Saddam’s goal is to achieve the lifting of U.N. sanctions while retaining and enhancing Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction programs. We cannot, we must not and we will not let him succeed. – Madeleine Albright
It’s important that we invest in America – literally. The terrorists wanted to destroy our economy, and we can’t let our system fall apart. We also have to invest in one another. – Madeleine Albright
I can’t imagine what it is like to be raised in a society where their only statues that exist are to you and your father. – Madeleine Albright
I didn’t want to set up a women’s studies program. I thought women should learn to operate in a coeducational atmosphere, because, especially in national security and international affairs, it’s male-dominated. – Madeleine Albright
Maybe if everybody in leadership was a woman, you might not get into the conflicts in the first place. But if you watch the women who have made it to the top, they haven’t exactly been non-aggressive – including me. – Madeleine Albright
The only thing I have to go by is what my mother and father told me, how I was brought up. – Madeleine Albright
The best book, like the best speech, will do it all – make us laugh, think, cry and cheer – preferably in that order. – Madeleine Albright
Take it from someone who fled the Iron Curtain: I know what happens when you give the Russians a green light. – Madeleine Albright
Women have to be active listeners and interrupters – but when you interrupt, you have to know what you are talking about. – Madeleine Albright
My parents were of the generation who thought they were the children of a free Czechoslovakia, the only democracy in central Europe. – Madeleine Albright
While democracy in the long run is the most stable form of government, in the short run, it is among the most fragile. – Madeleine Albright
The day-to-day making of policy is arguing all the time. You’re trying to get the right approach and the right answer, and there are moments that aren’t very pleasant. But in the end, you look at the overall product. – Madeleine Albright
We will not be intimidated or pushed off the world stage by people who do not like what we stand for, and that is, freedom, democracy and the fight against disease, poverty and terrorism. – Madeleine Albright
I do believe that in order to be a successful negotiator that as a diplomat, you have to be able to put yourself into the other person’s shoes. Unless you can understand what is motivating them, you are never going to be able to figure out how to solve a particular problem. – Madeleine Albright
One of the issues I kept saying to my students is you have to learn to interrupt. When you raise your hand at a meeting, by the time they get to you, the point is not germane. So the bottom line is active listening. If you are going to interrupt, you look for opportunities. You have to know what you’re talking about. – Madeleine Albright
If we have to use force, it is because we are America. We are the indispensable nation. We stand tall. We see further into the future. – Madeleine Albright
I love being a woman and I was not one of these women who rose through professional life by wearing men’s clothes or looking masculine. I loved wearing bright colors and being who I am. – Madeleine Albright
I was in Europe and it was at this stage that I fell in love with Americans in uniform. And I continue to have that love affair. – Madeleine Albright
I think women are really good at making friends and not good at networking. Men are good at networking and not necessarily making friends. That’s a gross generalization, but I think it holds in many ways. – Madeleine Albright
But I do not believe that the world would be entirely different if there were more women leaders. Maybe if everybody in leadership was a woman, you might not get into the conflicts in the first place. But if you watch the women who have made it to the top, they haven’t exactly been non-aggressive – including me. – Madeleine Albright
I think that we all know what evil is. We have a sense of what’s evil, and certainly killing innocent people is evil. We’re less sure about what is good. There’s sort of good, good enough, could be better – but absolute good is a little harder to define. – Madeleine Albright