Margaret J. Wheatley Quotes

A leader is one who... Has more faith in people than they do, and . . . who holds opportunities open long enough for their competence to re-emerge.

Without reflection, we go blindly on our way.

Power is the capacity to generate relationships.

Too many problem-solving sessions become battlegrounds where decisions are made based on power rather than intelligence.

Passion mutates into procedures, into rules and roles. Instead of purpose, we focus on policies. Instead of being free to create, we impose constraints that squeeze the life out of us.

Disorder can play a critical role in giving birth to new, higher forms of order.

we can't be creative if we refuse to be confused. Change always starts with confusion; cherished interpretations must dissolve to make way for what's new. Great ideas and inventions miraculously appear in the space of not knowing.

we don't have to agree with each other in order to think well together. There is no need for us to be joined at the head. We are joined by our human hearts.

We would do well to ponder the realization that love is the most potent source of power.

There is no power for change greater than a community discovering what it cares about.