Whether you’re a fan of Simon Sinek’s books, have attended his workshops, or have worked with him in one-to-one sessions, you probably know how inspirational and empowering his work is.
I’ve gathered these 132 Simon Sinek quotes for you, which can give you the power to move forward on a bad day and inspire you in your personal and professional life.
Simon Sinek is considered a leader of thought who has innovated the area of business consultancy, teaching companies how to develop empathy and nurture relationships, deliver and receive constructive feedback, and how companies can best support and motivate individuals to achieve their maximum potential.
He brings new perspectives in the area of business that are generally perceived as fresh, optimistic, and humanitarian.
He is a role model for anyone looking to improve the corporate environment, and his books and workshops are highly beneficial for any company – whether it’s a big corporation or a small business just starting out.
He is also the author of several books which have also revolutionalized the field of personal development and business consultancy.
The most popular are: “Start with why (How great leaders inspire everyone to take action),” “Leaders eat last,” “The infinite game,” “Find your why,” and “Together is better.”
If you’re looking forwards to developing your leadership skills, starting your company, or doing business consultancy – or even if you’re just someone who works with people, I highly recommend reading his books.
After reading them, the way in which you relate to the working environment, your company, your co-workers, employees, or bosses will never be the same.
What will change will be your understanding of human nature, as you will see everyone as a human being with good and bad, with problems and strong points, and you will have higher knowledge on how to motivate people and bring out the best in everyone.
Regardless of the challenges you have been facing in your work environment so far, Simon Sinek’s perspective will help you navigate through them.
In the meantime, I recommend that you have a look at the following 132 Simon Sinek quotes and choose the ones that inspire you the most to display them in your work environment!
Simon Sinek Quotes On Leadership
1. “People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it.”
2. “A leader’s job is not to do the work for others; it’s to help others figure out how to do it themselves, to get things done, and to succeed beyond what they thought possible.”
3. “When we tell people to do their jobs, we get workers. When we trust people to get the job done, we get leaders.”
4. “When we lead with an infinite mindset in an infinite game, it leads to all kinds of problems, the most common of which include the decline of trust, cooperation, and innovation.”
5. “Hire people inspired to achieve something big over people who demand something big before they feel inspired.”
6. “Leadership is not about the next election; it’s about the next generation.”
7. “Great companies don’t hire skilled people and motivate them; they hire already motivated people and inspire them.”
8. “Leadership is neither a rank nor a title. It is a choice. The choice to provide care and protection for those for whom we are responsible.”
9. “Leaders are the ones who have the courage to go first, to put themselves at personal risk to open a path for others to follow.”
10. “If you hire people just because they can do a job, they’ll work for your money. But if you hire people who believe what you believe, they’ll work for you with blood, sweat, and tears.”
11. “The courage of leadership is giving others a chance to succeed even though you bear the responsibility for getting things done.”
12. “Bad leaders believe that they have to project control at all times.”
13. “Leaders don’t look for recognition from others; leaders look for others to recognize.”
14. “Under poor leaders, we feel like we work for the company. With good leaders, we feel like we work for each other.”
15. “The goal is not to be perfect by the end; the goal is to be better today.”
16. “The leaders who get the most out of their people are those who care most about their people.”
17. “There are only two ways to influence human behavior: you can manipulate it, or you can inspire it.”
18. “The cost of leadership is self-interest.”
19. “Great leaders are willing to sacrifice the numbers to save the people. Poor leaders sacrifice the people to save the numbers.”
20. “At well-led companies, people talk about the strength of the values. At poorly led companies, people complain about the pay & benefits.”
21. “A boss wants to pay for results; an employee wants recognition for effort. If a boss recognizes effort, they will get even better results.”
22. “Stress and anxiety at work have less to do with the work we do and more to do with weak management and leadership.”
23. “The true price of leadership is the willingness to place the needs of others above your own. Great leaders truly care about those they are privileged to lead and understand that the true cost of the leadership privilege comes at the expense of self-interest.”
24. “A star wants to see herself rise to the top. A leader wants to see those around her become stars.”
25. “You don’t hire for skills; you hire for attitude. You can always teach skills.”
26. “Leadership requires two things: a vision of the world that does not yet exist and the ability to communicate it.”
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27. “The responsibility of leadership is not to come up with all the ideas but to create an environment in which great ideas can thrive.”
28. “If you want to feel happy, do something for yourself. If you want to feel fulfilled, do something for someone else.”
29. “If you want to achieve anything in this world, you have to get used to the idea that not everyone will like you.”
30. “A leader’s job is not to do the work for others; it’s to help others figure out how to do it themselves, to get things done and to succeed beyond what they thought possible.”
31. “Great leaders don’t blame the tools they are given. Great leaders work to sharpen them.”
32. “Great leaders don’t see themselves as great; they see themselves as human.”
