Benjamin Zander Quotes & Sayings

I make myself a relentless architect of the possibilities of human beings. — Benjamin Zander

Look at their eyes. If their eyes are shining, you know youre doing it. — Benjamin Zander

Who am I being that my players' eyes are not shining? — Benjamin Zander

The job of the leader is to speak to the possibility. — Benjamin Zander

The player who looks least engaged may be the most committed member of the group. A cynic, after all, is a passionate person who does not want to be disappointed again. — Benjamin Zander

As leaders, we're giving out grades in every encounter we have with people. We can choose to give out grades as an expectation to live up to, and then we can reassess them according to performance. Or we can offer grades as a possibility to live into. The second approach is much more powerful. — Benjamin Zander

It's one of the characteristics of a leader that he not doubt for one moment the capacity of the people he's leading to realize whatever he's dreaming. Imagine if Martin Luther King had said, 'I have a dream. Of course, I'm not sure they'll be up to it. — Benjamin Zander

I have a definition of success. For me, it's very simple. It's not about wealth and fame and power. It's about how many shining eyes I have around me. — Benjamin Zander

This is the moment - this is the most important moment right now. Which is: We are about contribution. That's what our job is. It's not about impressing people. It's not about getting the next job. It's about contributing something. — Benjamin Zander

South Africa is a country built on possibility. Possibility lies in making a difference and creating value from a situation - without denying that certain issues exist. — Benjamin Zander

Everybody loves classical music they just don't know about it yet. — Benjamin Zander

The conductor of an orchestra doesn't make a sound. He depends, for his power, on his ability to make other people powerful. — Benjamin Zander

The practice of giving an A transports your relationships from the world of measurement into the universe of possibility ... This A is not an expectation to live up to, but a possibility to live into. — Benjamin Zander

Right. So if the eyes are shining, you know you're doing it. If the eyes are not shining, you get to ask a question. And this is the question: who am I being that my players' eyes are not shining? We can do that with our children, too. Who am I being, that my children's eyes are not shining? That's a totally different world. — Benjamin Zander

Mistakes can be like ice. If we resist them, we may keep on slipping into a posture of defeat. If we include mistakes in our definition of performance, we are likely to glide through them and appreciate the beauty of the longer run. — Benjamin Zander

It's not a question of how much power you can hoard for yourself, but how much you can give away. — Benjamin Zander

My job [is] to awaken possibility in other people. If their eyes are shining, you know you're doing it. If they're not shining you get to ask this question: "Who am I being that my children's eyes are not shining?" — Benjamin Zander

Throw yourself into life as someone who makes a difference, accepting that you may not understand how or why. — Benjamin Zander

In the measurement world, we set a goal and strive to achieve it. In the universe of possibility, we set the context and let life unfold. — Benjamin Zander

How often do we stand convinced of the truth of our early memories, forgetting that they are assessments made by a child? We can replace the narratives that hold us back by inventing wiser stories, free from childish fears, and, in doing so, disperse long-held psychological stumbling blocks. — Benjamin Zander

I'm so sorry for you; your lives have been so easy. You can't play great music unless your heart's been broken. — Benjamin Zander

Imagine Martin Luther King saying, 'I have a dream ... But I don't know if the others will buy it.' — Benjamin Zander

It is the tuning of the universe ... It's as if at the beginning of the symphony God turns up the volume just a tiny bit. — Benjamin Zander

He had realized that the labels he had been taking so seriously are human inventions
it's all a game. The Number 68 is invented and the A is invented, so we might as well choose to invent something that brightens our life and the lives of the people around us. — Benjamin Zander

The major difference between the 'best' and the 'average' is that the 'best' get as much pleasure from practice as performance. — Benjamin Zander

Live the rest of your life in possibility — Benjamin Zander

If you make a mistake, celebrate. — Benjamin Zander

I have a definition of success.. — Benjamin Zander

In the measurement world, you set a goal and strive for it. In the universe of possibility, you set the context and let life unfold. — Benjamin Zander

When you make a mistake, throw your hands in the air and say "How fascinating!" — Benjamin Zander

How absurd human beings are and how magnificent. — Benjamin Zander

Life is revealed as a place to contribute and we as contributors. Not because we have done a measurable amount of good, but because that is the story we tell. — Benjamin Zander

I settled on a game called I am a contribution. Unlike success and failure, contribution has no other side. It is not arrived at by comparison. — Benjamin Zander