Powell Achieved Success With Optimism, Focus And Hard Work
October 20, 2021—Colin Powell served the United States as a soldier, a national security adviser, chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff, and the nation’s top diplomat as Secretary of State from 2001-2005. While intensely popular for his leadership skills and political moderation, he shied away from a career in politics saying, he had “no political fire in his belly.”
On Monday, Powell passed away at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, in Bethesda, Md. He had COVID-19 despite having been vaccinated, multiple myeloma, and early-stage Parkinson’s Disease. He was 84.
For many Americans, Powell symbolized the ability to achieve success, not only as a strong leader but also as a minority who overcame difficulties of the past. The following are some of his direct quotes.
On Bringing A ‘Spirit of Family’ in Military Life Back to The United States
“I think it’s a matter of being of each tolerant of each other.” He said that it’s a matter of recognizing that whatever our racial, ethnic or economic differences people have, “We’re all Americans in this home we call America.”
– 60 Minutes Interview with Ed Bradley
On the 2003 U.S.-Iraq War
In meeting with former President George W. Bush and then-National Security Adviser Condoleeza Rice, Powell tried to discourage the Bush Administration from starting the 2003 war against Iraq.
“I tried to avoid this war,” he said. “For the better part of two and a half hours, I took them through not only the military planning that was being done at the Pentagon, I took them into the consequences of going into an Arab country and becoming the occupiers.”
“What I did say was, once you break it, you own it. And we’re going to be responsible for 26 million people standing there looking at us. And it’s going to suck up a good 40 to 50 percent of the Army for years. And it’s going to take all the oxygen out of the political environment. You need to understand this. And the expense is going to be enormous.”
– Interview with Jim Lehrer, 2007
On Achieving Success
“There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure.”
“Fit no stereotypes. Don’t chase the latest management fads. The situation dictates which approach best accomplishes the team’s mission.”
“None of us can change our yesterdays, but all of us can change our tomorrows.”
On Leadership
“The best way to create a winning team is to train them, give them everything they need to get the job done, and second, make sure they know what the job is and what the job will be.”
“Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier.”
On U.S. Politics
“The reality that we’ll come to is that I’m not as conservative as any of the other members of [the George W. Bush] administration. I’m what I am–a soldier, a guy who kind of knows how to get something done and how to run something–but I am not violently political either on the left or the right except that I would characterize myself as being moderate. I always want to find out what I think the best thing is and the party is irrelevant.”
– Interview with the Miller Center
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