string of pearls
from On McLuhan: Forward Through the Rearview Mirror:
I have always, as I read a great man's life, compared it to my own up to now and as it may be. I experience odd and inexplicably involved sensations of jealousy etc. Generally it leaves me with a hopeless feeling of incompetence. These men have always been precocious or gifted, yet I wish that I may one day attain their heights.
-- Marshall McLuhan, journal excerpt, January 7, 1930
through Emergic.org through Innovation Weblog quoting Gerry McGovern:
Being busy is often an excuse for not doing something you should be doing. For me it has often been an excuse for not thinking, managing, and planning properly. Working hard is no longer the route to success it once was perceived to be. In an era of outsourcing and offshoring, success definitely does require hard work, but what is way more important is smart work. Basically, all the hard work will be outsourced, with just the smart work remaining.
-- Gerry McGovern
from Brewed Fresh Daily quoting managementprof quoting Anna Quindlen:
The thing that is really hard, and really amazing, is giving up on being perfect and beginning the work of becoming yourself.
-- Anna Quindlen