There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul than the way in which it treats its children.

Live life as though nobody is watching, and express yourself as though everyone is listening.

In my country we go to prison first and then become President.

Nothing is black or white.

You will achieve more in this world through acts of mercy than you will through acts of retribution.

One cannot be prepared for something while secretly believing it will not happen.

A Nation should not be judged by how it treats its highest citizens, but it's lowest ones

Courage is not the absence of fear — it s inspiring others to move beyond it.

After climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb.

A winner is a dreamer who never gives up

One of the things I learned when I was negotiating was that until I changed myself, I could not change others.

Where you stand depends on where you sit.

It is said that no one truly knows a nation until one has been inside its jails. A nation should not be judged by how it treats its highest citizens, but its lowest ones.

A leader. . .is like a shepherd. He stays behind the flock, letting the most nimble go out ahead, whereupon the others follow, not realizing that all along they are being directed from behind.

I am the captain of my soul.

Appearances matter — and remember to smile.

As we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.

There is no passion to be found playing small - in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.

As I walked out the door toward the gate that would lead to my freedom, I knew if I didn't leave my bitterness and hatred behind, I'd still be in prison.

I am not a saint, unless you think of a saint as a sinner who keeps on trying.

Do not judge me by my successes, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.

Lead from the back — and let others believe they are in front.

There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you yourself have altered.