Pessimists see problems as stemming from stable and universal causes, thus making them less susceptible to corrective action. Optimists, in contrast, view problems as temporary and resulting from specific factors that will either change or be changed.
ROSABETH MOSS KANTER, Confidence
Contempt for government undermines its ability to protect all citizens. Good government should be based on facts. It should invest in maintenance of basic services, whether infrastructure repairs or public health, and be prepared for crises. Above all, it should attract the best and most professional people to public service. Unless we believe that public service is an honorable calling, we will never motivate talented people to join or achieve high performances. But none of this is possible unless those in positions of public trust carry out their jobs honorably, with respect for the institutions and the public they serve.
ROSABETH MOSS KANTER, America the Principled
The architecture of change involves the design and construction of new patterns, or the reconceptualization of old ones, to make new, and hopefully more productive, actions possible.
ROSABETH MOSS KANTER, The Change Masters
Change demands new learning.
ROSABETH MOSS KANTER, The Change Masters
The most distinguished advocate and the most distinguished critic of modern captialism were in agreement on one essential point: the job makes the person. Adam Smith and Karl Marx both recognized the extent to which people's attitudes and behaviors take shape out of the experiences they have in their work.
ROSABETH MOSS KANTER, Men and Women of the Corporation
Perpetuating success or sliding into decline is the result of many intersecting forces that reinforce one another directly and indirectly. They are both cause and effect of winning or losing. Winning generates positive forces, losing generates negative forces.
ROSABETH MOSS KANTER, Confidence
The very lack of opportunity the group faces creates a self-defeating cycle and puts pressure on members to limit their aspirations.
ROSABETH MOSS KANTER, Men and Women of the Corporation
Our future will be shaped by the assumptions we make about who we are and what we can be.
ROSABETH MOSS KANTER, America the Principled
Winning becomes easier over time as the cornerstones of confidence become habits.
ROSABETH MOSS KANTER, Confidence
Confidence is the bridge connecting expectations and performance, investment and results.
ROSABETH MOSS KANTER, Confidence
America can restore its strengths as the world-respected land of opportunity by returning to open-society principles. An open society invests in people and new ideas, rewards talent and hard work, values dialogue and learns from dissent, operates to high standards with transparent information, looks for common ground, sees problems as opportunities for creative change, and encourages those who are fortunate to help others get the same chance, because service is the highest ideal. With such standards in mind, America the Beautiful can return to its admired role as America the Principled.
ROSABETH MOSS KANTER, America the Principled
Those enjoying winning streaks thus win twofold. They win not only the game but also the right to greater self-determination. They become masters of their own fate. That feeling of efficacy, of being in charge of circumstances, is the essence of confidence. Winning once or twice is encouraging, but winning continuously is empowering.
ROSABETH MOSS KANTER, Confidence
