As I have studied the Bible and the Book of Mormon, I have come to know through the power of the Spirit of God, that these books contain the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. – Clayton Christensen
People who have the drive to achieve spend most of their time on what brings them the most tangible, immediate sense of success. Investments in our family only pay off in the very long term. – Clayton Christensen
The marginal cost of doing something ‘just this once’ always seems to be negligible, but the full cost will typically be much higher. Yet unconsciously, we will naturally employ the marginal-cost doctrine in our personal lives. – Clayton Christensen
A major driver of the cost of healthcare in the United States is a compromise that was reached with the American Medical Association in the 1960s when Medicare was first established. – Clayton Christensen
Having a loving relationship with our spouse or with our children is what leads to the long-term happiness we all seek. – Clayton Christensen
The process of writing ‘The Innovator’s Dilemma’ entailed the developing a new theory. My colleagues, students and I have been improving that theory, and adding others to it, since that time. – Clayton Christensen
We need to have an understanding of what causes what to happen in the world, and why. – Clayton Christensen
The reason why it is so difficult for existing firms to capitalize on disruptive innovations is that their processes and their business model that make them good at the existing business actually make them bad at competing for the disruption. – Clayton Christensen
Children are ready to learn when they are ready to learn, not necessarily when their parents are ready to teach them. – Clayton Christensen
The basic idea that marketing is wrong at its core is one of the main reasons why innovation seems blocked and unpredictable. – Clayton Christensen
When considering a career move, consider the most important assumptions that have to prove true and how you can swiftly and inexpensively test if they are valid. Also, remain realistic about the path ahead of you. – Clayton Christensen
There just isn’t anything more invigorating than to read an article or hear about an entrepreneur using the term ‘disruptive technology’ that makes no reference to me as the source. When it’s clear they really got the idea and they use it as if it were in everyday parlance, that’s the ultimate triumph. – Clayton Christensen
We don’t hire ministers or priests to teach and care for us. This forces us to teach and care for each other – and in my view, this is the core of Christian living as Christ taught it. – Clayton Christensen
Many think of management as cutting deals and laying people off and hiring people and buying and selling companies. That’s not management; that’s dealmaking. – Clayton Christensen
We need to have a better balance between a deliberate strategy and staying open. Because in the end, most of us end up being successful in a career that we never imagined we would be in at the beginning. – Clayton Christensen
The parents of teenagers would love to have a car that won’t go very far or go very fast. They could just cruise around the neighborhood, drive it to school, see their friends, plug it in overnight. – Clayton Christensen
Management is getting people together to figure out how to transform inputs into outputs. In the process of figuring out the process of how people work together, you’ve got to figure out who’s got what responsibilities, and how do they work together. – Clayton Christensen
Managers are already voracious consumers of theory. Every time they make a decision or take action, it’s based on some theory that leads them to believe that action will lead to the right result. The problem is, most managers aren’t aware of the theories they’re using, and they often use the wrong theories for the situation. – Clayton Christensen
Whenever we have thanked these men and women for what they have done for us, without exception they have expressed gratitude for having the chance to help – because they grew as they served. – Clayton Christensen
To focus capital and entrepreneurship into empowering innovation, we should change is the capital gains tax rate. We would be better served by a regressive tax rate, that would become progressively smaller the longer the investment is held. – Clayton Christensen
I love my life as a missionary, keeping myself on the front lines. The image in my mind is that God, my general, stands at the door when I go out every morning; and, knowing what the war is like, day after day he gives me his most powerful weapon: his Spirit. For this I am grateful. – Clayton Christensen
During the early stages of an industry, when the functionality and reliability of a product isn’t yet adequate to meet customer’s needs, a proprietary solution is almost always the right solution – because it allows you to knit all the pieces together in an optimized way. – Clayton Christensen
People have an idol they want to be like and try to follow what the idols did. But when you do, you find out you’re not very successful and you’re not very happy. You try to copy these models, and it doesn’t yield successful results. – Clayton Christensen
Each of our children during their high school years went to ‘early morning seminary’ – scripture study classes that met in the home of a church member every school day morning from 6:30 until 7:15. – Clayton Christensen
Understanding motivation is one of the most important things we can do in our lives, because it has such a bearing on why we do the things we do and whether we enjoy them or not. – Clayton Christensen
Universities think people come up with great ideas by closing the door. The academic tenure process, where you have to publish to journals which are very narrow, stands in the way of great research. – Clayton Christensen
People in private equity complain that they have so much capital and so few places to invest. But you have lots of entrepreneurs trying to raise money at the low end and find that they can’t get funding because of this mismatch. I think that there is an opportunity there. – Clayton Christensen
We have found that companies need to speak a common language because some of the suggested ways to harness disruptive innovation are seemingly counterintuitive. If companies don’t have that common language, it is hard for them to come to consensus on a counterintuitive course of action. – Clayton Christensen
Efficiency innovations arise in industries that already exist. They provide existing goods and services at much lower costs. They are not empowering. Efficiency innovators become the low cost providers within an existing framework. – Clayton Christensen
