Elizabeth Thornton Quotes

The quality of a leader cannot be judged by the answers he gives, but by the questions he asks.

There is no substitute for accurate knowledge. Know yourself, know your business, know your men.

Concentrate and think upon the problem in mind until a satisfactory conclusion is reached, and then finally go ahead. If you have made a mistake, all right. Never find fault with a man because he has made a mistake. It is only a fool that makes the same mistake the second time.

The way to develop decisiveness is to start right where you are, with the very next question you face.

I encourage active skepticism - when people are being skeptical because they're trying to identify the best course of action. They're trying to identify the next step for themselves or other people.

Making good decisions is a crucial skill at every level.

I like to think that since I was about 19, I have studied human decision-making and problem-solving.

It's important for a leader to hear about his blind spots on a regular basis so working on them is periodically top of mind.

Set aside a half hour or an hour to rethink the way you make decisions, the habits you have, the biases you may have. And if you think of things, if you come with a little bit of a blank slate and be willing to acknowledge what you don't know, and you'd be willing to think like a child, I think it'll help not only individuals but society at large.

A responsible Warrior is one who has proved able to observe and to learn.

Leadership ability determines a person's level of effectiveness.

Chess is a forcing house where the fruits of character can ripen more fully than in life

Most of the CEO's who fail think they will find the solution to their problems in Finance, Marketing, Strategic Planning, etc., but they don't look for the solution to their problems inside themselves.

One final thing a director needs: The ability to say 'I am wrong' or 'I was wrong.' Not as easy as it sounds. But in many situations, these 3 words, honestly spoken, will save the day.

Upon the subjects of which I have treated, I have spoken as I have thought. I may be wrong in regard to any or all of them; but, holding it a sound maxim that it is better only sometimes to be right than at all times to be wrong, so soon as I discover my opinions to be erroneous, I shall be ready to renounce them.

I don't know how you can understand other people or yourself if you haven't read a lot of books. I just don't think you're equipped to deal with the demands and decisions of life, particularly in your dealings with other people.

Often I think of personal behavior and judgment errors as being superficial wounds.

My biggest asset is that I know how to learn, and that, I believe, will help me in the long run.

I am aware of changes gradually taking place in my own designs as part of my thinking on this matter.

I suppose I have very undesirable traits. I am very critical, which is very undesirable. But it is good from a business point of view.

I find it valuable to watch what I do. I like to know when I'm making a choice if it actually works or not.

I don't read reviews and I don't know what to do with opinions, so I just lose them. They take up space, they become a process of manufacturing a persona, which I want to avoid.

Well, the first quality of being a good leader is you have to be able to follow. See, a good leader can't just be the leader all the time, I have to be able to follow.

Decisiveness is a characteristic of high-performing men and women. Almost any decision is better than no decision at all.

To grow wiser means to learn to know better and better the faults to which this instrument with which we feel and judge can be subject.