The failure of women to have reached positions of leadership has been due in large part to social and professional discrimination.

Of course Third World leaders love you. By ascribing third world ills to First World sins you absolve them of blame for their countries' failure to advance.

When you experience a failure as a leader don't hide it - talk about it. Your missed opportunity will encourage others to take risks.

The failure of world leaders to act on the critical issue of global warming is often blamed on economic considerations.

The exposed nature of life in the public square affects leaders' attitudes toward risk - and failure.

No matter how vast how total the failure of man here on earth the work of man will be resumed elsewhere. War leaders talk of resuming operations on this front and that but man's front embraces the whole universe.

The fact that we are here today to debate raising America's debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership. Americans deserve better. I therefore intend to oppose the effort to increase America's debt.

Leadership is solving problems. The day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you have stopped leading them. They have either lost confidence that you can help or concluded you do not care. Either case is a failure of leadership.

I had the closest thing I have ever had to an out-of-body experience lying in bed one morning. I turned on the 'Today' programme and item four on the news was: 'The shadow chancellor has ruled himself out of the leadership.' I lay there thinking that's interesting then I realised it was me.

As the leader of twelve apostles even Jesus had more executive experience than Obama.