The 'Gargantuan' Book on Team Building and Leadership Using Quotable Quotes

By Roger Payne

The 'Gargantuan' book of quotable quotes on team building and leadership is the 'Ultimate' book on leadership skills, only it uses quotable quotes, over 3680 of them in 80 quote bites to teach you what you'd probably missed in other run of the mill leadership books. It has the famous 10 that everyone tells you about, good communication, organisation, confidence, respect, being fair, firm but friendly, integrity, influence, delegation, facilitation and negotiation, but it carries on with many more skills, traits, competencies, qualities and attributes, all the unspoken things that round the corners off your leadership accomplishments. There are 80 quotes in each one that tell you why you need to know it, pointing the way and backing it up with quotes by famous, and not so famous people, who have trod the leadership board before you.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Roger Payne
• Release date: Oct 17, 2017
• ISBN: 9781370200139

Roger Payne

I am probably a relic from a bygone age in that many of my values were formed then and haven't changed. When I was young a man's word and his handshake was a legally binding agreement until the paperwork was signed, and you never broke that agreement because if you did you would ruin your reputation, and like today, your reputation is everything. I still open doors for females, and step aside for a women to go first, and although I have over 40 years military service behind me I would still never swear in front of a female. I served in one of Britain's most elite army regiments, the Parachute Regiment, then I left and came to the Australian Army and after nearly 25 years ended my service with Diplomas in Human Movement and Human Resource Management, having been awarded the Chief of the Defence Force Commendation and one of Australia's highest awards, the Order of Australia, the only Australian servicemen to get both. Having left military life I began work with the Australian Mines Rescue Service teaching leadership skills. The one thing I found as I travelled around was the self created problems businesses had between management and the workforce. The vast majority of these problems arose because few businesses had good team leaders, leaders who understood the type of relationship needed between a team leader and the team. And nothing is ever done to solve the problems, it's a self perpetuating syndrome. I eventually retired in 1998 completely frustrated at not being able to do anything to solve the matter in any meaningful way. So now I potter around in my succulent garden and attempt to write books. One of which, - 'Paras - Voices of the British Airborne Forces In The Second World War' is still selling on the net. My last book: 'The Gargantuan Book on team building and leadership using quotable quotes' is my tilt at windmills like that ancient character Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes. In my spare time I like to fly very expensive drones and crash them. That's why they are SOOOOO expensive.

Book preview

Getting That Job

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle once said of his famous character Sherlock Holmes, that if he ever went for a job Dr. Watson's summary list of his strengths and weaknesses would be: Knowledge of Literature: Nil. Knowledge of Philosophy: Nil. Knowledge of Astronomy: Nil. Knowledge of Politics: Feeble. Knowledge of Botany: Variable. Well up in belladonna, opium, and poisons generally. Knows nothing of practical gardening. Knowledge of Geology: Practical, but limited. Tells at a glance different soils from each other. After walks has shown me splashes upon his trousers, and told me by their colour and consistence in what part of London he had received them. Knowledge of Chemistry: Profound. Knowledge of Anatomy: Accurate but unsystematic. Knowledge of Sensational Literature: Immense. He appears to know every detail of every horror perpetrated in the century. Plays the violin well. Is an expert singlestick player, boxer, and swordsman. Has a good practical knowledge of British law. Interpersonal skills: Extremely Poor, doesn't seem to understand the need for good interpersonal skills in communication.

