Listening Quotes

"The ear of the leader must ring with the voices of the people."

— Woodrow Wilson

"Many a man would rather you heard his story than granted his request."

— Phillip Stanhope
Earl of Chesterfield

"In some South Pacific cultures, a speaker holds a conch shell as a symbol of temporary position of authority. Leaders must understand who holds the conch—that is, who should be listened to and when."

— Max De Pree

"I remind myself every morning: Nothing I say this day will teach me anything. So if I'm going to learn, I must do it by listening."

— Larry King

We should never pretend to know what we don't know, we should not feel ashamed to ask and learn from people below, and we should listen carefully to the views of the cadres at the lowest levels. Be a pupil before you become a teacher; learn from the cadres at the lower levels before you issue orders."

— MaoTse-tung

"Let a fool hold his tongue and he will pass for a sage.

—Publilius Syrus
First Century BC, Maxim 914

"You have to be willing sometimes to listen to some remarkable bad opinions. Because if you say to someone, 'That's the silliest thing I've ever heard; get on out of here!'—then you'll never get anything out of that person again, and you might as well have a puppet on a string or a robot."

— John Bryan

"Effective questioning brings insight, which fuels curiosity, which cultivates wisdom."

— Chip Bell

"Silence is a source of great strength."

— Lao Tzu

"We should never pretend to know what we don't know, we should not feel ashamed to ask and learn from people below, and we should listen carefully to the views of the cadres at the lowest levels. Be a pupil before you become a teacher; learn from the cadres at the lower levels before you issue orders."

— Mao Tse-tung