dreams. Fleeting, ephemeral, pretty. But dreams do not come true just because you dream them. It’s hard work that makes things happen. It’s hard work that creates change. — Shonda Rhimes
The path from dreams to success does exist. — Kalpana Chawla
The difference between successful people and others is how long they spend time feeling sorry for themselves. — Barbara Corcoran
Champions keep playing until they get it right. — Billie Jean King
Listening to others, especially those with whom we disagree, tests our own ideas and beliefs. It forces us to recognize, with humility, that we don’t have a monopoly on the truth. — Janet Yellen
Women need to shift from thinking ‘I’m not ready to do that’ to thinking ‘I want to do that’ – and ‘I’ll learn by doing it.’ — Sheryl Sandberg
I raise up my voice not so I can shout but so that those without a voice can be heard. We cannot succeed when half of us are held back. — Malala Yousazai
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
I had to make my own living and my own opportunity! But I made it! Don’t sit down and wait for the opportunities to come. Get up and make them. — Madam C. J. Walker
Encouraging female leadership quotes
Leadership is a series of behaviors rather than a role for heroes. — Margaret Wheatley
I am endlessly fascinated that playing football is considered a training ground for leadership, but raising children isn’t. — Dee Dee Myers
Our emerging workforce is not interested in command and control leadership. They don’t want to do things because I said so, they want to do things because they want to do them. — Irene Rosenfield
Leaders are not just born. Sure, some people are born with strong competencies and strengths for leading in certain situations, but it is very clear that leadership can also be developed. That means everyone can strengthen their skills and abilities to lead and influence. — Dr. Susan Madsen
I know of no single formula for success. But over the years I have observed that some attributes of leadership are universal and are often about finding ways of encouraging people to combine their efforts, their talents, their insights, their enthusiasm and their inspiration to work together. — Queen Elizabeth II
Leadership is the ability to guide others without force into a direction or decision that leaves them still feeling empowered and accomplished. — Lisa Cash Hanson
I believe in a quiet, strong and grounded leadership. I think some of the best leaders are those whose work is widely known and respected but who, themselves, are relatively unknown. — Rachael Chong
Leadership is about making others better as a result of your presence and making sure that impact lasts in your absence. — Sheryl Sandberg
To me, leadership is about encouraging people. It’s about stimulating them. It’s about enabling them to achieve what they can achieve – and to do that with a purpose. — Christine Lagarde
Leaders should strive for authenticity over perfection. — Sheryl Sandberg
Quotes from strong female leaders
You have to fight because you can’t count on anyone else fighting for you. And you have to fight for people who can’t fight for themselves. To get anything of real value, you have to fight for it. — Ronda Rousey
There is a stubbornness about me that never can bear to be frightened at the will of others. My courage always rises at every attempt to intimidate me. — Jane Austen
The best way to change it is to do it. Right? And then after a while, you become it and it’s easy. — Ursula Burns
Abandon anything about your life and habits that might be holding you back. — Sophia Amoruso
I love to see a young girl go out and grab the world by the lapels. Life’s a bitch. You’ve got to go out and kick ass. — Maya Angelou
We must have ideals and try to live up to them, even if we never quite succeed. Life would be a sorry business without them. With them, it’s grand and great. — Lucy Maude Montgomery
You have got to do the right thing even if it is painful. Don’t trim or track all over the place. Set your course and take the difficult decisions because that is what needs to be done. — Margaret Thatcher
Every twist and turn in life are an opportunity to learn something new about yourself, your interests, your talents, and how to set and then achieve goals. — Jameela Jamil
Fight for the things that you care about, but do it in a way that will lead others to join you. — Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Well hear me now. Using my voice, amongst a growing chorus of voices that will not be silenced. Let’s make some noise, Australia. — Grace Tame
Empowering female leader quotes
When people feel that they are able to bring their emotional truth to the workplace with leaders who are compassionate and curious rather than leaders who want the answers, that is a first building block of emotional agility. — Susan David
Embrace what you don’t know, especially in the beginning, because what you don’t know can become your greatest asset. It ensures that you will absolutely be doing things different from everybody else. — Sara Blakely
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
My philosophy is that not only are you responsible for your life, but doing the best at this moment puts you in the best place for the next moment. — Oprah Winfrey
Professional intellectuals are the voice of a culture and are, therefore, its leaders, its integrators and its bodyguards. — Ayn Rand
Dreams do not come true just because you dream them. It’s hard work that makes things happen. It’s hard work that creates change. — Shonda Rhimes
Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person. Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies. — Mother Teresa
The success of every woman should be the inspiration to another. We should raise each other up. Make sure you’re very courageous: be strong, be extremely kind, and above all be humble. — Serena Williams
