The future announces itself from afar. But most people
are not listening. The noisy clatter of the present drowns out the tentative
sound of things to come. The sound of the new does not fit old perceptual
patterns and goes unnoticed by most people. And of the few who do perceive
something coming, most lack the energy, initiative, courage or will to do
anything about it. Leaders who have the wit to perceive and the courage to act
will be credited with a gift of prophecy that they do not necessarily have.
John W. Gardner, On Leadership
