Government is like an onion. To understand it, you have to peel through many different layers. Most outsiders never get beyond the first or second layer.

Understand the "Gretzky Factor": Cultivate an instinct, a "touch", call it what you will, that enables you to know both where the "puck" is now and where it will be soon.

The ability to plan for what has not yet happened, for a future that has only been imagined, is one of the hallmarks of leadership.

Leaders know the importance of having someone in their lives who will unfailingly and fearlessly tell them the truth.

Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality.

Leaders must earn the trust of their teams, their organizations, and their stakeholders before attempting to engage their support.

Organizations should try to find out if their learning programs actually work.