The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me? — Ayn Rand
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has. — Margaret Mead
Famous quotes by women leaders
You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated. In fact, it may be necessary to encounter the defeats, so you can know who you are, what you can rise from, how you can still come out of it. — Maya Angelou
The most important words that have helped me in life, when things have gone right or when things have gone wrong, are ’accept responsibility.’ — Billie Jean King
You don’t need a title to be a leader or to accomplish amazing things. See yourself as a leader, now, without changing who you are. — Jo Miller
There are two kinds of stones, as everyone knows, one of which rolls. — female leadership quotes by Amelia Earhart
When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us. — Helen Keller
We are often so focused on trying to fix our weaknesses that we neglect to nurture our strengths. — Jo Miller
There’s a lot you can accomplish by yourself, but if you want to do bigger things, it’s going to take a community. — Serpil Bayraktar
Leadership is hard to define, and good leadership even harder. But if you can get people to follow you to the ends of the earth, you are a great leader. — Indra Nooyi
Emotional intelligence is the ability to use emotion to increase your own and others’ success. — Annie McKee
You have to look at your career and personal life at the big-picture level: it’s a marathon, not a sprint. Doing that helps me feel OK during the weeks when one part of my life overwhelms the other. — Joanna Horsnail
Famous female leaders in history quotes
Do you know that one of the great problems of our age is that we are governed by people who care more about feelings than they do about thoughts and ideas? — Margaret Thatcher
I am nice. There’s not such a thing as ‘too nice.’ But my expectations are high, and people do rise to my expectations. I don’t manage based on fear. I manage based on expectations. — Marjorie Kaplan
Seeing what is wrong and how it could be made right propels us into action, but in that action we often leave other people behind and don’t give ourselves enough time to be present, or to stop and reflect. Leaders have to get comfortable with pausing in that uncomfortable gap. — Jessica Lawrence
The important thing is to always ask the world to do some things. But sometimes they cannot be done, so you have to take a stab, and you have to do them. — female leadership quotes by Malala Yousafzai
I learned to always take on things I’d never done before. Growth and comfort do not coexist. — Ginni Rometty
People respond well to those that are sure of what they want. — female leadership quotes by Anna Wintour
Buckle up, and know that it’s going to be a tremendous amount of work, but embrace it. — Tory Burch
An important attribute of success is to be yourself. Never hide what makes you, you. — female leadership quotes by Indra Nooyi
Fearlessness is like a muscle. I know from my own life that the more I exercise it, the more natural it becomes to not let my fears run me. — Arianna Huffington
I think realizing that you’re not alone, that you are standing with millions of your sisters around the world is vital. — Malala Yousafzai
Female leadership quotes to empowering winner mentality
You need to spend political capital – be unafraid to introduce people, compliment somebody when it’s deserved and stand up for something you really believe in, rather than just go with the flow. — Amy Schulman
I have broken many glass ceilings – so I know it can be done. — female leadership quotes by Helen Clark
You can and should set your own limits and clearly articulate them. This takes courage, but it is also liberating and empowering, and often earns you new respect. — Rosalind Brewer
I think it’s a combination of personality traits that have helped me to succeed. Not only hard work – but patience, sacrifice and choosing my battles have all helped me to reach the point in my career to which I aspired, in a company I admired. — Katelyn Gleason
The only safe ship in a storm is leadership. — female leadership quotes by Faye Wattleton
No matter how senior you get in an organization, no matter how well you’re perceived to be doing, your job is never done. — Abigail Johnson
Make sure that you stay in touch with the people you’re interested in, make sure they’re aware of you, that you stay on their radar. — female leadership quotes by Tina Brown
You manage things; you lead people. — Grace Murray Hopper
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
You cannot live to please everyone else. You have to edify, educate and fulfill your own dreams and destiny. — female leadership quotes by Viola Davis
Women leadership quotes to enhance man management skill
Good leaders organize and align people around what the team needs to do. Great leaders motivate and inspire people with why they’re doing it. That’s purpose. And that’s the key to achieving something truly transformational. — Marillyn Hewson
Women lead in different ways. Women rarely feel the need to speak the most at a meeting to make their point. — female leadership quotes by Patricia Bellinger
Leadership is a two-way street, loyalty up and loyalty down. Respect for one’s superiors; care for one’s crew. — female leadership quotes by Grace Hopper
Leaders are not just born. Sure, some people are born with strong competencies and strengths for leading in certain situations, but it is very clear that leadership can also be developed. That means everyone can strengthen their skills and abilities to lead and influence. — Dr. Susan Madsen
Leadership is not about men in suits. It is a way of life for those who know who they are and are willing to be their best to create the life they want to live. — female leadership quotes by Kathleen Schafer
My best successes came on the heels of failures. — female leadership quotes by Barbara Corcoran
