The Best Chris Hadfield quotes

Good leadership means leading the way, not hectoring other people to do things your way. — Chris Hadfield

It’s good to have a fear of heights. I mean, it’s kind of crazy not to because if you just lean out a little bit and there’s a gust of wind or somebody bumps you or something and you fall, you’re splat. — Chris Hadfield

It’s not enough to shelve your own competitive streak. You have to try, consciously, to help others succeed. — Chris Hadfield

There’s nothing more important than what you’re doing right now. — Chris Hadfield

Every decision you make, from what you eat to what you do with your time tonight, turns you into who you are tomorrow and the day after that. — Chris Hadfield

I’ve put a lot of my life into making it possible to fly in space at all. — Chris Hadfield

For whatever reason, I decided: ‘I’m 18, I’m a man, I’m going to grow a moustache’–and it was pathetic for years–it was awful. — Chris Hadfield

Russians aren’t perfect. Their politics are messed up, and they keep going through self–defeating economic cycles. But I have a lot of respect for Russia, and a lot of love for Russians. — Chris Hadfield

When I did my spacewalks, it was during space station construction. So the shuttle was docked to the fledgling ISS at the time. So we would always stay tethered. — Chris Hadfield

Cynicism is the easiest of all reactions, right? But it’s also so disappointing and self–defeating. — Chris Hadfield

So without that Canadian invention we were grounded. And so that was a really important and key part of the mission and Canadians should take real pride in it. — Chris Hadfield

I wasn’t destined to be an astronaut. I had to turn myself into one. — Chris Hadfield

Focus on the journey, not on arriving at a certain destination. Keep looking to the future, not mourning the past. — Chris Hadfield

Almost everything worthwhile carries with it some sort of risk, whether it’s starting a new business, whether it’s leaving home, whether it’s getting married, or whether it’s flying in space. — Chris Hadfield

What’s the next thing that’s going to kill me?’ is a mantra for pilots and astronauts. — Chris Hadfield

The exercise really had a lot less to do with water survival than with deliberate teamwork. — Chris Hadfield

I think there are lots of ways to exercise ambition and accomplish things using leadership without going into elected politics. So, categorically, I have no intention of going into elected politics. None. — Chris Hadfield

We are not machines exploring the universe, we are people. — Chris Hadfield

You can get claustrophobia and agoraphobia–a fear of wide, open spaces–simultaneously on a spacewalk. — Chris Hadfield

Remember, nobody changes the world on their own. — Chris Hadfield

Sweat the small stuff. Without letting anyone see you sweat. — Chris Hadfield

The cool things about space is when you put your pants on here, you can put them on two legs at a time. — Chris Hadfield

The lesson: good leadership means leading the way, not hectoring other people to do things your way. — Chris Hadfield

To be one of the world’s top space robotic arm operators is a necessary skill for an astronaut, but it doesn’t have much carry–over. — Chris Hadfield

My favourite city for nightlife is Toronto, as it has such a multicultural feel, with so many different restaurants and theatres. — Chris Hadfield

You can’t change the bricks, and together, you still have to build a wall. — Chris Hadfield

Anticipating problems and figuring out how to solve them is actually the opposite of worrying: it’s productive. — Chris Hadfield

As an astronaut, especially during launch, half of the risk of a six–month flight is in the first nine minutes. — Chris Hadfield

To be on my very first spacewalk, to be outside, and to have contamination in my suit to the point that I couldn’t see in either eye–that, I think, would cause some people to lose control. — Chris Hadfield

I’ve been lucky enough to fly to space twice. — Chris Hadfield

If you don’t like airline food, you’ll probably have the same impression of space station food. I would not fly to space for the food. — Chris Hadfield

Most budget airlines anywhere in the world are going to leave you dissatisfied after using them. — Chris Hadfield

I was born in Sarnia, Ontario; a small town, it’s where oil was pretty much discovered in North America. — Chris Hadfield

No aeroplane you’ve ever gotten into had less than thousands of flights before they took their first passenger. Because vehicles are unsafe at first. — Chris Hadfield

My favourite city is Moscow, because of its history, which I find fascinating. As I learned to speak Russian, it made it even more interesting. — Chris Hadfield

Spaceflight isn’t just about doing experiments, it’s about an extension of human culture. — Chris Hadfield

Every single day you’re the result of what you did on the days prior. — Chris Hadfield

The Moon has given us months, tides and a destination that ever–beckons. It’s time we build a rocket and go to stay. — Chris Hadfield

Early success is a terrible teacher. You’re essentially being rewarded for a lack of preparation, so when you find yourself in a situation where you must prepare, you can’t do it. You don’t know how. — Chris Hadfield

She is an uber–doer, exactly the kind of person you want riding shotgun when you’re chasing a big goal and also trying to have a life. — Chris Hadfield

When you look out the window of a spaceship, you see entire countries, vast swaths of continents. One turn of the head covers what once took thousands of years to traverse at ground level. — Chris Hadfield

In the late ’60s, I was seven, eight, nine years old, and what was going on in the news at that time that really excited a seven, eight, nine year old boy was the Space Race. — Chris Hadfield