84 John F. Kennedy Inspirational Quotes to Motivate Your Leadership Journey

"Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country"

- John F. Kennedy

"A man may die, nations may rise and fall, but an idea lives on"

- John F. Kennedy

"If not us, who? If not now, when?"

- John F. Kennedy

"All this will not be finished in the first one hundred days. Nor will it be finished in the first one thousand days, not in the life of this Administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin"

- John F. Kennedy

"In whatever arena of life one may meet the challenge of courage, whatever may be the sacrifices he faces if he follows his conscience –the loss of his friends, his fortune, his contentment, even the esteem of his fellow men –each man must decide for himself the course he will follow. The stories of past courage can define that ingredient –they can teach, they can offer hope, they can provide inspiration. But they cannot supply courage itself. For this each man must look into his own soul"

- John F. Kennedy

"One person can make a difference, and everyone should try"

- John F. Kennedy

"A man may die, nations may rise and fall, but an idea lives on. Ideas have endurance without death"

- John F. Kennedy

"Those who dare to fail miserably can achieve greatly"

- John F. Kennedy

"Efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and direction"

- John F. Kennedy

"Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other"

- John F. Kennedy

"We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard"

- John F. Kennedy

"The rights of every man are diminished when the rights of one man are threatened"

- John F. Kennedy

"Tolerance implies no lack of commitment to one's own beliefs. Rather it condemns the oppression or persecution of others"

- John F. Kennedy

"Our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this small planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children's future. And we are all mortal"

- John F. Kennedy

"The problems of the world cannot possibly be solved by skeptics or cynics whose horizons are limited by the obvious realities. We need men who can dream of things that never were"

- John F. Kennedy

"Mankind must put an end to war before war puts an end to mankind"

- John F. Kennedy

"The goal of education is the advancement of knowledge and the dissemination of truth"

- John F. Kennedy

"Our problems are man-made, therefore they may be solved by man. And man can be as big as he wants. No problem of human destiny is beyond human beings"

- John F. Kennedy

"The cost of freedom is always high, but Americans have always paid it. And one path we shall never choose, and that is the path of surrender, or submission"

- John F. Kennedy

"Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men"

- John F. Kennedy

"Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate"

- John F. Kennedy

"Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or the present are certain to miss the future"

- John F. Kennedy

"We are not here to curse the darkness, but to light the candle that can guide us thru that darkness to a safe and sane future"

- John F. Kennedy

"Conformity is the jailer of freedom and the enemy of growth"

- John F. Kennedy

"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them"

- John F. Kennedy

"This country cannot afford to be materially rich and spiritually poor"

- John F. Kennedy

"And if we cannot end now our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity. For, in the final analysis, our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this small planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children's future. And we are all mortal"

- John F. Kennedy

"Let us not despair but act. Let us not seek the Republican answer or the Democratic answer but the right answer. Let us not seek to fix the blame for the past - let us accept our own responsibility for the future"

- John F. Kennedy

"We must use time as a tool, not as a couch"

- John F. Kennedy

"When at some future date the high court of history sits in judgment on each of us...our success or failure...will be measured by the answers to four questions: First, were we truly men of courage...? Secondly, were we truly men of judgment...? Third, were we truly men of integrity...? Finally, were we truly men of dedication...?"

- John F. Kennedy

"Increased responsibility goes with increased ability, for 'of those to whom much is given, much is required"

- John F. Kennedy

"We go into space because whatever mankind must undertake, free men must fully share...I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the earth"

- John F. Kennedy

"The Chinese use two brush strokes to write the word 'crisis.' One brush stroke stands for danger; the other for opportunity. In a crisis, be aware of the danger--but recognize the opportunity"

- John F. Kennedy

"If we cannot end now our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity"

- John F. Kennedy

"Liberty without Learning is always in peril and Learning without Liberty is always in vain"

- John F. Kennedy

"A man does what he must - in spite of personal consequences, in spite of obstacles and dangers and pressures - and that is the basis of all human morality"

- John F. Kennedy

"For time and the world do not stand still. Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or the present are certain to miss the future"

- John F. Kennedy

"Pray not for easy lives, pray to be stronger men"

- John F. Kennedy

"The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining"

- John F. Kennedy

"Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable"

- John F. Kennedy

"If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich"

- John F. Kennedy

"Too often we hold fast to the clichés of our forebears. We subject all facts to a prefabricated set of interpretations. We enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought"

- John F. Kennedy

"No country can possibly move ahead, no free society can possibly be sustained, unless it has an educated citizenry whose qualities of mind and heart permit it to take part in the complicated and increasingly sophisticated decisions that pour not only upon the President and upon the Congress, but upon all the citizens who exercise the ultimate power"

- John F. Kennedy

"We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values. For a nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people"

- John F. Kennedy

"Our progress as a nation can be no swifter than our progress in education. The human mind is our fundamental resource"

- John F. Kennedy

"Mankind must put an end to war – or war will put an end to mankind"

- John F. Kennedy

"We must find time to stop and thank the people who make a difference in our lives"

- John F. Kennedy

"We set sail on this new sea because there is new knowledge to be gained, and new rights to be won, and they must be won and used for the progress of all people. For space science, like nuclear science and technology, has no conscience of its own. Whether it will become a force for good or ill depends on man, and only if the United States occupies a position of preeminence can we help decide whether this new ocean will be a sea of peace or a new terrifying theater of war"

- John F. Kennedy

"If more politicians knew poetry, and more poets knew politics, I am convinced the world would be a little better place in which to live"

- John F. Kennedy

"I'm an idealist without illusions"

