The x factor of a great leader is humility combined with will.

Whether you prevail or fail depends more on what you do to yourself than on what the world does to you.

It is more important to know who you are than where you are going, for where you are going will change as the world around you changes.

The drive for progress doesn't wait for the external world to say "It's time to change."

Creative leadership impact increases in your 50's. When I turn 50 I want to say, "Nice start!"

You must ask, "What do we mean by great results?" Your goals don't have to be quantifiable, but they do have to be describable. Some leaders try to insist, "The only acceptable goals are measurable," but that's actually an undisciplined statement. Lots of goals-beauty, quality, life change, love-are worthy but not quantifiable. But you do have to be able to tell if you're making progress.

I see the Baldrige process as a powerful set of mechanisms for disciplined people engaged in disciplined thought and taking disciplined action to create great organizations that produce exceptional results.