Margaret J. Wheatley Quotes

In our daily life, we encounter people who are angry, deceitful, intent only on satisfying their own needs. There is so much anger, distrust, greed, and pettiness that we are losing our capacity to work well together.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Life, Work, Anger

Without reflection, we go blindly on our way, creating more unintended consequences, and failing to achieve anything useful.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Reflection, Failing, Achieve

Even though worker capacity and motivation are destroyed when leaders choose power over productivity, it appears that bosses would rather be in control than have the organization work well.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Work, Power, Control

In these troubled, uncertain times, we don't need more command and control; we need better means to engage everyone's intelligence in solving challenges and crises as they arise.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Control, Everyone, Means

Aggression is inherently destructive of relationships. People and ideologies are pitted against each other, believing that in order to survive, they must destroy the opposition.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Against, Believing, Order

Determination, energy, and courage appear spontaneously when we care deeply about something. We take risks that are unimaginable in any other context.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Courage, Care, Energy

Our willingness to acknowledge that we only see half the picture creates the conditions that make us more attractive to others. The more sincerely we acknowledge our need for their different insights and perspectives, the more they will be magnetized to join us.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Different, Others, Picture

I'm sad to report that in the past few years, ever since uncertainty became our insistent 21st century companion, leadership has taken a great leap backwards to the familiar territory of command and control.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Leadership, Great, Sad

Too many problem-solving sessions become battlegrounds where decisions are made based on power rather than intelligence.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Power, Made, Become

And time for reflection with colleagues is for me a lifesaver; it is not just a nice thing to do if you have the time. It is the only way you can survive.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Time, Nice, Reflection

Listening is such a simple act. It requires us to be present, and that takes practice, but we don't have to do anything else. We don't have to advise, or coach, or sound wise. We just have to be willing to sit there and listen.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Wise, Simple, Else

Aggression only moves in one direction - it creates more aggression.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Direction, Moves, Aggression

Whatever life we have experienced, if we can tell our story to someone who listens, we find it easier to deal with our circumstances.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Life, Someone, Find

When leaders take back power, when they act as heroes and saviors, they end up exhausted, overwhelmed, and deeply stressed.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Power, End, Act

Everyone in a complex system has a slightly different interpretation. The more interpretations we gather, the easier it becomes to gain a sense of the whole.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Different, Sense, Everyone

There are many benefits to this process of listening. The first is that good listeners are created as people feel listened to. Listening is a reciprocal process - we become more attentive to others if they have attended to us.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Good, Others, Become

For eons, humans have struggled to find less destructive ways of living together.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Together, Find, Living

Hopelessness has surprised me with patience.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Patience, Surprised

We have created trouble for ourselves in organizations by confusing control with order.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Control, Trouble, Ourselves

Probably the most visible example of unintended consequences, is what happens every time humans try to change the natural ecology of a place.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Change, Time, Try

We experience problem-solving sessions as war zones, we view competing ideas as enemies, and we use problems as weapons to blame and defeat opposition forces. No wonder we can't come up with real lasting solutions!
Margaret J. Wheatley

War, Experience, Real

Circles create soothing space, where even reticent people can realize that their voice is welcome.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Realize, Voice, Space

Destroying is a necessary function in life. Everything has its season, and all things eventually lose their effectiveness and die.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Life, Everything, Die

For us, someone who is willing to step forward and help is much more courageous than someone who is merely fulfilling the role.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Forward, Help, Someone

I believe that our very survival depends upon us becoming better systems thinkers.
Margaret J. Wheatley

Survival, Becoming, Depends

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Biography

Nationality: American

Type: Writer

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