33. “Too many people confuse being rich or famous with being a leader. Wealth and fame are byproducts, not qualifications, to lead.”
34. “A leader without a title is better than a title without the ability to lead.”
35. “Be the leader you wish you had!”
36. “There are leaders, and there are those who lead. Leaders hold a position of power or influence. Those who lead inspire us.”
37. “You can easily judge a man's character by how he treats those who can do nothing for him.”
38. “Great leaders must have two things: a vision of the world that does not yet exist and the ability to communicate that vision clearly.”
39. “Leadership is not a rank or a position; it is a choice – a choice to look after the person to the left of us & the person to the right of us.”
40. “A boss who micromanages is like a coach who wants to get in the game. Leaders guide and support and then sit back to cheer from the sidelines.”
41. “If your actions inspire others to dream, learn, do more, and become more, you are a leader.”
42. “Always plan for the fact that no plan ever goes according to plan.”
43. “Bad leaders care about who is right. Good leaders care about what is right.”
44. “Leadership is not a license to do less. Leadership is a responsibility to do more.”
45. “Leadership is a way of thinking, a way of acting, and, most importantly, a way of communicating.”
46. “Leadership is not about being in charge. Leadership is about taking care of those in your charge.”
47.“If you don’t understand people, you don’t understand business.”
Simon Sinek Quotes on Teamwork
48. “A team is not a group of people that work together. A team is a group of people that trust each other.”
49. “A small team, committed to a cause bigger than themselves, can achieve absolutely anything.”
50. “There is a difference between working together and working in the same office.”
51. “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.”
52. “Stand for people. Not a product or service or metric or number. If we stand for real, living, breathing people, we will change the world.”
53. “No one knows everything. But together, we know a whole lot.”
54. “A culture is strong when people work with each other and for each other. A culture is weak when people work against each other for themselves.”
55. “The ability for a group of people to do remarkable things hinges on how well those people can pull together as a team.”
56. “Life is beautiful not because of the things we see or do. Life is beautiful because of the people we meet.”
Simon Sinek Quotes on Empathy and Love
57. “Empathy would be injected into the company, and trust would be the new standard. Preferring to see everyone as human instead of as a factory worker or office employee, Chapman made other changes so that everyone would be treated the same way.”
58. “There is a difference between listening and waiting for your turn to speak.”
59. “Empathy is not something we offer to our customers or our employees from nine to five… (it) is… “a second-by-second, minute-by-minute service that [we] owe to everyone if [we] want to call [ourselves] a leader.”
60. “Listening is not understanding the words of the question asked; listening is understanding why the question was asked in the first place.”
61. “The value of our lives is not determined by what we do for ourselves. The value of our lives is determined by what we do for others.”
62. “Don’t give to get. Give to inspire others to give.”
63. “My favorite definition of love is giving someone the power to destroy us and trusting they won’t use it.”
64. “Hearing is listening to what is said. Listening is hearing what isn’t said.”
Simon Sinek Quotes on Purpose and Success
65. “Working hard for something we don’t care about is called stress; working hard for something we love is called passion.”
66. “Happy employees ensure happy customers. And happy customers ensure happy shareholders – in that order.”
67. “Vision is the ability to talk about the future with such clarity it is as if we are talking about the past.”
68. “Innovation is not born from the dream; innovation is born from the struggle.”
69. “Don’t quit. Never give up trying to build the world you can see, even if others can’t see it. Listen to your drum and your drum only. It’s the one that makes the sweetest sound.”
70. “Success is when reality catches up to your imagination.”
71. “Give someone responsibility, and they will do their best. Make them accountable, and they will do even better.”
72. “Success always takes help. Failure is done alone.”
73. “Before we can build the world we want to live in, we have to imagine it.”
74. “Progress is more important than perfection.”
75. “And those who start with why have the ability to inspire those around them or find others who inspire them.”
76. “Words may inspire, but only action creates change.”
77. “A star wants to see himself rise to the top. A leader wants to see those around him rise to the top.”
78. “All organizations start with WHY, but only the great ones keep their WHY clear year after year.”
79. “The challenge of the unknown future is so much more exciting than the stories of the accomplished past.”
80. “Customers will never love a company until the employees love it first.”
81. “The primary ingredient for progress is optimism. The unwavering belief that something can better drive the human race forward.”
82. “Profit isn’t a purpose; it’s a result. To have purpose means the things we do are of real value to others.”
83. “Achievement happens when we pursue and attain what we want. Success comes when we clearly pursue why we want it.”
84. “What good is an idea if it remains an idea? Try. Experiment. Iterate. Fail. Try again. Change the world.”
85. “We’d achieve more if we chase the dream instead of the competition.”
86. “Most of us live our lives by accident—we live as it happens. Fulfillment comes when we live our lives on purpose.”
87. “The hardest part is starting. Once you get that out of the way, you’ll find the rest of the journey much easier.”