1. Every employer's looking for both hard skills (The skills on the job application), and soft skills (Your interpersonal skills). And once the job application skills have been met greater emphasis is placed on soft skills, so your soft skills are more likely to determine who eventually gets hired. ~ Blake Wilson

2. Job seekers tend to overemphasize hard skills, I can work this and do that. Make sure you don’t overlook your soft skills, the hidden skills, as these days soft skills are often the clincher they are looking for, people that can communicate, make decisions, organise, think on their feet, be part of a team. So include them in your resume; mention them in your interviews; and you’ll improve your chances of getting hired. ~ Blake Wilson

3. Make sure you introduce YOU and your PROFESSIONAL value in your Résumé. Identify your career goals and plans for growth. Highlight your targeted skills, education and work skills. Reference the benefits of the position, and offer a clear call to action. ~ James Lawyer's

4. Regardless of profession or title, at some level we are all hired to do a job. We are all problem solvers, paid to anticipate, identify, prevent, and solve problems within our areas of expertise. This applies to any job, at any level, in any organization, anywhere in the world, and being aware of this is absolutely vital to job search and career success in any field. ~ James Horrocks

5. The employer wants YOU to be the solution. Whoever is waiting in there for you is actually hoping you are the answer to their search as they get jaded after dozens of interviews. Your fear or self-doubt can persuade YOU that those waiting to interview you want you to fail, they don't. Unfortunately it means you carry that depressed energy in with you, you're convinced you won't get the job and that's no way to start an interview. Instead walk in with an ‘I can be the solution to your problem’ attitude, firm hand shake and introduction, don't be arrogant, just open. The rest is out of your hands, but your positivity in itself is empowering. ~ Kate White

6. The success of your job-hunt depends on you—with a little help from your friends. You must be in charge of it. You must plan it. You must direct it. You must know what works and what doesn’t work. Your job-hunt is by its very nature a self-directed search. ~ Richard N. Bolles

7. Take risks: if you win, you will be happy; if you lose, you will be wise ~ Anonymous

8. I didn't see it then but getting fired from APPLE was one of the best things that ever happened to me. The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me into having one of the most creative periods of my life. ~ Steve Jobs

9. Aim high when you apply for jobs.What's the worse that can happen? ~ Roger Payne

10. Worrying is about an interview is like a rocking chair, it gives you something to do, but doesn’t get you anywhere. ~ Betty White

11. What to Write in Your CV: I want to build a long term career with opportunities for personal growth. To keep up with the cutting edge of technology. To use my skills in the best possible way to achieve the company's goals. To enhance my professional skills in a dynamic and fast paced workplace. To solve problems in an effective and creative manner in a challenging position, and seek a responsible job with an opportunity for professional challenges. ~ Job-Interview Site.com

12. Believe in yourself! Have faith in your abilities! Without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers you cannot be successful or happy. ~ Norman Vincent Peale 1898-1993

13. Take the path less traveled and learn from your mistakes. Don’t just let life happen around you; control your future. Learn to ask questions, set small goals, and dream of big ones. Absorb any criticism and let it fuel you. Convince others that you are worthy of your dream, and show them that you are willing to put up a damn good fight for it. ~ Matthew T. Cross

14. Ask yourself if what you're doing today is getting you closer to where you want to be tomorrow? If the answer is no, then why? ~ Anonymous

15. I'm playing; I'm here. I'm going to fight until they tell me they don't want me anymore. ~ Steve Nash

16. Don't be afraid to fail. Don't waste energy trying to cover up failure. Learn from your failures and go on to the next challenge. It's OK to fail. If you're not failing occasionally, you're not growing. ~ H. Stanley Judd

17. Opportunities don't often come along. So, when they do, you have to grab them. ~ Audrey Hepburn

18. Never say anything about yourself you do not want to come true. ~ Brian Tracy

19. If you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain. ~ Dolly Parton

20. Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life. ~ Confucius 551-478 BC

21. Success doesn't come to you, you go to it. ~ Marva Collins

22. The biggest mistake that you can make is to believe that you are working for somebody else. Job security is gone. The driving force of a career must come from the individual. Remember: Jobs are owned by the company, you own your career! ~ Earl Nightingale

23. Never tell me the sky’s the limit when there are footprints on the moon. ~ Anonymous

24. It is never too late to be what you might have been. ~ George Eliot 1819-1880

25. All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them. ~ Walt Disney

26. Every experience in your life is being orchestrated to teach you something you need to know to move forward. ~ Brian Tracy

