--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Leadership: The skill of influencing…" description: "\"Leadership: The skill of influencing people to work enthusiastically toward goals identified as being for the common good.\" — James Hunter" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/504/james-hunter-16269_common_leadership-the-skill-of-influencing-peop_61484.jpg" --- # Leadership: The skill of influencing people to work… ![“Leadership: The skill of influencing people to work enthusiastically toward goals identified as being for the common good.” quote by James Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/504/james-hunter-16269_common_leadership-the-skill-of-influencing-peop_61484.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/504/james-hunter-16269_common_leadership-the-skill-of-influencing-peop_61484.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/504/james-hunter-16269_common_leadership-the-skill-of-influencing-peop_61484.jpg) > “Leadership: The skill of influencing people to work enthusiastically toward goals identified as being for the common good.” [James Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunter/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Leadership is the ability to inspire collective enthusiasm for shared, altruistic objectives. **In simple terms:** Inspiring collective action for common good Key Takeaway Motivate others toward shared goals Themes influence motivation collective purpose ethical leadership team dynamics Mood inspired purposeful optimistic Type definition insight When to use this quote - nonprofit initiatives - community projects - corporate social responsibility programs - grassroots movements Key Concepts influence goal alignment common good Practical Applications - designing mission-driven strategies - building high‑engagement teams Questions to Reflect On - How can you align personal motivations with broader societal goals? - What practices sustain enthusiasm over long‑term projects? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Common good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common-good/) [Goal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goal/) [Goals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goals/) [Influence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/influence/) [Influencing people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/influencing-people/) [Leader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leader/) [Leadership](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leadership/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Skills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skills/) ## Related quotes > [Listening (the first competence of leadership) is not a skill, it is a discipline. All you have to do is keep your mouth shut.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/listening-the-first-competence-of-leadership-is-not-a-skill-it-is-a/) [Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/) > [Learning how to respond to and master the process of change - and even to excel at it - is a critical leadership skill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-james/learning-how-to-respond-to-and-master-the-process-of-change-and-even/) [Jennifer James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-james/) > [Most people who want to get ahead do it backward. They think, 'I'll get a bigger job, then I'll learn how to be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-maxwell/most-people-who-want-to-get-ahead-do-it-backward-they-think-i-ll-get/) [John C. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-maxwell/) > [When you harness your leadership skill to your broken heart change happens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-stanley/when-you-harness-your-leadership-skill-to-your-broken-heart-change/) [Andy Stanley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-stanley/) > [“and in life. I’ve noticed that leadership is not a skill. It’s character. Successful, happy, and fulfilled people embody core values such as honor,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-in-life-i-ve-noticed-that-leadership-is-not-a-skill-it-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You do have to do business with and to try to influence people you don't agree with, or find disagreeable, so it's important to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-hague/you-do-have-to-do-business-with-and-to-try-to-influence-people-you/) [William Hague](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-hague/) > [I believe in having fun first, and along the way, if you teach people, if you influence people, well and good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/i-believe-in-having-fun-first-and-along-the-way-if-you-teach-people/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [You have to be very careful about what you say. More importantly, you have to be very careful about what you do. You never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-truett-cathy/you-have-to-be-very-careful-about-what-you-say-more-importantly-you/) [S. Truett Cathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-truett-cathy/) > [It's my firm conclusion that human meaning comes from humans, not from a supernatural source. After we die, our hopes for an afterlife reside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-graffin/it-s-my-firm-conclusion-that-human-meaning-comes-from-humans-not-from/) [Greg Graffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-graffin/) > [How to Win Friends and Influence People.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/how-to-win-friends-and-influence-people/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Many media commercials encourage us to believe that if we buy a certain product, we can be physically appealing, or popular, or successful. According…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-templeton/many-media-commercials-encourage-us-to-believe-that-if-we-buy-a/) [John Templeton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-templeton/) > [The only way on Earth to influence other people is to talk about what they want and show them how to get it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/the-only-way-on-earth-to-influence-other-people-is-to-talk-about-what/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [Nobody that I know really likes the feeling of having no power and not being able to influence people. But most of us aren't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-greene/nobody-that-i-know-really-likes-the-feeling-of-having-no-power-and/) [Robert Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-greene/) > [Use encouragement. Make the fault seem easy to correct.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/use-encouragement-make-the-fault-seem-easy-to-correct/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [“You cannot change another person's mind or educate them; this they must do themselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/you-cannot-change-another-person-s-mind-or-educate-them-this-they/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) ## More by James Hunter > [Leadership is character in action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/leadership-is-character-in-action/) [James Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunter/) > [Those who follow the crowd will never be followed by the crowd.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/those-who-follow-the-crowd-will-never-be-followed-by-the-crowd/) [James Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunter/) > [I get influenced by stuff that isn't even music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/i-get-influenced-by-stuff-that-isn-t-even-music/) [James Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunter/) > [...leaders who do not hold their people accountable to a set standard are, in effect, thieves and liars. Thieves because they are stealing from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/leaders-who-do-not-hold-their-people-accountable-to-a-set-standard/) [James Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunter/) > [Authority is always built on service and sacrifice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/authority-is-always-built-on-service-and-sacrifice/) [James Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunter/) > [It is a shame that so many leaders spend their time pondering their rights as leaders instead of their awesome responsibilities as leaders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/it-is-a-shame-that-so-many-leaders-spend-their-time-pondering-their/) [James Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunter/) > [If I have any claim to originality, I do it by investing my own personality into it, so it's coming from a slightly more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/if-i-have-any-claim-to-originality-i-do-it-by-investing-my-own/) [James Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunter/) > [For me, hearing the term 'apply yourself' was like a crucifix to Bella Lugosi's Dracula. 