Mary McDonnell Quotes

Good men who exercise power are really the most fascinating of all people.

Power is dangerous unless you have humility.

I can tell you character traits I admire and work to develop in myself - perseverance, self-discipline, courage to stand up for what is right even when it is against one's friends or one's self.

Next to power without honor, the most dangerous thing in the world is power without humor.

Great leaders are willing to sacrifice the numbers to save the people. Poor leaders sacrifice the people to save the numbers.

The best people to have power are the ones who don't want it.

He who has great power should use it lightly.

Overall, the challenge of leadership is both moral and one of developing the characteristics that make us respected by one another.

Leadership demands that we make tough choices.

I have learned a great deal in my life, and DeMolay helped me to learn that character and integrity should be cornerstones in your life. As a Senior DeMolay, as a father, the best advice I could ever give would be to take the high road in life, and you will be able to build trusting relationships.

Rulers should always remind themselves that they are men like the least of their subjects.

Women deeply want men who are competent and powerful. And I don't mean power in that they can exert tyrannical control over others. That's not power. That's just corruption.

We will build men of character.

Power without abuse loses its charm.

Good character consists of recognizing the selfishness that inheres in each of us and trying to balance it against the altruism to which we should all aspire. It is a difficult balance to strike, but no definition of goodness can be complete without it.

The leader who exercises power with honor will work from the inside out, starting with himself.

Somebody has to stand when other people are sitting. Somebody has to speak when other people are quiet.

It takes tremendous discipline to control the influence, the power you have over other people's lives.

Great leaders don't need to act tough. Their confidence and humility serve to underscore their toughness.

The highest qualities of character... must be earned.

Power tires only those who do not have it.

Every one, more or less, loves Power, yet those who most wish for it are seldom the fittest to be trusted with it.

A leader is one who, out of madness or goodness, volunteers to take upon himself the woe of the people. There are few men so foolish, hence the erratic quality of leadership in the world.

Character may be manifested in the great moments, but it is made in the small ones.

The first test of a truly great man is his humility. By humility I don't mean doubt of his powers or hesitation in speaking his opinion, but merely an understanding of the relationship of what he can say and what he can do.