27. I’m a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it. ~ Thomas Jefferson 1743-1846

28. Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan 'press on' has solved and will always solve the problems of the human race. ~ Calvin Coolidge 1872-1933

29. Take the path less traveled and learn from your mistakes. Don’t just let life happen around you; control your future. Learn to ask questions, set small goals, and dream of big ones. Absorb any criticism and let it fuel you. Convince others that you are worthy of your dream, and show them that you are willing to put up a damn good fight for it. ~ Matthew T. Cross

30. You are not your resume – you are your work, ~ Seth Godin

31. Don’t be afraid to go out on a limb. That’s where the fruit is. ~ H. Jackson Browne

32. An obstacle may be either a stepping stone or a stumbling block. ~ Anonymous

33. Positive things happen to positive people. ~ Sarah Beeny

34. When you leave college, there are thousands of people out there with the same degree you have; when you get a job, there will be thousands of people doing what you want to do for a living. But you are the only person alive who has sole custody of your life. ~ Anna Quindlen

35. Nothing worthwhile comes easily. Work, continuous work and hard work, is the only way to accomplish results that last. ~ Hamilton Holt 1872-1951

36. Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work. ~ Thomas Edison 1847-1931

37. Getting fired is nature’s way of telling you that you had the wrong job in the first place. ~ Hal Lancaster

38. If opportunity doesn’t knock, then build a door. ~ Milton Berle

39. Being an eagle scout is just about the only thing you can put on your resume at age 50 that you did at age 14 – and it still impresses the hell out of everyone. ~ Randy Pausc

40. To make our way, we must have firm resolve, persistence, tenacity. We must gear ourselves to work hard all the way. We can never let up. ~ Ralph Bunche

41. Are you bored with life? Then throw yourself into some work you believe in with all your heart, live for it, die for it, and you will find happiness that you had thought could never be yours. ~ Dale Carnegie 1888-1955

42. Achievement is largely the product of steadily raising one’s levels of aspirations and expectations. ~ Jack Nicklaus

43. If it no longer works for you, then leave. It's never worth it to stay in a job that makes you miserable whatever the reason, and it doesn't help you become a better person. ~ Anonymous

44. I never dreamed about success. I worked for it. ~ Estee Lauder

45. The most valuable of all talents is that of never using two words when one will do. ~ Thomas Jefferson 1743-1826

46. Take risks: if you win, you will be happy; if you lose, you will be wise. ~ Anonymous

47. Good questions are those that show that you not only want the job, you are prepared to knock the ball out of the park once you have it. So ask, 'What would a successful year in the job look like?' or 'What did you most value in the person who left?' You’ve done a Google search of the field and the company, of course, and one of your questions could be about emerging trends. Interviewers love it when questions relate to them and their accomplishments ('I’ve heard you made some exciting changes recently. What has the outcome been?) ~ Kate White

48. Don’t confuse having a career with having a life. ~ Hillary Clinton

49. Successful business people get ahead the mundane way, by doing more and doing it better. Envy is a monster with a gluttonous appetite. And it’s never satisfied. Pursue your goals, not someone else’s goals. ~ James Dale

50. What is the recipe for successful achievement? To my mind there are just four essential ingredients: Choose a career you love, give it the best there is, seize your opportunities and be a member of the team. ~ Benjamin F. Fairless 1890-1962

51. The resume focuses on you and the past. The cover letter focuses on the employer and the future. Tell the hiring professional what you can do to benefit the organization in the future. ~ Joyce Lain Kennedy

52. During your job search, you must also be networking as much as possible, attending events, talks, lectures, and conferences where you’ll meet people you can add to your contact list. ~ Kate White

53. The crowning fortune of a man is to be born to some pursuit which finds him employment and happiness, whether it be to make baskets, or broadswords, or canals, or statues, or songs. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson 1803-1882

