Schwartz, H. S.
(1990).
Narcissistic Process and Corporate Decay: The Theory of the Organizational Ideal.
"When work, the productive process, becomes display, its meaning becomes lost. Its performance as part of the organizational drama becomes the only meaning it has. Accordingly, the parts it plays in the organization's transactions with the world become irrelevant. When this happens, work loses its adaptive function and becomes mere ritual. At the same time, the rituals that serve to express the individual's identification with the organization ideal, especially those connected with rank, come to be infused with significance for the individual. They become sacred. Thus, reality and appearance trade places. The energy that once went into the production of goods and services of value to others is channelled into the dramatization of a narcissistic fantasy in which the organization's environment is merely a stage setting." (p. 61)
Simon, S. B.
(1978).
Negative criticism: Its swath of destruction and what to do about it.
"It is a little after midnight. You have just come out of the last show at the movie. To save a block you cut through a dark alley. Halfway through it—just as you are beginning to relax—two men step out of the shadows. You hear a nasty metallic snick and suddenly there is the glint of knife blades in the feeble light.
What would you do?
I know what I would do.
Quickly I'd turn and throw a fearful look back up the alley. It is clear and free. A surge of adrenalin sends the blood pumping to my legs. Getting out of that alley I set a new indoor Olympic sprint record. The jogger in me has never seen such speed. Nothing seems sweeter than the glare of street lights and the chatter of people making their way to their cars. I look for a police officer and tell my story.
That is what everybody would do in such a situation, right?
But let me play you another version. The scene is the same. The two hulking men are coming at you with knives. But you keep strolling casually on to meet them. You throw up your arms and say, 'I'm all yours. Let me feel the steel. I know it will help me in the long run.'
They oblige by savagely thrusting the knives deep into your defenseless belly. You fall to the pavement writhing with pain. The men stand over you. You roll onto your stomach and gasp, 'You'd better give me a couple in the back, too.'
Ridiculous?
Of course, but it is exactly what thousands upon thousands of us do each and every day by failing to recognize that the knives of negative criticism which people stick in us are just as sharp and deadly as those made of steel and borne by assassins." (p. 9)
McCormack, M. H.
(2001).
Never Wrestle with a Pig: and ninety other ideas to build your business and career.
"I've always taken some comfort in the belief that the stronger an idea is, the harder it is to steal.
That's because the best ideas, by definition, are so original and unique that they cannot survive without their creator. He or she is the only one who understands the concept fully, who can execute it up to its full potential, and who has a personal stake in keeping the concept going despite all the obstacles." (p. 92)
O'Toole, J., Lawler E. I. I. I., & Meisinger S. R.
(2007).
The New American Workplace.
"In particular, there was growing evidence that if unnecessary job stress could be reduced, workers would suffer fewer heart attacks and strokes.... Moreover, a growing body of data suggested that many mental health problems have their genesis at work, and excessive drug and alcohol use are linked with certain occupations and conditions of employment." (p. 103)
Deming, E. W.
(1993).
The New Economics for Industry, Government, Education.
"The most important act that a manager can take is to understand what it is that is important to an individual. Everyone is different from everyone else. All people are motivated to a different degree extrinsically and intrinsically. This is why it is so vital that managers spend time to listen to an employee to understand whether he is looking for recognition by the company, or by his peers, time at work to publish, flexible working hours, time to take a university course. In this way, a manager can provide positive outcomes for his people, and may even move some people toward replacement of extrinsic motivation with intrinsic motivation." (p. 115)
Kepner, C. H., & Tregoe B. B.
(1981).
The New Rational Manager.
In human performance problems, assessing consequences is an attempt to protect an employee's future against unintended harm....Actions affecting human beings have multiple consequences—some good, some harmful. Fairness requires that at least any unintended effects be assessed. The organization should not decide for the employee how life in the future should be lived; rather, it must be aware of how today's decisions affect tomorrow's conditions." (p. 198)
Likert, R.
(1976).
New Ways of Managing Conflict.
"The leadership and other processes of the organization must be such as to ensure a maximum probability that in all interactions and all relationships with the organization, each member will in the light of his background, values, and expectations, view the experience as supportive and one which builds and maintains his sense of personal worth and importance." (p. 108)
Likert provided this quote from his book of 15 years earlier, "New Patterns of Management", and refers to it as the most fundamental of all his leadership principles.