Eric S. Raymond Quotes

A poll finds the average opinion of a group. It takes the temperature of a crowd. A swarm focuses a group together, in real time, and has them work together as a system to answer a question instead.

What I've learned is that unless it's an emergency, like a fire or brain surgery, hierarchy is not necessary and may be damaging. If you have a hierarchy, you're repeating the strengths and weaknesses of one person without allowing for the accumulative strength of a group.

In 16, 17 years as a pro I was used to the head coach doing it alone. He might have asked his people for advice, but he made the decisions on his own. In order to learn quickly I couldn't do that.

I find out as much from the guy in backstage TV as I do from my C.F.O. Anybody can e-mail me. I do town halls with employees at least once every eight weeks. I'm out there, and it makes a huge difference.

For solving a surprisingly large and varied number of problems, crowds are smarter than individuals.

I work strategically with my management team to make all decisions.

I've always found when I was captain when other people were doing the talking for me, I didn't need to say as much, and when I did say one or two things, people tended to listen all the more.

But Eddie does not make all the decisions. Eddie can listen to reason; Eddie can be swayed or talked in or out of certain things. Eddie allows other people to lead in this band and to have certain roles that are very fundamental to the decision-making process.

There are leaders vocally, and there are leaders by example. I think I'm starting to become better at being a leader vocally, just talking on the court.

“The Wisdom of Crowds” suggests that if enough bumbling people act in concert, they’ll find their way to a less bumbling place.

The thing I'm most focused on today is, how am I maximizing the effectiveness of the leadership team, and what am I doing to nurture it?

I don't play golf. I don't play basketball. I don't really like cards. I don't think anybody questions whether or not I have a role to play here. And so I think it is irrelevant whether the president wants to do that in some of his free time. What's really important is, when we have something to say, does he listen to us?

I believe that Attorney Fortuno has some styles that it seems to me are going to foster dialogue and good communication, and I hope I am not mistaken.

I talk to the players, either individually or as a group, what I'm feeling, and I think the players appreciate that. And I think they respond to that.

The reason that fish form schools, birds form flocks, and bees form swarms is that they are smarter together than they would be apart. They don't take a vote; they don't take a poll: they form a system. They are all interactive and make a decision together in real time.

I think the way to maximize not just your leadership but your ability to influence your team is whatever you can do that helps the team perform at a really high level.

I think in a lot of ways, I handle the leadership role a little different than others. I'm not going to rah-rah or slap you across the helmet or push you. I'm going to talk to you.

I try to be a leader on the pitch rather than off it.

It is a pleasure to play under Jose Mourinho, and everything is OK. I learn every day. He is a normal coach. He speaks a lot with the players. I like it when the manager speaks a lot with you because it gives you confidence.

The captaincy is about putting the team first, making sure the girls are happy - that they're comfortable with the processes we have, the way that the schedule is - to be able to challenge people on and off the pitch: not telling them off, but advising them.

Every team has leadership. The leadership is the best players. But there's positive leadership, and there's negative leadership.

I think the tone that the head coach sets transcends to the team.

Peter Stoger is very, very inspirational, communicating a lot, being open and approachable for the players.

Forcing polarized groups into a swarm allows them to find the answer that most people are satisfied with.

For me dialogue is as essential in football as in life. I like to talk to my players and I never impose anything, I always give them the chance to make their own choices.