Quotes by Colin Powell

"I don't think we handled the aftermath of the fall of Baghdad as well as we might have. But that's now history."

"90 percent of my time is spent on 10 percent of the world."

"The chief condition on which, life, health and vigor depend on, is action. It is by action that an organism develops its faculties, increases its energy, and attains the fulfillment of its destiny."

"Wouldn't it be great if we could look forward to a whole world in which no child will be left behind?"

"In other words, don't expect to always be great. Disappointments, failures and setbacks are a normal part of the lifecycle of a unit or a company and what the leader has to do is constantly be up and say 'we have a problem, let's go and get it'."

"Great leaders are almost always great simplifiers, who can cut through argument, debate and doubt, to offer a solution everybody can understand."

"We all hoped in 2001 that we could put in place an Afghan government under President Karzai that would be able to control the country, make sure al-Qaeda didn't come back, and make sure the Taliban wasn't resurging. It didn't work out."

"We got rid of a terrible dictator. We gave the Iraqi people an opportunity for a new life under a representative form of government."

"When you decide to get involved in a military operation in a place like Syria, you've got to be prepared, as we learned from Iraq and Afghanistan, to become the government, and I'm not sure any country, either the United States or I don't hear of anyone else, who's willing to take on that responsibility."

"We need to understand that we as citizens and as a government in any community throughout this country have no more important obligation than to educate those who are going to replace us."

"Leadership is solving problems. The day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you have stopped leading them. They have either lost confidence that you can help or concluded you do not care. Either case is a failure of leadership."

"Success is the result of perfection, hard work, learning from failure, loyalty, and persistence."

"My own experience is use the tools that are out there. Use the digital world. But never lose sight of the need to reach out and talk to other people who don't share your view. Listen to them and see if you can find a way to compromise."

"A dream doesn't become reality through magic it takes sweat, determination and hard work."

"Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier."

"Don't let your ego get too close to your position, so that if your position gets shot down, your ego doesn't go with it."

"There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure."

"Just hit my 75th birthday, I'm feeling great!"

"Fit no stereotypes. Don't chase the latest management fads. The situation dictates which approach best accomplishes the team's mission."

"I think whether you're having setbacks or not, the role of a leader is to always display a winning attitude."