Visions of glory, spare my aching sight! Ye unborn ages, crowd not on my soul!
Thomas GrayRead
The applause of list'ning senates to command, The threats of pain and ruin to despise, To scatter plenty o'er a smiling land, And read their history in a nation's eyes.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects the qualities of a great leader who values the admiration of people, fears no threat, and seeks to benefit the nation.
In this quote, Thomas Gray expresses the ideal traits of a leader who is both respected and unyielding. The leader commands the attention and admiration of the people, remains undeterred by threats, and strives to create prosperity for the nation, all while being mindful of the legacy they leave behind in the collective memory of their citizens.
Themes
LeadershipNationHistoryProsperityRespect
In practice
Example use cases
During a motivational speech to inspire young leaders in the community.
More from Thomas Gray
All quotes βHere rests his head upon the lap of earth, A youth to fortune and to fame unknown: Fair Science frown'd not on his humble birth, And Melancholy mark'd him for her own.
Thomas GrayRead
Can honor's voice provoke the silent dust, or flattery soothe the dull, cold ear of death?
Thomas GrayRead
Far from the madding crowd's ignoble strife Their sober wishes never learn'd to stray; Along the cool sequester'd vale of life They kept the noiseless tenor of their way.
Thomas GrayRead
Ah, happy hills! ah, pleasing shade! Ah, fields beloved in vain! Where once my careless childhood stray'd, A stranger yet to pain! I feel the gales that from ye blow A momentary bliss bestow.
Thomas GrayRead
Any fool may write a most valuable book by chance, if he will only tell us what he heard and saw with veracity.
Thomas GrayRead
Similar quotes
Team leaders have to connect with their team and themselves. If they don't know their team's strengths and weaknesses, they cannot hand off responsibilities to the team. And if they don't know their own strengths and weaknesses, they will not hand off responsibilities to the team.
John C. MaxwellRead
Public servants say, always with the best of intentions, 'What greater service we could render if only we had a little more money and a little more power.' But the truth is that outside of its legitimate function, government does nothing as well or as economically as the private sector.
Ronald ReaganRead
A movement without vision would be a movement without moral foundation.
Nelson MandelaRead
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'.
Colin PowellRead
Comparing the three domains, I found that for jobs of all kinds, emotional competencies were twice as prevalent among distinguishing competencies as were technical skills and purely cognitive abilities combined. In general the higher a position in an organization, the more EI mattered: for individuals in leadership positions, 85 percent of their competencies were in the EI domain.
Daniel GolemanRead
Leadership is a matter of how to be, not how to do it.
Frances HesselbeinRead