How many on their deathbeds wished they'd spent more time at the office - or watching TV? The answer is, No one.
Management is efficiency in climbing the ladder of success; leadership determines whether the ladder is leaning against the right wall.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Management focuses on efficiency, while leadership ensures that efforts are directed towards the right goals.
This quote emphasizes the distinction between management and leadership. Management is concerned with how effectively tasks are completed, often represented as climbing the ladder of success. However, leadership plays a crucial role in identifying and ensuring that the goals pursued are appropriate, which is symbolized by ensuring the ladder is against the right wall. Without effective leadership, the efforts in management may lead to success that is ultimately misguided or misaligned with the organization's true purpose.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
During a corporate training session to discuss the importance of leadership versus management.
More from Stephen Covey
All quotes βIf you want to have a more pleasant, cooperative teenager, be a more understanding, empathic, consistent, loving parent. If you want to have more freedom, more latitude in your job, be a more responsible, a more helpful, a more contributing employee.
Listen with your eyes for feelings.
If we live out of our memory, we're tied to the past and to that which is finite. When we live out of our imagination, _x000D_ we're tied to that which is infinite.
Synergy is the highest activity of life; it creates new untapped alternatives; it values and exploits the mental, emotional, and psychological differences between people.
Keep in mind that you are always saying "no" to something. If it isn't to the apparent and urgent things in your life, it is probably to the most fundamental, highly important things.
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It is the right of government to protect the weak; it is the right of the weak to find in their courts fair treatment before the law.
Such a man the times have demanded, and such, in the providence of God was given us. But he is gone. Let us strive to deserve, as far as mortals may, the continued care of Divine Providence, trusting that, in future national emergencies, He will not fail to provide us the instruments of safety and security.
You can't manage by memo. You can't stand up there and just send out edicts. I think you just gotta really personalize your relationships.
In our experience, what we have found is the rare commodity is a good management team. And good management teams manage through good and bad cycles and manage to grow their business over a long period of time.