Any smart executive understands that to find the best talent she has to explore new territory that lies beyond familiar geography. That applies not only to gender, but also to race, religion, background and age.
Interpretation
Diverse talent must be sought beyond traditional boundaries.
This quote emphasizes the importance of leaders in actively seeking out talent from diverse backgrounds, including different genders, races, religions, and ages. It suggests that true excellence in leadership requires looking beyond one's usual networks and being open to exploring new territories to discover the best candidates.
In practice
During a leadership conference, this quote can be used to emphasize the importance of diversity.
It's time for male leaders to not only ask for binders of qualified women, but to re-write the definition of 'qualified.' The best man for the job, may in fact, be a woman, whose biography is not traditional, but is rich with experiences and skills that are not necessarily learned either in school or on the job.
It's time for women to wake up, to use the power of the vote, to honor the suffragists who chained themselves to the White House fence so that women could vote.
When women and men can shed an equal quantity of tears in public, that's when we'll have equal power.
What works for a man, still does not work for a woman - both in terms of how they see themselves and how we see them.
Legislative proposals that would enable an employer to determine whether or not a woman's insurance would cover the cost of birth control strikes women as particularly bizarre. Is the boss going to take care of the children that are conceived accidentally? Stop treating us like children. Women are grown ups.
What some men don't understand is that by opposing policies to reduce violence, promote equal pay and universal healthcare and voting to limit access to contraception and legal abortion, they are relegating women to another century, a time when men ruled exclusively and women were considered property and had to be guided by a firm masculine hand.
Next to doing the right thing, the most important thing is to let people know you are doing the right thing.
I always believe that ultimately, if people are paying attention, then we get good government and good leadership. And when we get lazy, as a democracy and civically start taking shortcuts, then it results in bad government and politics.
If there are only three guys at the top of the organization handling things, it's the definition of a bankrupt company. In creating leaders without titles, we are going to have organizations with people at the helm putting forth their best.
Whenever America sends its citizens into harm's way, it must do so with eyes wide open.
When he entered the Oval Office - by fate, not by design - Citizen Ford knew that he was not perfect, just as he knew he was not perfect when he left. But what president ever was?
Of all tasks of government the most basic is to protect its citizens against violence.
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