This post was originally published May, 2016 and most recently updated June, 2024.

We originally published this roundup of quotes about bravery and leadership in May, 2016 as an homage to Memorial Day and it became one our most popular posts of all time. So we’ve updated it with six new bonus quotes from some of the smartest leaders in our network as a summer celebration of both Memorial Day and July 4th—two holidays that honor the people who bravely gave their lives while serving in the US Armed Forces and founding our nation.

These holidays offer a perfect opportunity to celebrate the virtues of bravery and courage, virtues so admirably embodied by the men and women, past and present, who serve our country.  It’s crucial to reflect on these qualities and bring them into our leadership.

Consider the essential behaviors of exemplary leadership: integrity (even when it’s hard), authenticity (no matter what), tough-mindedness on standards, tender-heartedness with people, passion for performance, and clarity (to name a few). We cannot embody any of these if we do not approach them with courage and fortitude as we weather the stormy seas of decision-making.

There will always come a time when things get tough. That’s when we need our courage to kick in and empower us to stay the course while remaining true to who we are.

To be intrepid on your leadership journey, read and reflect on these 38 quotes about bravery and leadership; these insights can help you channel your inner warrior as you  face the ceaseless challenges that await.

38 Quotes about Bravery and Leadership

1. “The pressure of adversity does not affect the mind of the brave man . . . It is more powerful than external circumstances.” – SENECA

2.  “Don’t be afraid to challenge the pros, even in their own backyard.”– GENERAL COLIN POWELL

3. “Without courage we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can’t be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest.” –DR. MAYA ANGELOU

4. “I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.” – NELSON MANDELA

5. “As you move outside of your comfort zone, what was once the unknown and frightening becomes your new normal.”– ROBIN SHARMA

6. “It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.” –E.E. CUMMINGS

7. “Moral excellence comes about as a result of habit. We become just by doing just acts, temperate by doing temperate acts, brave by doing brave acts.”– ARISTOTLE

8. “Take chances, make mistakes. That’s how you grow. Pain nourishes your courage. You have to fail in order to practice being brave.”– MARY TYLER MOORE

9. “Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice.” – BILL GEORGE

10. “The real man smiles in trouble, gathers strength from distress, and grows brave by reflection.” –THOMAS PAINE

11. “The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain.”– DOLLY PARTON

12. “Self-reflection encourages great bravery. Rationalization is your greatest enemy.”– AWA KENZO

13. “You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.” –ABRAHAM LINCOLN

14. “Fear has its use but cowardice has none.”– GANDHI

15. “Fortune always favors the brave, and never helps a man who does not help himself.” – P.T. BARNUM

16. “Conscience is the root of all true courage; if a man would be brave let him obey his conscience.” –JAMES FREEMAN CLARK

17. “Integrate what you believe in every single area of your life. Take your heart to work and ask the most and best of everybody else, too.”– MERYL STREEP

18. “Buy the ticket, take the ride.”– HUNTER S. THOMPSON

19. “Each person must live their life as a model for others.” –ROSA PARKS

20. “Get involved in something that you care so much about that you want to make it the greatest it can possibly be, not because of what you will get, but just because it can be done.” –JIM COLLINS

21. “If you always put a limit on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them.” – BRUCE LEE

22. “I beg you take courage; the brave soul can mend even disaster.” –CATHERINE THE GREAT

23. “It is courage, courage, courage, that raises the blood of life to crimson splendor. Live bravely and present a brave front to adversity.”– HORACE

24. “The thing you fear most has no power. Your fear of it is what has the power. Facing the truth really will set you free.” –OPRAH

25. “You must take personal responsibility. You cannot change the circumstances, the seasons, or the wind, but you can change yourself. That is something you have charge of. ” –JIM ROHN

26. “Being aware of your fear is smart. Overcoming it is the mark of a successful person.” –SETH GODIN

27. “It is curious that physical courage should be so common in the world and moral courage so rare.” –MARK TWAIN

