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

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

Avoid having your ego so close to your position that when your position falls, your ego goes with it.
Colin Powell

Bad news isn't wine. It doesn't improve with age.
Colin Powell

But just as they did in Philadelphia when they were writing the constitution, sooner or later, you've got to compromise. You've got to start making the compromises that arrive at a consensus and move the country forward.
Colin Powell

Don't be afraid to challenge the pros, even in their own backyard.
Colin Powell

Don't bother people for help without first trying to solve the problem yourself.
Colin Powell

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.
Colin Powell

Experts often possess more data than judgment.
Colin Powell

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


Get mad, then get over it.
Colin Powell

Giving back involves a certain amount of giving up.
Colin Powell

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

Have fun in your command. Don't always run at a breakneck pace. Take leave when you've earned it, spend time with your families.
Colin Powell

I consider myself a moderate Republican. I have very, very moderate social views, and I'm pretty strong on, on defense matters.
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.
Colin Powell

I don't want to spend the rest of my life giving speeches.
Colin Powell

I think the Iranians are clearly determined to have a nuclear program. And we have to assume that with a nuclear program they have the capability and the will to create a nuclear weapon.
Colin Powell

I try to be the same person I was yesterday.
Colin Powell

I was born in Harlem, raised in the South Bronx, went to public school, got out of public college, went into the Army, and then I just stuck with it.
Colin Powell