Catalyst Conference 2011- Jim Collins (Part 1)

Jim Collins is a researcher, management expert and the author of "Good to Great" and "How the Mighty Fall". Following are some notes from his session at Catalyst:

Good is the enemy of great. Greatness is a function of choice and effort, not circumstance.

Try to change every "what" question into a "who" question. Leadership is not about personality, it's about humility.

Humility + will= the beginning of leadership.

Bad decisions taken with good intentions are still bad decisions.

Overreaching borne of hubris leads more to a fall than complacency.

It takes discipline not to overstretch. We must use self-discipline in an out-of-control world.

Innovation must be married to discipline. The discipline must amplify the creativity without destroying it.

Productive paranoia- in an uncertain world, you must be prepared for what you can't predict.

The only mistakes you learn from are the ones you survive.

Look at evidence as opposed to others for cues.

Change practices but keep core values. The combining of those two makes things enduring and great.