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Stretch! We have found that by
reaching for what appears to be the impossible, we often actually do
the impossible. |
Jack Welch
GE |
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Stretch is a goal or
challenge that is significantly beyond the organization's current
performance level.
"We have found that by reaching for what appears to be
the impossible, we often actually
do the impossible; and even when we don't
quite make it, we inevitably wind up doing much better than we would have
done."
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Stretch your business strategy
Stretching means exceeding
goals. "Don't ever settle for
mediocrity. The key to stretch
is to reach for more than you
think is possible. Don't sell
yourself short by thinking that
you'll fail." Do the best
possible – and then reach
beyond. Stretch "essentially
means using dreams to set
business targets – with no real
idea of how to get there. If you
do know how to get there – it's
not a stretch target."
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Stretch Yourself
Don't be satisfied with the best you
can now and the best you think you can do.
Stretch yourself! The higher you aim, the more you are likely to
achieve. Back up your
stretch goals with ambitious self-development to ensure complete
success. Develop self-motivation by reaching for the skies. |
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Encourage daring actions
Ask
managers
and
employees
to reach for their dreams.
Stretching "allows people reach
for the goal. And people are
getting more and more
comfortable with the idea that
you get the best out of people
not by fighting budgets, which
are all about minimal numbers,
but by getting people to
do the best they can, and
measuring their progress toward
it – against last year, against
what competitors are doing."
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Reward
daring action
Reward business
leaders even for falling short of a stretched goal. Punishing
for falling short of a stretch goal is counterproductive. If the company
aimed at 15 and made 12, celebrate. What's critical is setting the
performance bar high enough; otherwise, it's impossible to find out what
people can do.
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Don't sit still. Anybody sitting
still, you can guarantee they're going to get their legs knocked out
from under them. |
Jack Welch
GE |
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Keep stretching
Don't be as good as you have to
be; be as good as you can be.
Set a stretch target and start
moving towards it –
fast! As soon as you become
sure you can do it, it's time
for another stretch.
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Stretching forces you to do stuff you wouldn't
otherwise do.
Make sure that you do the right stuff.
Think outside the
box but stick to your commitments as well. |
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"Speed, simplicity and
self-confidence are closely
intertwined. By simplifying the
organization and instilling
confidence, you create the
foundation for an organization
that incorporates speed into the
fabric of the company."
More lessons from
business legends?
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