good or great?

Good is the enemy of great. That is the line that begins one of the best management books (“Good to Great” by Jim Collins) I’ve read over the course of my master’s program, and it sparked many interesting class discussions.

On the surface, the statement seems absurd. How could good be a negative thing? Isn’t bad the enemy of great? We can easily imagine the two locked in an epic battle, bad trying to pull us down and keep us from achieving great.

But sometimes what keeps is from reaching the extraordinary is not a force of evil. Sometimes it’s good. (more…)