“Leadership – Ambition and Drive Can Erase Excuses”
“Is leadership inherent or trainable? Both. You are born with characteristics that reside deep inside you: drive, an ability to influence and motivate, perseverance. But you have to develop those qualities through actual leadership experiences. A key quality is adaptability — facing unexpected obstacles, falling short of goals, reading the context, and changing your approach. Absent that, leaders will continue to repeat mistakes and will not grow and develop. That leads me to the essence of the question ‘Why is it so hard to lead yourself?’ The answer, in my experience, lies in the differences between your idealized self — how you see yourself and how you want to be seen — and your real self. The key to growing as a leader is to narrow that gap by developing a deep self-awareness that comes from straight feedback and honest exploration of yourself, followed by a concerted effort to make changes.” (Bill George, former CEO of Medtronics, Inc., Fast Company, April 2007)
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“A true leader has the confidence to stand alone, the courage to make tough decisions, and the compassion to listen to the needs of others. He does not set out to be a leader, but becomes one by the quality of his actions and the integrity of his intent.” (Unknown Author)
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“The leadership instinct you are born with is the backbone. You develop the funny bone and the wishbone that go with it.” (Elain Agather)
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“The best way to lead people into the future is to connect with them deeply in the present.” (James Kouzes, HBR article, “To Lead, Create a Shared Vision.”)
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“It’s one of the characteristics of a leader that he not doubt for one moment the capacity of the people he’s leading to realize whatever he’s dreaming.” (Benjamin Zander, The Transformative Power of Classical Music, TED – Ideas Worth Spreading)
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“When aspirations are perceived to be achievable, ambition and drive can erase excuses.” (Lori Myers, No Excuses, The Fit Mind – Fit Body Strategy Book)
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Catalyst Quotes 