156 Quotes by Margaret J. Wheatley

All of us need better skills in listening, conversing, respecting one another’s uniqueness, because these are essential for strong relationships.

Without reflection, we go blindly on our way...

Without aggression, it becomes possible to think well, to be curious about differences, and to enjoy each other’s company.

Successful organizations, including the Military, have learned that the higher the risk, the more necessary it is to engage everyone’s commitment and intelligence.

For example, I was discussing the use of email and how impersonal it can be, how people will now email someone across the room rather than go and talk to them. But I don’t think this is laziness, I think it is a conscious decision people are making to save time.

In fact, Western culture has spent decades drawing lines and boxes around interconnected phenomena. We’ve chunked the world into pieces rather than explored its webby nature.

There are many benefits to this process of listening. The first is that good listeners are created as people feel listened to. Listening is a reciprocal process – we become more attentive to others if they have attended to us.

Life doesn’t move in straight lines, and neither does a good conversation.

It is time to stop waiting for someone to save us. It is time to face the truth of our situation – that we’re all in this together, that we all have a voice – and figure out how to mobilize the hearts and minds of everyone in our workplaces and communities.