88. “Passion alone can’t cut it. For passion to survive, it needs structure. A WHY without HOW has little probability of success.”
89. “We achieve more when we chase the dream instead of the competition.”
90. “Greatness starts with a clear vision of the future.”
91. “Regardless of WHAT we do in our lives, our WHY—our driving purpose, cause, or belief—never changes.”
92. “Returning from work feeling inspired, safe, fulfilled, and grateful is a natural human right to which we are all entitled and not a modern luxury that only a few lucky ones are able to find.”
93. “If no one ever broke the rules, then we’d never advance.”
94. “When you compete against everyone else, no one wants to help you. But when you compete against yourself, everyone wants to help you.”
Simon Sinek Various Quotes – A Selection of the best
95. “Admitting that I didn’t know something and asking for help was perhaps the single best lesson I ever learned.”
96. “I find when you’re an optimist, life has a funny way of looking after you.”
97. “As the Zen Buddhist saying goes, how you do anything is how you do everything.”
98. “When people are financially invested, they want a return. When people are emotionally invested, they want to contribute.”
99. “Confidence is believing in yourself. Arrogance is telling others you’re better than they are. Confidence inspires. Arrogance destroys.”
100. “Vision is a destination – a fixed point to which we focus all effort. Strategy is a route – an adaptable path to get us where we want to go.”
101. “The most important thing to do before you die is live.”
102. “It is better to disappoint people with the truth than to appease them with a lie.”
103. “When we break eye contact to check our phones, we degrade trust. Let’s keep our phones away from meals & meetings.”
104. “One of the greatest things you can do is give your time and energy – things you will never get back.”
105. “Self-confidence is the ability to exercise restraint in the face of disrespect and still show respect in response.”
106. “We should invest in people, not ideas. A good idea is often destroyed by bad people, and good people can always make a bad idea better.”
107. “Pure pragmatism can’t imagine a bold future. Pure idealism can’t get anything done. It is the delicate blend of both that drives innovation.”
108. “The more you inspire, the more people will inspire you.”
109. “Knowledge is understanding based on what has been studied and learned. Wisdom is understanding based on what has been felt and experienced.”
110. “Value is not determined by those who set the price. Value is determined by those who choose to pay it.”
111. “Don’t show up to prove. Show up to improve.”
112. “Martin Luther King gave the ‘I Have a Dream’ speech, not the ‘I Have a Plan’ speech.”
113. “The only way to find out if it will work out is to do it.”
114. “Our vision is only actionable if we share it. Without sharing, it’s just a figment of our imagination.”
115. “You are authentic when you actually believe everything you say and do.”
116. “Intelligence looks for what is known to solve problems. Creativity looks for what is unknown to discover possibilities.”
117. “Generosity is doing something for someone else expecting nothing in return.”
118. “The value of networking is not measured by the number of people we meet but by the number of people we introduce to others.”
119. “Putting yourself first is not selfish. Quite the opposite. You must put your happiness and health first before you can be of help to anyone else.”
120. “I’m investing in myself, I’m investing in others, and I’m investing in my cause. I know if I persist, it will pay back in dividends, and it always does.”
121. “Communication is not about speaking what we think. Communication is about ensuring others hear what we mean.”
122. “True strength is the courage to admit our weaknesses.”
123. “It’s better to go slowly in the right direction than go speeding off in the wrong direction.”
124. “Trust has two dimensions: competence and integrity. We will forgive mistakes of competence. Mistakes of integrity are harder to overcome.”
125. “There’s nothing efficient about innovation.”
126. “Safe is good for sidewalks and swimming pools, but life requires risk if we are to get anywhere.”
127. “If everything goes right, we get a good experience. If everything goes wrong, we get a good story.”
128. “Value is a perception not a calculation. Value is something people feel, not something we tell them they get.”
129. “Dream big, start small. But most of all, start!”
130. “The next time someone starts listing all the reasons an idea won’t work or can’t happen, ask them to give 3 reasons it can.”
131. “Trust doesn’t develop from always doing the right thing. Trust comes from taking responsibility when we do the wrong thing.”
132. “When we help ourselves, we find moments of happiness. When we help others, we find lasting fulfillment.”
Which Simon Sinek Quote Is Your Favorite?
As you can see, Simon Sinek’s quotes are very diverse, as his personal development books talk about many useful topics.
Whether you were looking for inspiration in the area of your leadership skills, working as part of a team, finding your purpose or path to success, or simply needing some inspiration for the day, I’m sure there has to be at least one quote that has spoken to you.
We would love to read your opinion on the article and find out which quote was your favorite in the comment section below!
Alexandra, the head author at Subconscious Servant is a Psychologist, Reiki Therapist, and writer. She loves writing about any topic from Applied Psychology, Metaphysical and Spiritual healing, hoping that people on a spiritual, self-discovery journey will find guidance and light through her articles. If you want to read more about Alexandra, visit her full author bio here.