54. If you don’t know why you’d hire you, neither will they. ~ Frank Sonnenberg

55. We yearn for opportunities, we pray for opportunities and we seek for opportunities. The good news is that we meet opportunities. The bad news is that we miss the opportunities only to come to a later realization of missed opportunities. ~ Ernest Agyemang Yeboah

56. Just because you can’t find jobs doesn’t mean they don’t exist. You’ve got to change the way you’re looking for them. Because there are always job vacancies out there. ~ Richard N. Bolles

57. The value of intellectuals is neither their intellect nor the value of their intellect but the value of what they use their intellect to do. ~ Ernest Agyemang Yeboah

58. Every day you should be checking job boards to track positions as they open up. In addition to the job boards on company websites, use public job boards such as Monster, Indeed, LinkedIn, and any specialty sites. There’s also your alumni website, etc. ~ Kate White

59. Come right out and say you want it: 'It’s been great hearing you talk about the position. I’d love to work here, and I think I could do a terrific job for you. ~ Kate White

60. People who are unable to motivate themselves must be content with mediocrity, no matter how impressive their other talents. ~ Andrew Carnegie 1835-1919

61. If you don't like where you are, move, you're not a tree! ~ Anonymous

62. Perfection is finally attained not when there is no longer anything to add, but when there is no longer anything to take away. ~ Antoine de Saint Exupéry

63. Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today. ~ Thomas Jefferson 1743-1826

64. The job you seek isn't out there in some job description, it's already inside you, aching to get out. ~ John Tarnoff

65. Promise me you'll always remember: You're braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. ~ A.A. Milne 1882-1965

66. For the job seeker. You always miss 100% of the jobs you don't apply for. ~ Anonymous

67. Even though your time on the job is temporary, if you do a good enough job, your work there will last forever. ~ Idowu Koyenikan

68. When you make the decision to start something new, first figure out the jobs you want to do. Then position yourself to play where no one else is playing. ~ Whiteny Johnson

69. What someone may lack in talent can be more than made up for in self-motivation, self-direction, and follow-through. ~ Miles Anthony Smith

70. Believe in yourself and all that you are. Know that there is something inside you that is greater than any obstacle. ~ Christain Larson

71. The most important tool you have on a resume is language, simple straight to the point language. ~ Jay Samit

72. Your CV is just a commodity, Package yourself correctly. ~ Bernard Kelvin Clive

73. You don’t have to be great to start, but you so have to start to be great. ~ Zig Ziglar

74. When you’re passionate about your job, success comes naturally and peacefully in both your personal and professional life. ~ Tom Powner

75. Talent means very little, while experience, squired in humility combined with hard work, means everything. ~ Patrick Suskind

76. Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending. ~ Maria Robinson

77. We must be willing to fail and to appreciate the truth. Life is not a problem to be solved, but a mystery to be lived. ~ M. Scott Peck

78. Don’t be defined by your past, your past is the tutor of your present and is always preparing you for your future. Forget about disappointments or mistakes. It’s never too late for a new beginning. ~ Kemmy Nola

79. The world is round, and the place which may seem like the end may also be only the beginning ~ Ivy Baker Priest

80. Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek. ~ Barack Obama

The Need for Soft Skills

Unlike the so called hard skills that are specific, teachable abilities that can be defined and measured, soft skills are intangible and difficult to quantify. Things like analytical thinking, verbal communication, teamwork and leadership are soft skills. Soft skills are so important because they make possible connections between people. You can be the best in your field of expertise but if you cannot communicate effectively, and don't interact effectively with people then your going to find it hard to get employment as a team leader in many fields

1. There’s not one specific thing or skill people have to have to work for us. But I can tell you why we fire people: soft skills. We hire for hard skills. We fire for soft skills. The inability to interact and communicate with others or behave ethically and take responsibility for things is where people tend to break down. ~ Mark White

2. The most important thing in communication is to hear what isn't being said. ~ Peter F. Drucker

3. I suppose leadership at one time meant muscles; but today it means getting along with people. ~ Mahatma Gandhi 1869 - assassinated 1948

4. Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan 'press on' has solved and will always solve the problems of the human race. ~ Calvin Coolidge 1872-1953

5. I’m a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it. ~ Thomas Jefferson 1743-1826

6. Every experience in your life is being orchestrated to teach you something you need to know to move forward. ~ Brian Tracy

7. Never tell me the sky’s the limit when there are footprints on the moon. ~ Anonymous

8. It is never too late to be what you might have been. ~ George Eliot 1890-1880

9. Success doesn't come to you, you go to it. ~ Marva Collins

10. Say what you mean. And mean what you say, but don't say it mean!!! ~ Anthony Gueste

11. Take risks: if you win, you will be happy; if you lose, you will be wise. ~ Anonymous

12. Don't be afraid to fail. Don't waste energy trying to cover up failure. Learn from your failures and go on to the next challenge. It's OK to fail. If you're not failing, you're not growing. ~ H. Stanley Judd

13. It's time to start living the life we've imagined. ~ Henry James 1843-1916

14. The greatest thing in this world is not so much where we stand, as in what direction we are moving. ~ Oliver Wendell Holmes 1841-1935

15. The most valuable of all talents is that of never using two words when one will do. ~ Thomas Jefferson 1743-1826

16. If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well. ~ Martin Luther King Jr. 1929 - assassinated 1968

17. Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing. ~ Theodore Roosevelt 1858-1919

18. There are so many things you can learn about. But you’ll miss the best things if you keep your eyes shut. ~ Dr. Seuss

19. Do something for somebody every day for which you do not get paid. ~ Albert Schweitzer 1875-1965

20. Before you build a better mousetrap, it helps to know if there are any mice out there. ~ Yogi Berra

21. The voyage of discovery is not in looking for new landscapes, but in looking with new eyes. ~ Anonymous

22. Experience is not what happens to a man. It is what a man does with what happens to him. ~ Aldous Huxley 1894-1963

23. One person with courage makes a majority. ~ Andrew Jackson 1767-1845

24. No one ever gets very far unless he accomplishes the impossible at least once a day. ~ Elbert Hubbard 1856-1915

25. Any fact facing us is not as important as our attitude toward it, for that alone determines our success or failure. ~ Norman Vincent Peale 1898-1993

26. To be a great champion, you must believe you are the best. If you're not, pretend you are. ~ Muhammad Ali

27. The average person puts only 25% of his energy into his work. The world takes off its hat to those who put in more than 50% of their capacity, and stands on its head for those few and far between souls who devote 100%. ~ Andrew Carnegie 1835-1919

28. All of the darkness of the world cannot put out the light of one small candle. ~ Anonymous

29. If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavours to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours. ~ Henry David Thoreau 1817-1862

30. No matter what we do, each instant contains infinite choices. What we choose to think, to say or to hear creates what we feel in the present moment, it conditions the quality of our communication and in the end the quality of our everyday life. Beliefs and attitudes are made of thoughts. Negative thoughts can be changed and by doing so we create for ourselves more pleasant inner states and by doing so have a different impact on the people around us ~ Dorotea Brandin

31. Gifted leadership occurs when heart and head, feeling and thought meet.These are the two winds that allow a good leader to soar. ~ Daniel Goldman

32. Talent is cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work. ~ Stephen King

33. Your knowledge has to be improved, challenged, and increased constantly in todays world or you'll fall behind and never catch up. ~ Roger Payne

34. Personally, I'm always ready to learn, although I do not always like being taught. ~ Winston Churchill 1874-1955

35. Excellence is to do a common thing in an uncommon way. ~ Booker T. Washington 1856-1915

36. The person who goes farthest is generally the one who is willing to do and dare. The sure-thing boat never gets far from the shore. ~ Dale Carnegie 1888-1955

37. In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing. ~ Theodore Roosevelt 1858-1919

38. The greatest thing in this world is not so much where we stand, as in what direction we are moving. ~ Oliver Wendall Holmes 1841-1935

