Good and Great Reiterated

It is always fascinating to come upon new perspectives on the well worn trail defining “good” and “great.”

Consider Carlos Ghosn, the French-Lebanese-Brazilian businessman, who is currently the Chairman and CEO of France-based Renault, Chairman and CEO of Japan-based Nissan, and Chairman of Russian automobile manufacturer AvtoVAZ.

Ghosn is a multi-ethnic leader of an automotive conglomerate featuring French, Japanese and Russian management cultures. Wow. I imagine that management succession plan was not easy to craft.

Within his record of performance and effectiveness lie highly refined views of management axioms. One of my favorites is his approach to “Good vs Great.” Ghosn said,

“Good” is somebody who delivered and allowed the company to overcome obstacles, without leaving a profound impact on its culture. “Great” is somebody who leads his company to achievements and performance and value that nobody was expecting it had.”

In other words, Good executes and Good gets the job done despite the normal bumps along the way. Great LEADS to new heights that were unexpected.

Do you want to be good? Simply execute and be dependable.

Do you want to be great? Achieve the unexpected and do the impossible.