Sheryl Sandberg is an American technology executive, activist, and author. She is the chief operating officer (COO) of Facebook and founder of Leanin.org (also known as the Lean In Foundation). In June 2012, she was elected to the board of directors by the existing board members, becoming the first woman to serve on Facebook’s board. Before she joined Facebook as its COO, Sandberg was vice president of global online sales and operations at Google, and was involved in launching Google’s philanthropic arm Google.org. Before Google, Sandberg served as chief of staff for United States Secretary of the Treasury Lawrence Summers. May her quotes inspire you to lean in to your future so that you may live your dreams.
1. “It is the ultimate luxury to combine passion and contribution. It’s also a very clear path to happiness.” Sheryl Sandberg
2. “We cannot change what we are not aware of, and once we are aware, we cannot help but change.” Sheryl Sandberg
3. “If you’re offered a seat on a rocket ship, don’t ask what seat.” Sheryl Sandberg
4. “Leadership is about making others better as a result of your presence and making sure that impact lasts in your absence.” Sheryl Sandberg
5. “What would you do if you weren’t afraid.” Sheryl Sandberg
6. “When tragedy occurs, it presents a choice. You can give in to the void, the emptiness that fills your heart, your lungs constricts your ability to think or even breath. Or you can try to find meaning.” Sheryl Sandberg
7. “Next time you are about to call a little call ‘bossy’, say instead: she has executive leadership skills.” Sheryl Sandberg
8. “I really believe in what Facebook does. You know technology was going to change all our lives and it has. But technology to power us as people is really the social networking movement.” Sheryl Sandberg
9. “For many men, the fundamental assumption is that they can have both a successful professional life and a fulfilling personal life. For many women, the assumption is that trying to do both is difficult at best and impossible at worst.” Sheryl Sandberg
10. “We hold ourselves back in ways both big and small, by lacking self-confidence, by not raising our hands, and by pulling back when we should be leaning in.” Sheryl Sandberg
11. “Women need to shift from thinking, I’m not ready to do that, to thinking, I want to do that, and I’ll learn by doing it.” Sheryl Sandberg
12. “Trying to do it all and expecting that it all can be done exactly right is a recipe for disappointment. Perfection is the enemy.” Sheryl Sandberg
13. “Taking initiative pays off. It is hard to visualize someone as a leader if she is always waiting to be told what to do.” Sheryl Sandberg
14. “The #1 impediment to women succeeding in the workforce is now in the home.” Sheryl Sandberg
15. “Speak up. Believe in yourself. Take risks.” Sheryl Sandberg
16. “It is the hard days – the times that challenge you to your very core – that will determine who you are. You are defined not just by what you achieve but by how you survive.” Sheryl Sandberg
17. “When you’re more valuable, the people around you will do more to make it work.” Sheryl Sandberg
18. “This is personal. This is about me not wanting other little girls to be called bossy.” Sheryl Sandberg
19. “In the future there will be no female leaders. There will be just leaders.” Sheryl Sandberg
20. “Being confident and believing in your own self-worth is necessary to achieving your potential.” Sheryl Sandberg
21. “Work on stuff that matters. That was my dream and what I tell everyone.” Sheryl Sandberg
22. “Given how fast the world moves today, grabbing opportunities is more important than ever.” Sheryl Sandberg
23. “I truly believe that the single most important career decision that a women makes is whether she will have a life partner and who that partner is.” Sheryl Sandberg
24. “Women don’t take enough risks. Men are just foot on the gas pedal. We’re not going to close the achievement gap until we close the ambition gap.” Sheryl Sandberg
25. “Leadership belongs to those who take it.” Sheryl Sandberg
26. “The upside of painful knowledge is so much greater than the downside of blissful ignorance.” Sheryl Sandberg
27. “You are not born with a fixed amount of resiliency. Like a muscle, you can build it, and draw on it when you need it.” Sheryl Sandberg
28. “Believe in yourself and own your own success.” Sheryl Sandberg
29. “Real empathy is sometimes not insisting that it will be okay but acknowledging that it is not.” Sheryl Sandberg
30. “Leadership is not bullying and leadership is not aggression. Leadership is the expectation that you can use your voice for good. That you can make the world a better place.” Sheryl Sandberg
31. “Don’t let your fears overwhelm your desire. Let the barriers you face – and there will be barriers – be external, not internal.” Sheryl Sandberg
32. “I feel really grateful to the people who encouraged me and helped me develop. Nobody can succeed on their own.” Sheryl Sandberg
33. “Done is better than perfect.” Sheryl Sandberg
34. “Fortune does favor the bold and you’ll never know what you’re capable of if you don’t try.” Sheryl Sandberg
35. “I hope you find true meaning, contentment, and passion in your life. I hope you navigate the difficult times and come out with greater strength and resolve. I hope you find whatever balance you seek with your eyes wide open. And I hope that you – yes, you – have the ambition to lean in to your career and run the world. Because the world needs you to change it.” Sheryl Sandberg