39. Trust people and they will be true to you; Treat them greatly, and they will show themselves great. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson 1803-1882

40. There is a way to do it better… find it. ~ Thomas Edison 1847-1931

41. Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go. ~ T.S. Eliot 1888-1965

42. Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadows. ~ Helen Keller

43. The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any. ~ Alice Walker

44. The truth is that our finest moments are most likely to occur when we are feeling deeply uncomfortable, unhappy, or unfulfilled. For it is only in such moments, propelled by our discomfort, that we are likely to step out of our ruts and start searching for different ways or truer answers. ~ M. Scott Peck

45. If you don’t feel it, flee from it. Go where you are celebrated, not merely tolerated. ~ Paul F. Davis

46. Find out what you like doing best, and get someone to pay you for doing it. ~ Katharine Whitehorn

47. Wanting to be someone else is a waste of the person you are. ~ Kurt Cobain

48. The future depends on what you do today. ~ Mahatma Gandhi 1869 - assassinated 1948

49. You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough. ~ Mae West 1893-1980

50. I am not a product of my circumstances. I am a product of my decisions. ~ Stephen R. Covey

51. Opportunities don't happen, you create them. ~ Chris Grosser

52. Types of Soft Skills you need: Honesty, teamwork, follow the rules, write well, good communication skills, common sense, good personal appearance, staying power, writes well.~ James Buckley

53. The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. ~ Eleanor Roosevelt 1884-1962

54. Style is knowing who you are, what you want to say, and not giving a damn. ~ Gore Vidal

55. The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. ~ Steve Jobs

56. It is never too late to be what you might have been. ~ George Eliot 1819-1880

57. Everything I’ve ever let go of has claw marks on it. ~ David Foster Wallace

58. A mind troubled by doubt cannot focus on any course of action. ~ Arthur Golden

59. There is no passion to be found playing small—in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living. ~ Nelson Mandela

60. Whatever you decide to do, make sure it makes you happy. ~ Paulo Coelho

61. I was always looking outside myself for strength and confidence, but it comes from within. It is there all the time. ~ Anna Freud 1895-1983

62. Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does. ~ William James 1842-1910

63. There is only one way to avoid criticism: Do nothing, say nothing, and be nothing. ~ Elbert Hubbard 1856-1915

64. If you’re offered a seat on a rocket ship, don’t ask what seat! Just get on. ~ Sheryl Sandberg

65. Without leaps of imagination or dreaming, we lose the excitement of possibilities. Dreaming, after all is a form of planning. ~ Gloria Steinem

66. .A mind that is stretched by new experiences can never go back to its old dimensions. ~ Oliver Wendell Holmes 1841-1935

67. Whatever you are, be a good one. ~ Abraham Lincoln 1809 - assassinated 1865

68. Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great. ~ Mark Twain 1835-1910

69. Make no effort and never risk failure. ~ Anonymous

70. To be successful, the first thing to do is fall in love with your work. ~ Sister Mary Lauretta

71. Trust not what inspires other members of society to choose a career. Trust what inspires you. ~ The Lazy Person’s Guide to Success

72. You are what you do. If you do boring, stupid, monotonous work, chances are you’ll end up boring, stupid, and monotonous. ~ Bob Black

73. I believe you are your work. Don’t trade the stuff of your life, time, for nothing more than dollars. That’s a rotten bargain. ~ Rita Mae Brown

74. Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men’s blood... Make big plans; aim high in hope and work. ~ Daniel Burnham 1846 – 1912

75. You can’t depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus. ~ Mark Twain 1835-1910

76. We must believe that we are gifted for something, and that this thing, at whatever cost, must be attained. ~ Marie Curie 1867-1934

77. If we resist our passions, it is more through their weakness than from our strength. ~ Francois de la Rochefoucauld 1613-1680

78. The biggest mistake that you can make is to believe that you are working for somebody else…The driving force of a career must come from the individual. Remember: Jobs are owned by the company, you own your career! ~ Earl Nightingale

