We learned that a former prisoner of war had more to teach us about what it takes to find a path to greatness than most books on corporate strategy.

In an ironic twist, I now see Good to Great not as a sequel to Built to Last, but more of a prequel. Good to Great is about how to turn a good organization into one that produces sustained great results. Built to Last is about how you take a company with great results and turn it into an enduring great company of iconic stature.

If we only have great companies, we will merely have a prosperous society, not a great one. Economic growth and power are the means, not the definition, of a great nation.

Great companies foster a productive tension between continuity and change.

Consider the idea that charisma can be as much a liability as an asset. Your strength of personality can sow the seeds of problems, when people filter the brutal facts from you.

Resilency, not perfection, is the signature of greatness.

Good is the enemy of great.. The vast majority of good companies remain just that - good, but not great.