If you are not part of the solution…
A saying that appears on countless office walls, and is often used by managers and leaders when trying to encourage someone or a group with a negative view based on blame and the past, to adopt a positive view based on action and the future.
“If you’re not part of the solution you must be part of the problem.”
(The commonly used maxim is probably based on the original quote: “What we’re saying today is that you’re either part of the solution, or you’re part of the problem…” by Eldridge Cleaver 1935-98, founder member and information minister of the Black Panthers, American political activist group, in a speech in 1968. (Thanks RVP for the Cleaver reference.)
“What should it profit a man if he would gain the whole world yet lose his soul.” (The Holy Bible, Mark 8:36)
“A dream is just a dream. A goal is a dream with a plan and a deadline.” (Harvey Mackay, thanks Brad Hanson)
“Form follows function.” (Louis Henri Sullivan, American architect, 1856-1924)
“I strive to be brief, and I become obscure.” (Horace, Roman poet, 65-8 BC. If you are a person who prefers to take time, and to be detailed and careful, don’t be forced into hasty superficial ways. The world needs care and detail, especially for critical things, not least saving us all from the reckless actions of knee-jerking 70%-style leaders.)