Doug asks:

> "self-imposed management mantra"--isn't that conundrum like?
>  Wirt, are you suggesting that managers would lie?

No, that isn't what I was suggesting at all. In fact, what I was implying
that truly high-level managers (CEO's, generals, and state governors) are
probably more lost and more unsure of themselves than the rest of us -- and
as a consequence -- have a higher tendency to be swayed by the trends of the
moment.

I accidentally stumbled across that particular pattern I reported while
rooting around on the web. That specific quote of Darwin's has now become de
rigeuer, almost explosively so, in just the last two years. But that's only
one example of how susceptible this group of people are to the "thoughts of
the moment" and how easily moved they are by the slightest breeze.

In the end, it may simply be easier to conduct your business with some sense
of great assuredness, consistency and self-confidence if you constantly talk
to your customers, especially your users, than if you attend one endless
high-level management & leadership meeting after another.

Wirt Atmar