Robert K. Greenleaf Leadership Quotations

The best leaders are clear. They continually light the way, and in the process, let each person know that what they do makes a difference. The best test as a leader is: Do those served grow as persons; do they become healthier, wiser, freer, more autonomous, more likely themselves to become leaders?

Good leaders must first become good servants.

Leadership must first and foremost meet the needs of others.

Servant leadership always empathizes, always accepts the person, but sometimes refuses to accept some of the person's effort or performance as good enough.

Where there is not community, trust, respect, ethical behavior are difficult for the young to learn and for the old to maintain.

The only test of leadership is that somebody follows.

Ego can’t sleep. It micro-manages. It disempowers. It reduces our capability. It excels in control.

The most serious failure of leadership is the failure to foresee