Quotes About Engagement

Most of what makes a book 'good' is that we are reading it at the right moment for us.

One of the best protections against disappointment is to have a lot going on.

I came to the conclusion that, even in life, unless I'm responding with my whole self—unless, in fact, I'm willing to be changed by you—I'm probably not really listening. But if I do listen—openly, naïvely, and innocently—there's a chance, possibly the only chance, that a true dialogue and real communication will take place between us.

The trouble with a lecture is that it answers questions that haven't been asked.

Not being truly engaged with the people we're trying to communicate with, and then suffering the snags of misunderstanding, is the grit in the gears of daily life.

I hope they'll pay attention not so much to the mechanical things, like a sudden change of pace in a talk or a sudden change in volume of their voice. I hope they'll pay attention, instead, to the fundamental source of that pacing and volume, which is the connection with the other person. That connection makes us respond like a leaf in the breeze to whatever is happening in the faces of those in front of us.

The person who's communicating something is responsible for how well the other person follows him.

While leadership is important, just as important is how leadership is communicated. On the one hand, you can command good performance from someone in exchange for not firing them. On the other hand, you might be able to ignite the desire in a person to perform well by tuning in to their state of mind.

As long as it doesn't seem fake, the more we establish familiarity with our audience - not speaking to them from left field or from on high - the better chance we have that they'll listen to what we have to say. And possibly even accept it.

If I'm trying to explain something and you don't follow me, it's not simply your job to catch up. It's my job to slow down. This is at the heart of communicating: If I tell you something without making sure you got it, did I really communicate anything? Was I talking to you, or was I just making noises? In the mirror exercise, is the leader enabling the follower to follow, or is he just waving his arms?

It's being so aware of the other person that, even if you have your back to them, you're observing them. It's letting everything about them affect you; not just their words, but also their tone of voice, their body language, even subtle things like where they're standing in the room or how they occupy a chair. Relating is letting all that seep into you and have an effect on how you respond to the other person.

Real conversation can't happen if listening is just my waiting for you to finish talking.

You picture an audience and think, What are they already aware of? Where should I start? How deep should I go? What are they actually eager to know? If I start too far in, will I be using concepts they don't really understand?

Communication doesn't take place because you tell somebody something. It takes place when you observe them closely and track their ability to follow you. Like

I gotta keep busy. I'm not happy unless I'm working on two, three things.

I am convinced that your Mayor must take the leadership role in education too.

Only the ego resists egos. The spirit may notice egos, but sees beyond them and does not engage with them.

that the majority of success in life is about showing up.

Take the plunge. Jump in. Make friends and be vulnerable. Life is too short to alienate yourself.

Very few managers know how to effectively tap the biggest source of performance improvement available to them: namely, the creativity and knowledge of the people who work for them.

Across organizations in services, manufacturing, healthcare and government, eighty percent of an organization's improvement potential lies in front-line ideas.

Employee ideas illustrate the profound understanding of a company's capabilities and customers that only people working on the front-lines can possess.

None of the boys were studying for the math test we had today, because none of them cared.

When you talked you involved other people . . . you crept back out of the unbearable loneliness of experience.