“Great leadership has many different attributes, but it starts with knowledge of a particular pursuit, because without the knowledge and mastery of that particular pursuit, I don’t think you have the authority to convey it with conviction to others. It usually is associated with an obsession, because to be a great leader, you have to be obsessed by

... See more

“Leaders must be able to master four major tasks. Firstly, they need comprehensively to grasp the overall strategic situation in a conflict and craft the appropriate strategic approach–in essence, to get the big ideas right. Secondly, they must communicate those big ideas, the strategy, effectively throughout the breadth and depth of their organiza

... See more

“In many ways the magic of Patagonia comes from the constraints we place on ourselves which are grounded in our deep sense of responsibility to do right by the environment and society,” Stanley told me. “We can't go to the Fashion Institute of Technology library and choose from 5,000 fabrics for the spring line. We have a couple hundred we can choo... See more

Chouinard and his business partner, Tom Frost, made what would become a legendary decision to shift away from pitons. It foreshadowed many other decisions Chouinard would make over the next fifty years, each with a similar pattern: Come to grips with damage you’re doing, set bright lines about how you’ll shift your business to reduce that damage, t... See more

One of the best ways you can show productivity trust = modeling and embracing “blank time.”

To be a good delegator, first you have to be a systems thinker . Systems thinking consists of understanding how events, behaviors, tasks, problems etc. relate and how they can prevail and sustain over time.

Entrepreneur Cindy Gallop on how to build a successful business:

“There is a formula for success in business, and it goes like this: You set out to find the very best talent in the marketplace, and then give them a compelling and inspirational vision of what you want them to achieve for you and the company. Then you empower them to achieve those goa... See more

I define a leader as anyone who takes responsibility for finding the potential in people and processes, and who has the courage to develop that potential.

Leading from good to great does not mean coming up with the answers and then motivating everyone to follow your messianic vision. It means having the humility to grasp the fact that you do not yet understand enough to have the answers and then to ask the questions that will lead to the best possible insights.