“The most important aspect of leadership is listening. People need to feel like they are heard in order to be part of the conversation and to feel invested in the solution. Even if you do not always agree with them, if people feel like you listened to them, you heard their perspective, they are much more likely to join you and support you.”
“Rural dislocation, environmental degradation, and agricultural policies that led to famine could be traced to political systems in which victims have no political voice, in which government institutions feel no obligation to answer to the people and in which special interests feel free to exploit resources without fear of oversight or the need to account. The world is seeing the mass empowerment of peoples. Change will be messy. But it is far preferable to the false security of one-man, one-party states.”
—KEN WOLLACK, PRESIDENT, NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC INSTITUTE (READ MORE)
“For policy analysts, context shapes the problems they must address and at least partially defines the financial, material, and political resources they can use to manage those problems. For leaders, context determines the fit between the knowledge and skills they bring to their job and the demands of that position. Context therefore helps explain why some leaders succeed in a position while others fail and, even more interestingly, why a leader who succeeds brilliantly in one setting may fail spectacularly in another or, in happier situations, the other way around. In short, context matters.”
—HARRY HARDING, BATTEN SCHOOL PROFESSOR OF PUBLIC POLICY AND POLITICS, FOUNDING DEAN (READ MORE | LISTEN TO HIS LECTURE )
“We have to redefine what the acceptable boundaries are in light of technology. In terms of cybersecurity, we’re having a very vigorous debate about where is that proper boundary? We want to protect security, we don’t want another 9/11, but on the other hand we don’t want to have to sacrifice personal liberty and privacy in the name of national security.”
“Higher education policy has a very significant impact on opportunity in the United States. In the middle of the 20th century, public policy made higher education a pathway to the American Dream; now it is becoming more stratified, like a caste system, reinforcing inequality instead.The American Dream is increasingly out of reach for many students.”
“There are five basic principles needed to be a successful leader in virtually any context: relevant knowledge and skills; management and communication skills; moral courage; loyalty; and the “style” to be yourself. With those proficiencies, no matter where you go, I think you’ve got a pretty good way to examine what it takes to be successful as a leader.”