Bill’s Curated Quotes – May 2023

A question posed by Lee Thayer, a provocateur of Leadership for the Ages: 

“Did you know that General Patton, of WWII fame, never won a single battle?”

I have posed this quote to many senior leadership people. Just about everyone gives me the same puzzled look – their responses are the same – “You’re wrong, he won many, many battles.” So, what is Thayer’s point??

Leadership is about learning to delegate. We must accept that to become a good leader requires years of learning how to be a good follower. General Patton put only the best officers under him, and he let them execute the battle. Patton did not win the battle — his people below him in the 2nd Army won the battles!

Delegation is a difficult thing to learn. As you build your team, add only players that can perform the stated mission of the company or team. Remember – The measure of performance is PERFORMANCE!!!! (Another “Thayer-ism”.)

Every team has a weak link or two. To build a high performing team, you must exit the weak links. If you don’t, you will find it difficult to get the results you expect.

Until next time, something else to ponder — “The speed of technological change is now the slowest it will be for the rest of your life.” – David Houle, Futurist