Quotes About Decision-making

Next Mrs. Crupp said it was clear she couldn't be in two places at once (which I felt to be reasonable). . .

Our democracy poses problems and these problems must and shall be solved by courageous leadership.

Because of our Congressional committee system, our government is closer to a gerontocracy than a democracy.

The capacity for judgment, to make plans, to choose one's good, is what we share with other persons. It is what makes us persons.

The man who grasps principles can successfully select his own methods. The man who tries methods, ignoring principles, is sure to have trouble. —RALPH WALDO EMERSON

The man who grasps principles can successfully select his own methods. The man who tries methods, ignoring principles, is sure to have trouble. —RALPH WALDO EMERSON (ATTRIBUTED)1

When in doubt, tell a funny 'til you see what the other fellow is going to do.

Oh, I can't bother to write. If it's too long to telegraph I just let it go.

Conservatism is the policy of make no change and consult your grandmother when in doubt.

William Shakespeare, King Lear

Prudence operates on life in the same manner as rules on composition: it produces vigilance rather than elevation.... prudence keeps life safe, but does not often make it happy.

You have to decide what your highest priorities are and have the courage — pleasantly, smilingly, nonapologetically — to say "no" to other things. And the way you do that is by having a bigger "yes" burning inside.

It is often easier to ask for forgiveness than to ask for permission.

if people begin by thinking rationally, the danger is that they may end by acting rationally also.

Orientation, the big O in the OODA loop, is the schwerpunkt.

The quickest way to rectify that mistake (choosing the wrong person) is by learning from that, moving on, and choosing much more wisely in the future.

All that is very relevant to Afghanistan. To a startling degree, the Politburo's 1979 deliberations about how to deal with it mirror the Bush administration's close-minded and secretive decision-making that led to its invasion. The Bush White House might have modeled itself on the Soviet gerontocracy under Brezhnev that brushed aside warnings from military and regional experts who knew the situation in Afghanistan to be far more complicated than the Politburo stated.

There are some who want to get married and others who don't. I have never had an impulse to go to the altar. I am a difficult person to lead.

Say "no" only when it really matters. Wear a bright red shirt with bright orange shorts? Sure. Put water in the toy tea set? Okay. Sleep with your head at the foot of the bed? Fine. Samuel Johnson said, "All severity that does not tend to increase good, or prevent evil, is idle.

You put five intelligent people together and they vote like an idiot.

We attend a postmodern meeting, and everyone leaves happy because everyone at the meeting was able to express himself or herself, even if no decisions were made. We give equal awards to our kids so nobody feels left out. Our news media is more concerned with the question, "How did that make you feel?" than any other.

The most powerful word in time management is NO.

Look at him! Him, that one there! He's hiding! Your team-mates need to know that you are always available!' he'll shout, pointing a finger at the culprit. 'Before passing the ball, you need to know where you're passing it to; if you don't know, it's better to keep it; give it to your goalie, but don't give it to your opponent

people do, in fact, act against their moral convictions and this is an unhappy fact about ourselves'.