Greatness is not found in possessions, power, position, or prestige. It is discovered in goodness, humility, service, and character.
William Arthur WardRead
We must be silent before we can listen. We must listen before we can learn. We must learn before we can prepare. We must prepare before we can serve. We must serve before we can lead.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Effective leadership requires a progression of skills, beginning with listening and culminating in service.
This quote emphasizes the importance of a structured approach to leadership and personal development. It suggests that before one can lead others, they must first develop key skills such as listening and learning. By being silent and attentive, we can understand the needs of those around us, which in turn allows us to learn effectively. This foundation of knowledge prepares us for the act of service, as true leadership is rooted in serving others and addressing their needs.
Themes
LeadershipListeningLearningServingPreparation
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be shared during a leadership workshop to emphasize the importance of active listening.
More from William Arthur Ward
All quotes →The optimist lives on the peninsula of infinite possibilities; the pessimist is stranded on the island of perpetual indecision.
William Arthur WardRead
Four steps to achievement: Plan purposefully. Prepare prayerfully. Proceed positively. Pursue persistently.
William Arthur WardRead
A warm smile is the universal language of kindness.
William Arthur WardRead
Change, like sunshine, can be a friend or a foe, a blessing or a curse, a dawn or a dusk.
William Arthur WardRead
Do more than be fair: be kind.
William Arthur WardRead
Similar quotes
Bear Island knows no king but the King in the North, whose name is STARK.
George R. R. MartinRead
When truth takes a backseat to ego and politics, trust is lost.
Patrick LencioniRead
If you want to coach you have three rules to follow to win. One, surround yourself with people who can't live without football. I've had a lot of them. Two, be able to recognize winners. They come in all forms. And, three, have a plan for everything. A plan for practice, a plan for the game. A plan for being ahead, and a plan for being behind 20-0 at half, with your quarterback hurt and the phones dead, with it raining cats and dogs and no rain gear because the equipment man left it at home.
Bear BryantRead
The conservative values of limited government and freedom for all coincide with the movement for full freedom and equality for LGBT Americans.
Margaret HooverRead
At that moment, in the sunset on Watership Down, there was offered to General Woundwort the opportunity to show whether he was really the leader of vision and genius which he believed himself to be, or whether he was no more than a tyrant with the courage and cunning of a pirate. For one beat of his pulse the lame rabbit's idea shone clearly before him. He grasped it and realized what it meant. The next, he had pushed it away from him.
Richard AdamsRead
Define excellence vividly, quantitatively. Paint a picture for your most talented employees of what excellence looks like. Keep everyone pushing and pushing toward the right-hand edge of the bell curve.
Marcus BuckinghamRead