79. It was a custom with Apelles, to which he most tenaciously adhered, never to let any day pass, however busy he might be, without exercising himself by tracing some outline or other,— a practice which has now passed into a proverb. It was also a practice with him, when he had completed a work, to exhibit it to the view of the passers-by in his studio, while he himself, concealed behind the picture, would listen to the criticisms…. Under these circumstances, they say that he was censured by a shoemaker for having represented the shoes with one latchet too few. The next day, the shoemaker, quite proud at seeing the former error corrected, thanks to his advice, began to criticise the leg; upon which Apelles, full of indignation, popped his head out and reminded him that a shoemaker should give no opinion beyond the shoes, — a piece of advice which has equally passed into a proverbial saying. ~ Pliny The Elder 23-79 AD

80. What people get admired and appreciated for in the working community are their soft skills; their sense of humour and timing, their ability to listen, their courage and honesty, and their capacity for empathy. ~ M. Scott Peck

Essential Communication

If YOU want to be a good communicator then you must do one of 5 things. You must FOCUS ON THE SPEAKER and block out any other interruptions like fiddling with your phone. Favour your RIGHT ear. Why? Because the left side of your brain contains the processing centres for both speech comprehension and emotions. Since the left side of the brain is connected to the right side of the body, favouring your right ear can help you listen better. NEVER EVER interrupt or try to REDIRECT the conversation. LISTEN CAREFULLY to what is been said then ASK QUESTION. ALWAYS SHOW INTEREST, nod occasionally, smile, encourage them to keep talking with Yes, I agree, Mmm or uh huh statements. Don't judge them. You may not like them or agree with their values, opinions, or ideas, but listen to what they say as it may contain something important in it. And always provide feedback to confirm you have understood what they said. And remember, leaders need to be good communicators to be effective.

1. Often the single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has actually taken place. ~ George Bernard Shaw 1856-1950

2. 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. ~ John Kotter

3. You can have brilliant ideas, but if you can explain them in a simple, fluid, and persuasive manner, then your ideas won't get you anywhere ~ Lee Lacocca

4. The real art of conversation is not only to say the right thing at the right place, but to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment. ~ Dorothy Nevill

5. We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak. ~ Epictetus 50-135 AD

6. The most important things are the hardest to say, because WORDS can diminish them. ~ Stephen King

7. Every criticism, judgment, diagnosis, and expression of anger is the tragic expression of an unmet need. ~ Marshall Rosenberg

8. Developing excellent communication skills is absolutely essential to effective leadership. The leader must be able to share knowledge and ideas to transmit a sense of urgency and enthusiasm to others. If a leader can't get a message across clearly and motivate others to act on it, then having a message doesn't even matter. ~ Gilbert Amelio

9. Precision of communication is important, more important than ever, in our era of hair trigger balances, when a false or misunderstood word may create as much disaster as a sudden thoughtless act. ~ James Thurber 1894-1961

10. Strategic communication is at the core of effective leadership. Through a leader's use of verbal and written symbols employees are motivated or deflated, informed or confused, productive or apathetic. A leader's ability to carve off the verbal fat and get to the meat of an issue, idea or plan, will find success at every turn. ~ Reed Markham

11. Communication does not depend on syntax, or eloquence, or rhetoric, or articulation but on the emotional context in which the message is being heard. People can only hear you when they are moving toward you, and they are not likely to when your words are pursuing them. ~ Edwin H. Friedman

12. Communication can't always follow the top-down model. With the fluidity of information in business today, leaders need to be masterful listeners; they need to be able to receive as well as send. ~ Joseph Badaracco

13. When lack of communication is in the air, assume nothing! Rather than waiting, over thinking, wondering, doubting or assuming for the best or for the worst, preserve your good energy and sanity, grab a cup of courage as opposed to a cup of coffee, and just ASK! ~ Annie Armen

14. A good conversationalist is not one who remembers what was said, but says what someone wants to remember. ~ John Mason Brown

15. Words should be