John P. Kotter Quotes - Page 2

Because management deals mostly with the status quo and leadership deals mostly with change, in the next century we are going to have to try to become much more skilled at creating leaders.

Neurologists say that our brains are programmed much more for stories than for abstract ideas. Tales with a little drama are remembered far longer than any slide crammed with analytics.

One of the most powerful forms of information is feedback on our own actions.

People change what they do less because they are given an analysis that shifts their thinking than because they are shown a truth that influences their feelings.

Good communication does not mean that you have to speak in perfectly formed sentences and paragraphs. It isn't about slickness. Simple and clear go a long way.

Anyone in a large organization who thinks major change is impossible should probably get out.

Without conviction that you can make change happen, you will not act, even if you see the vision. Your feelings will hold you back.

Most US corporations today are over-managed and under-led. They need to develop their capacity to exercise leadership.

Great communicators have an appreciation for positioning. They understand the people they're trying to reach and what they can and can't hear. They send their message in through an open door rather than trying to push it through a wall.

Most people don't lead their own lives - they accept their lives

Over the years I have become convinced that we learn best - and change - from hearing stories that strike a chord within us ... Those in leadership positions who fail to grasp or use the power of stories risk failure for their companies and for themselves.

We keep a change in place by helping to create a new, supportive, and sufficiently strong organizational culture.

Leadership is about coping with change

Motivation is not a thinking word; it's a feeling word.

Outsiders have the intuitive ability to continually view problems in fresh ways and to identify ineffective practices and traditions.

Analytical tools have their limitations in a turbulent world. These tools work best when parameters are known, assumptions are minimal, and the future is not fuzzy.

Complacency is almost always the product of success or perceived success

Great leaders motivate large groups of individuals to improve the human condition.

People are more inclined to be drawn in if their leader has a compelling vision. Great leaders help people get in touch with their own aspirations and then will help them forge those aspirations into a personal vision.

Tradition is a very powerful force.

Leadership is different from management, but not for the reasons most people think.

What's really driving the boom in coaching, is this: as we move from 30 miles an hour to 70 to 120 to 180......as we go from driving straight down the road to making right turns and left turns to abandoning cars and getting motorcycles...the whole game changes, and a lot of people are trying to keep up, learn how not to fall.

This is true even in organizations that are very focused on analysis and quantitative measurement, even among people who think of themselves as smart in an MBA sense. In highly successful change efforts, people find ways to help others see the problems or solutions in ways that influence emotions, not just thought.

Managers are trained to make incremental, programmatic improvements. They aren't trained to lead large-scale change.

Great leaders understand that historical success tends to produce stable and inwardly focused organizations, and these outfits, in turn, reinforce a feeling of contentment with the status quo.