- John F. Kennedy

"The great enemy of truth is very often not the lie--deliberate, contrived and dishonest--but the myth--persistent, persuasive and unrealistic. Too often we hold fast to the cliches of our forebears. We subject all facts to a prefabricated set of interpretations. We enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought"

- John F. Kennedy

"Children are the world's most valuable resource and its best hope for the future"

- John F. Kennedy

"Rising tide lifts all boats"

- John F. Kennedy

"For one true measure of a nation is its success in fulfilling the promise of a better life for each of its members. Let this be the measure of our nation"

- John F. Kennedy

"Never before has man had such capacity to control his own environment, to end thirst and hunger, to conquer poverty and disease, to banish illiteracy and massive human misery. We have the power to make this the best generation of mankind in the history of the world - or make it the last"

- John F. Kennedy

"This nation has tossed its cap over the wall of space, and we have no choice but to follow it"

- John F. Kennedy

"I am certain that after the dust of centuries has passed over our cities, we, too, will be remembered not for victories or defeats in battle or in politics, but for our contribution to the human spirit"

- John F. Kennedy

"It may be different elsewhere. But democratic society - in it, the highest duty of the writer, the composer, the artist is to remain true to himself and to let the chips fall where they may"

- John F. Kennedy

"I look forward to an America which will not be afraid of grace and beauty...an America which will reward achievement in the arts as we reward achievement in business or statecraft"

- John F. Kennedy

"The ignorance of one voter in a democracy impairs the security of all"

- John F. Kennedy

"And we must face the fact that the United States is neither omnipotent or omniscient - that we are only six percent of the world's population - that we cannot impose our will upon the other ninety-four percent of mankind - that we cannot right every wrong or reverse each adversity - and that therefore there cannot be an American solution to every world problem"

- John F. Kennedy

"When I ran for Presidency of the United States, I knew that this country faced serious challenges, but I could not realize - nor could any man realize who does not bear the burdens of this office - how heavy and constant would be those burdens"

- John F. Kennedy

"A nation reveals itself not only by the men it produces but also by the men it honors, the men it remembers"

- John F. Kennedy

"We can say with some assurance that, although children may be the victims of fate, they will not be the victims of our neglect"

- John F. Kennedy

"Victory has a hundred fathers and defeat is an orphan"

- John F. Kennedy

"To further the appreciation of culture among all the people, to increase respect for the creative individual, to widen participation by all the processes and fulfillments of art - this is one of the fascinating challenges of these days"

- John F. Kennedy

"There is a connection, hard to explain logically but easy to feel, between achievement in public life and progress in the arts. The age of Pericles was also the age of Phidias. The age of Lorenzo de Medici was also the age of Leonardo da Vinci. The age of Elizabeth also the age of Shakespeare. And the New Frontier for which I campaign in public life, can also be a New Frontier for American art"

- John F. Kennedy

"Physical fitness is not only one of the most important keys to a healthy body, it is the basis of dynamic and creative intellectual activity"

- John F. Kennedy

"I see little of more importance to the future of our country and our civilization than full recognition of the place of the artist"

- John F. Kennedy

"Art knows no national boundaries. Genius can speak at any time, and the entire world will hear it and listen"

- John F. Kennedy

"The life of the arts, far from being an interruption, a distraction, in the life of a nation, is very close to the center of a nation's purpose...and is a test of the quality of a nation's civilization"

- John F. Kennedy

"If by a "Liberal" they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind, someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions, someone who cares about the welfare of the people-their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights and their civil liberties-someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicions that grip us in our policies abroad, if that is what they mean by a "Liberal", then I'm proud to say I'm a "Liberal"

- John F. Kennedy

"Man is still the most extraordinary computer of all"

- John F. Kennedy

"Geography has made us neighbors. History has made us friends. Economics has made us partners, and necessity has made us allies. Those whom God has so joined together, let no man put asunder"

- John F. Kennedy

"The life of the artist is, in relation to his work, stern and lonely. He has labored hard, often amid deprivation, to perfect his skill. He has turned aside from quick success in order to strip his vision of everything secondary or cheapening. His working life is marked by intense application and intense discipline"

- John F. Kennedy

"I can imagine a no more rewarding career. And any man who may be asked in this century what he did to make his life worth while, I think can respond with a good deal of pride and satisfaction: 'I served in the United States Navy"

- John F. Kennedy

"We must never forget that art is not a form of propaganda; it is a form of truth"

- John F. Kennedy

"Forgive your enemies, but never forget their names"

- John F. Kennedy

"In serving his vision of the truth, the artist best serves his nation"

- John F. Kennedy

"I think this is the most extraordinary collection of talent, of human knowledge, that has ever been gathered together at the White House, with the possible exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone"

- John F. Kennedy

"I believe in an America where the separation of church and state is absolute - where no Catholic prelate would tell the President (should he be Catholic) how to act, and no Protestant minister would tell his parishioners for whom to vote - where no church or church school is granted any public funds or political preference - and where no man is denied public office merely because his religion differs from the President who might appoint him or the people who might elect him"

- John F. Kennedy

"We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea, whether it is to sail or to watch - we are going back from whence we came"

- John F. Kennedy

"I really don't know why it is that all of us are so committed to the sea, except I think it's because in addition to the fact that the sea changes, and the light changes, and ships change, it's because we all came from the sea. And it is an interesting biological fact that all of us have in our veins the exact same percentage of salt in our blood that exists in the ocean, and, therefore, we have salt in our blood, in our sweat, in our tears. We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea - whether it is to sail or to watch it - we are going back from whence we came"

- John F. Kennedy

"I am the man who accompanied Jacqueline Kennedy to Paris, and I have enjoyed it"

- John F. Kennedy