Strategic leaders must not get consumed by the operational and tactical side of their work. — Stephanie S. Mead
One’s philosophy is not best expressed in words; it is expressed in the choices one makes…and the choices we make are ultimately our responsibility. — Eleanor Roosevelt
If one is lucky, a solitary fantasy can totally transform one million realities. — female leadership quotes by Maya Angelou
Good leaders organize and align people around what the team needs to do. Great leaders motivate and inspire people with why they’re doing it. — Marillyn Hewson
Leadership sayings to elevate intuition
Every day, you have the power to choose our better history — by opening your hearts and minds, by speaking up for what you know is right. — Michelle Obama
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
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. — Joanne Ciulla
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. — Marianne Williamson
Making the decision to not follow a system, or someone else’s rules has allowed me to really dig into what my own strengths and gifts are without spending time feeling jaded or wasteful. — Ishita Gupta
See yourself as a leader now. Leadership is an action, not a position. — Cindy Pace
Don’t become indispensable for doing work that hides your potential. — Jo Miller
A good leader is able to paint a picture of a vision for the future and then enlist others to go on the journey with her. A truly conscious leader recognizes that it is not about her, but that the team is looking to her for inspiration and direction. Keeping her ego in check is essential. — Tamra Ryan
As a leader, it’s a major responsibility on your shoulders to practice the behavior you want others to follow. — Himanshu Bhatia
People do not follow a title. They follow a person whom they trust, respect, and believe in. — Dara Bazzano
Inspiring female quotes to creates the most leaders
I try to participate in esteemable acts. I help people, I try to be kind and walk in the shoes of others. It’s really all selfish because it makes me feel great. — Kristen Bell
Strategic leaders must not get consumed by the operational and tactical side of their work. They have a duty to find time to shape the future. — Stephanie S. Mead
I don’t go by the rule book. I lead from the heart, not the head. — Diana Spencer
No country can ever truly flourish if it stifles the potential of its women and deprives itself of the contributions of half of its citizens. — Michelle Obama
I’ve always subscribed to the belief that the best leader is not one who has the most followers, but one who creates the most leaders. — Stephanie Courtillier
We need to accept that we don’t always make the right decisions, that we’ll screw up royally sometimes. Understand that failure is not the opposite of success, it’s part of success. — Arianna Huffington
I strive every day – and in every program and offering we have at Integrous Women; to create more conscious, confident, and soulful leaders who, in return, will build a better world for all. — Stephanie Courtillier
You need to spend political capital – be unafraid to introduce people, compliment somebody when it’s deserved and stand up for something you really believe in, rather than just go with the flow. — Amy Schulman
I just love bossy women. I could be around them all day. To me, bossy is not a pejorative term at all. It means somebody’s passionate and engaged and ambitious and doesn’t mind leading. — Amy Poehler
You are never too small to make a difference. — female leadership quotes by Greta Thunberg
Female leadership words to reach the ultimate goals
We can’t pray or wish for diversity. But, we need intervention, attention, mentoring and development of those minorities to ensure all are represented in our organisations. — Indra Nooyi
When you’re pursuing any career really, but especially in one in technology, find your passion. And don’t let anything stand in your way. — Alyssa Johnson
Never stop trying to improve. Even when you feel really happy that you got to a space or you hit a milestone, set goals for yourself. Because it’s going to push you further and it’s going to make you maybe approach things in a different way. — Callie Reynolds
It’s super important to have really good conversations with your leaders and your mentors, because through those conversations, you’re going to get all of that great advice that helps you best highlight your career goals. — Carolyne Matseshe-Crawford
I typically stay close to people when they are new in a role or to a project, but then prefer to draw back once their momentum picks up, giving them the autonomy to run with things. If I’m micromanaging, it’s usually a bad sign! — Rowena Everson
People often repeat similar mistakes, as if they were inevitable, but it’s because they haven’t figured out the root cause behind these mistakes. If we can reflect regularly and really learn our lessons, the chances of success will greatly improve. — Jerry Zhang
I try to lead by example. I’m direct, demanding and inclusive, but I’m also a huge fan of simplifying everything in today’s highly complex world. — Rola Abu Manneh
It’s not always easy, and challenges can break people, but what’s important is having that ultimate goal in the back of your mind and reminding yourself of the prize at the end. — Cynthia El Asmar
Final thought
To achieving your success requires taking calculated opportunities and risks. If you’ve been comfortable for a while, it’s time to step out of your comfort zone. Now time to set a clear goal for the day and lead with determination.
And you got it! The 125 best female leadership quotes! I hope you found what you were looking for in this post. Did you enjoy these female leadership quotes? Have you found the most inspiring one? Please, comment below!
Read more: motivational quotes for women’s success | motivational strong woman quotes | powerful motivational quotes for success.