28. “All that an obstacle does with brave men is, not to frighten them, but to challenge them.”– WOODROW WILSON

29.“The best protection any women can have . . . is courage.” – ELIZABETH CADY STANTON

30. “Between stimulus and response, there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.” –VIKTOR FRANKL

31. “The obstacle is the path.”– ZEN PROVERB

32. “Courage is being scared to death, but saddling up anyway.” –JOHN WAYNE

33. “Stop acting as if life is a rehearsal. Live this day as if it were your last. The past is over and gone. The future is not guaranteed.” –WAYNE DYER

34. “Until you have done something for humanity, you should be ashamed to die.” –HORACE MANN

35. “I believe that the most important single thing, beyond discipline and creativity is daring to dare.” –  DR. MAYA ANGELOU

36. “You cannot swim for new horizons until you have courage to lose sight of the shore.” –WILLIAM FAULKNER

37. “The best way out is always through.” –ROBERT FROST

38. “You can choose courage, or you can choose comfort, but you cannot choose both.”– BRENÉ BROWN

6 New Bonus Quotes on Bravery & Leadership from Top Thought Leaders in the ConantLeadership Network 

 1. “You have everything you need right inside you, in order to do great things.” – CEO of Siemens USA, BARBARA HUMPTON, from the BLUEPRINT Leadership Summit Conversation, 2 Top CEOs Say Optimism & Courage Are the Key to Shaping the Future

2. “We don’t say that some of us are born to be kind, or some of us are born to be fair, or some of us are born to be trustworthy. We say it’s the responsibility of all of us. The same should be true of courageous action.” – Professor of Leadership and author of the book, Choosing Courage, JIM DETERT from the BLUEPRINT Leadership Summit Conversation, 2 Top Leadership Experts on How to Be Competently Courageous

3. “You have to be that authentic person and you have to stand up, to stand in the fire, even though you’re going to get criticized . . . and have the courage to do the right thing.” Harvard Business School Professor and Former CEO of Medtronic, BILL GEORGE, from the BLUEPRINT Leadership Summit Conversation, Bill George & Doug Conant on Leading Authentically

4. “We don’t want to empower the victim mindset. We want to empower the problem-solving mindset.” – Harvard Business School Professor and creator of the concept of “psychological safety,” AMY EDMONDSON, from the BLUEPRINT Leadership Summit Conversation, Amy Edmondson on How to Harness the Power of Psychological Safety

5. “A leader’s tolerance for discomfort is a huge indicator of their capacity for courage and empathy.” – Renowned Research and Multiple-Times NYT Bestselling Author, BRENÉ BROWN, from the BLUEPRINT Leadership Summit Conversation, Empathy Is the Secret Source of Connection 

6. “The magnitude of your courage is determined by the strength of your leadership Foundation. If you’re not firmly rooted in who you are and what you believe, you won’t be able to stand up for yourself and others when it matters most.” – ConantLeadership Founder, DOUG CONANT and ConantLeadership Director of Content, AMY FEDERMAN, from the article, ‘Courage Is the Mother Skill’ – Why Leaders Must Learn to Be Brave

Looking for more insights on bravery?

• Explore the COURAGE chapter in The Blueprint: 6 Practical Steps to Lift Your Leadership to New Heights (Pages 223-231)
• Download your free first chapter of The Blueprint and bravely kickstart your leadership transformation journey
• Engage with our growing suite of resources on courage

Become Your Bravest Leadership Self

Take the first step towards fundamentally lifting the trajectory of your leadership at our signature leadership development program, The BLUEPRINT Boot Camp. This two-day virtual course will challenge and enlighten you as you explore thought-provoking questions and unearth career-altering insights.

Emerge from this boot camp armed with all the tools needed to courageously live into your unique leadership model throughout the course of your career. 

An enlightening pre-and post-program curriculum of correspondence, interaction, reading, and collaborative group work provide an ongoing leadership learning experience like no other. Learn more or schedule your free consultation today. 

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