Golda Meir

"The task of the great statesman is to serve the people and be answerable to them for his stewardship."

"I never worried about money except that I never had any."

"People who don't know you well should not try to advise you."

"My only real enemy is my own nature and my own weaknesses."

"To be or not to be is not a question of compromise."

"A woman trying to be like a man is like a man trying to be like a woman - it doesn't work."

"The most important thing is not to rush into things without thinking them through properly."

"I have always believed that the Jewish people have the strength to overcome any adversity."

"History has taught us that freedom is not self-achieving."

"We must think ahead, but we must not forget where we have come from."

"Be yourself. Don't try to be someone you are not."

"The best way to change things is to change yourself first."

"I never worked for a wage; I worked for the building of a nation."

"One learns from history that it is the exceptional person who does the right thing at the right time."

"Ambition is not a dirty word for women."

"We did not come to the land empty-handed or conquered it by force alone."

"A state is not created because one wills it, but because it is an historical inevitability."

"I have given my life to try to alleviate the sufferings of Africa. There is still so much to do; if I were to leave Africa, I would feel guilty."

"The most difficult thing for a woman in public life is not to be underestimated."

"In the end, it is not the years in your life that count. It is the life in your years."

"You have to learn to accept that you cannot please everyone."

"I'm not sure about anything, but I'm sure about that."

"One cannot build a nation with people who do not understand one another."

"The woman who cannot find her excitement at home is not likely to find it elsewhere."

"Leadership is not about being in charge. It's about taking care of those in your charge."

"I never turned back after taking a step forward, though at times it was painful."

"Anybody who believes you can have infinite growth on a finite planet is either a madman or an economist."

"We must never forget that we are a people with a destiny, and that destiny is to live in peace."

"The ingathering of the exiles is the basis for the solution of all other problems."

"I have always believed that we should not fear to speak the truth to power."