'Ahhh, it burns!'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/for-me-hearing-the-term-apply-yourself-was-like-a-crucifix-to-bella/) [James Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunter/) > [As leaders we do not create growth. The best we can do is create an environment that is conducive to growth. It is like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/as-leaders-we-do-not-create-growth-the-best-we-can-do-is-create-an/) [James Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunter/) > [Power: The ability to force or coerce someone to do your will, even if they would choose not to, because of your position or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/power-the-ability-to-force-or-coerce-someone-to-do-your-will-even-if/) [James Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunter/) > [Serving others breaks you free from the shackles of self and self-absorption that choke out the joy of living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/serving-others-breaks-you-free-from-the-shackles-of-self-and-self/) [James Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunter/) > [I'm conscious enough that how I'm singing is not my own accent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/i-m-conscious-enough-that-how-i-m-singing-is-not-my-own-accent/) [James Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunter/) > [“Or in gamer terms, Ares had been a giant, douchey Leeroy Jenkins.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/or-in-gamer-terms-ares-had-been-a-giant-douchey-leeroy-jenkins/) [James Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunter/) > [Our top-down pyramid style of management is a very old concept borrowed from centuries of war and monarchies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/our-top-down-pyramid-style-of-management-is-a-very-old-concept/) [James Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunter/) > [...while everyone's focusing on keeping the boss happy, who's focusing on keeping the customer happy?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/while-everyone-s-focusing-on-keeping-the-boss-happy-who-s-focusing-on/) [James Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunter/) [Explore all 40 James Hunter quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunter/) ## More Common quotes > [I'm Fine!, the most common LIE in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/punkinhead-abhishek/i-m-fine-the-most-common-lie-in-the-world/) [Punkinhead Abhishek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/punkinhead-abhishek/) > [A flourishing, morally credible media is a vital component in the maintenance of genuinely public talk, argument about common good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rowan-williams/a-flourishing-morally-credible-media-is-a-vital-component-in-the/) [Rowan Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rowan-williams/) > [We find few historians who have been diligent enough in their search for truth; it is their common method to take on trust what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/we-find-few-historians-who-have-been-diligent-enough-in-their-search/) [John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/) > [The ability of the gospel to unite us on common strengths and common truths is one of the great miracles . . . of the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-ability-of-the-gospel-to-unite-us-on-common-strengths-and-common/) [Jeffrey R. 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If you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-newton-john/when-you-have-a-cavity-in-your-tooth-and-you-let-it-get-worse/) [Olivia Newton-John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-newton-john/) > [There is nothing that we can properly call our own but our time, and yet everybody fools us out of it who has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/there-is-nothing-that-we-can-properly-call-our-own-but-our-time-and/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [Common sense is nothing more than a deposit of prejudices laid down in the mind before you reach eighteen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/common-sense-is-nothing-more-than-a-deposit-of-prejudices-laid-down/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [A common fallacy in much of the adverse criticism to which science is subjected today is that it claims certainty, infallibility and complete emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/a-common-fallacy-in-much-of-the-adverse-criticism-to-which-science-is/) [Cyril Norman Hinshelwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/) > [We can find common qualities and common values that have made Britain the country it is. Our belief in tolerance and liberty which shines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-brown/we-can-find-common-qualities-and-common-values-that-have-made-britain/) [Gordon Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-brown/) > [A time will come when the science of destruction shall bend before the arts of peace; when the genius which multiplies our powers, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-arago/a-time-will-come-when-the-science-of-destruction-shall-bend-before/) [Francois Arago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-arago/) > [… and so he tried to accept the ache in his heart as what Dr. Larch would call the common symptoms of normal life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/and-so-he-tried-to-accept-the-ache-in-his-heart-as-what-dr-larch/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [It is a tragedy that we live in a world where physical courage is so common, and moral courage is so rare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-monet/it-is-a-tragedy-that-we-live-in-a-world-where-physical-courage-is-so/) [Claude Monet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-monet/) > [Those who advocate common usage in philosophy sometimes speak in a manner that suggests the mystique of the 'common man.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/those-who-advocate-common-usage-in-philosophy-sometimes-speak-in-a/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) Browse all 7,866 Common quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Leadership: The skill of influencing people to work enthusiastically toward goals identified as being for the common good.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "James Hunter" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/leadership-the-skill-of-influencing-people-to-work-enthusiastically/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Common" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/leadership-the-skill-of-influencing-people-to-work-enthusiastically/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/504/james-hunter-16269_common_leadership-the-skill-of-influencing-peop_61484.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/504/james-hunter-16269_common_leadership-the-skill-of-influencing-peop_61484.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/504/james-hunter-16269_common_leadership-the-skill-of-influencing-peop_61484.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Leadership: The skill of influencing people to work enthusiastically toward goals identified as being for…” — James Hunter", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "James Hunter", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunter/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Leadership: The skill of influencing people...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/leadership-the-skill-of-influencing-people-to-work-enthusiastically/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunter/leadership-the-skill-of-influencing-people-to-work-enthusiastically/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```