John P. Kotter Quotes

Uncommon things must be said in common words.

Communication is about being effective, not always about being proper.

Do not put cleverness in front of the communication.

Everything that can be said, can be said clearly.

If you care about being thought credible and intelligent, do not use complex language where simpler language will do.

Speak properly, and in as few words as you can, but always plainly; for the end of speech is not ostentation, but to be understood.

Simple and to the point is always the best way to get your point across.

Words easy to be understood do often hit the mark; when high and learned ones do only pierce the air.

I try to just communicate what I want done as clearly and simply as possible.

Whate'er is well conceived is clearly said, And the words to say it flow with ease.

A multitude of words is probably the most formidable means of blurring and obscuring thought. There is no thought, however momentous, that cannot be expressed lucidly in 200 words.

The simpler you say it, the more eloquent it is.

Think like a wise man but communicate in the language of the people.

Write in such a way as that you can be readily understood by both the young and the old, by men as well as women, even by children.

He that will write well in any tongue, must follow this counsel of Aristotle, to speak as the common people do, to think as wise men do: and so should every man understand him, and the judgment of wise men allow him.

My basic rule is to speak slowly and simply so that my audience has an opportunity to follow and think about what I am saying.

Clarity of communication is important.

I have not wanted syllables where actions have spoken so plainly.

Parla come magni,' It means, 'Speak the way you eat,' or in my personal translation: 'Say it like you eat it.' It's a reminder - when you're making a big deal out of explaining something, when you're searching for the right words - to keep your language as simple and direct as Roman rood. Don't make a big production out of it. Just lay it on the table.

One word is worth a thousand pictures. If it's the right word.

Eloquence is the power to translate a truth into language perfectly intelligible to the person to whom you speak.

Clarity is the most important thing to me - in thinking - and so I try in the books to be as clear as possible.

Never mistake legibility for communication.

The difficulty is not to write, but to write what you mean.

Don't use big words. They mean so little.