Ruth J. Simmons Quotes

People need to believe that they can participate fully in the decisions that affect their lives and have a stake in the societies in which they live

Programs have to be developed by the people in the community.

You're not going to be able to make good decisions without building some relationship of trust between yourself and community.

Major changes become possible if you work in a participatory manner, listen to local people, diagnose what the problems are, provide training and identify where there are opportunities for mobilizing local resources to take action.

People listen for cues - when they are searching for a decision, they look to people they know. Young people can be apathetic in certain ways unless they hear from someone they like and admire about why they should be engaged and involved. If someone you love is doing a rally or concert, you may be engaged to register.

Take the ideas of the masses and concentrate them, then go to the masses, persevere in the ideas and carry them through, so as to form correct ideas of leadership-such is the basic method of leadership.

People's participation is the essence of good governance.

Learn from the people. Plan with the people. Begin with what they have. Build on what they know.

The people are learning that you cannot leave decisions only to leaders. Local groups have to create the political will for change, rather than waiting for others to do things for them. That is where positive, and sustainable, change begins.

Any social or cultural change has to be made openly and with people agreeing. You don't get there by just pushing an outsider's point of view.

For good-intentioned people making decisions, there's no such thing as a bad choice. So it doesn't matter what you choose. Choose something, then deliberately line up with the choice you make. This is the art of alignment and allowing.

The establishment uses that rationale all the time, and that's why we do what we do. But leadership requires some understanding that you can say no. People have base instincts, but the transcendent also appeal to them.

What people have the capacity to choose, they have the ability to change.

Freedom... refer[s] to a social relationship among people-namely, the absence of force as a prospective instrument of decision making. Freedom is reduced whenever a decision is made under threat of force, whether or not force actually materializes or is evident in retrospect.

Here's what I learned as a mayor and a governor. The way you make communities safer and the way you make police safer is through community policing. You build the bonds between the community and the police force, build bonds of understanding, and then when people feel comfortable in their communities, that gap between the police and the communities they serve narrows. And when that gap narrows, it's safer for the communities and it's safer for the police.

People are going to do stupid things, but you don't take away the freedom because somebody makes a stupid decision.

Kitten, you need to make a decision. Either we stay here and behave or we leave now and I promise you”—his voice dipped lower and the words fell against my lips—“if we leave, I won’t behave.

There is a lot of work to be done to make sure our leaders reflect the people they are supposed to represent. The more diverse a group of decision makers is, the more informed the decision will be. Until we achieve full representation, we all should understand we are falling short of the ideals of our country.

Tony Blair made decisions on what he thought was best for the people of Great Britain, and I made decisions on what I thought was best for Americans. And I really don't view our relationship as one of quid pro quo. I view our relationship as one of strong allies and friends working together for the common good.

Quick decision makers are often stuck behind annoying people in line at Starbucks.

We associate leadership with decisiveness. That perception of leadership pushes people to make decisions fairly quickly, lest they be seen as dithering and indecisive.

You mustn't confuse the need for effective chairmanship, which is part of the job of the boss, along with the ability to take tough decisions and to lead people.

Decisions are made by people who have time, not people who have talent.

Like most people, I have no wish to live in a community organized by community organizers.

Listen to the people on the ground. They have all the solutions in the world.