Explore Quotes by John P. Kotter

At any one time the world has a very limited number of Steve Jobs or Winston Churchills or Thomas Watson the firsts. These are wonderful people and we can learn much from them, but praying for a few more of them to solve the world's problems is not a great idea.

Congress is full of people who get reelected and reelected. How can you have urgency when there are all of those safe seats?

Kotter International is about leading large-scale change, not just managing it.

We worry about appearing awkward in a presentation. But up to a point, most people seem to feel more comfortable with less-than-perfect speaking abilities. It makes the speaker more human - and more vulnerable, meaning he is less likely to attack our decisions or beliefs.

If the culture you have is radically different from an 'experiment and take-risk' culture, then you have a big change you going to have to make - and no little gimmicks are going to do it for you.

The world has 6 billion people and counting. We need to help 500 million people become better leaders so that billions can benefit.

Low lights signal to our senses that the workday may be over and it's time for sleep, making it hard for an audience to pay careful attention. When we stand behind a big wooden podium, it can feel as if there's a shield between us and the audience.

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.

In an ever changing world, you never learn it all, even if you keep growing into your 90s.

Over the years I have become convinced that we learn best - and change - from hearing stories that strike a chord within us.

Urgency is unbelievably important when you're talking about, not little changes, but big changes.

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

Complacency is almost always the product of success or perceived success

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.

In terms of getting people to experiment more and take more risk, there are at least three things that immediately come to my mind. Number one, of course, is role-modeling it yourself. Number two is when people take intelligent, smart risks and yet it doesn't work out, not shooting them. And number three, being honest with yourself. If the culture you have is radically different from an experiment and take-risk culture, then you have a big change you going to have to make—and no little gimmicks are going to do it for you.

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.

Tradition is a very powerful force.

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.

In the final analysis, change sticks when it becomes the way we do things around here.

Leaders establish the vision for the future and set the strategy for getting there.

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