The Wisdom of Grace Hopper

In The Leadership Challenge, Kouzes and Posner describe leaders as "fundamentally restless. They don't like the status quo. They want to make something happen. They want to change the business-as-usual environment." Smart leaders know that creativity and innovation can flourish in an environment where individuals are encouraged to push the boundaries, share their ideas, and take risks.



Smart leaders know that risk-taking can lead to creative breakthroughs. By providing a work culture that supports experimentation or trial and error - with a mindset that much can be learned from the false starts and mistakes - innovation can be hastened. Kouzes and Posner describe this environment as a "climate for learning."


I thought about risk-taking and leadership and came across some classic quotes from Rear Admiral Grace Murray Hopper, a true pioneer in science and leadership. She was an innovator and a change agent.


Admiral Hopper was the first women to be awarded a PhD in Mathematics from Yale University. She later was commissioned into the Navy during World War II. She also worked at Harvard University, becoming the first programmer of the Navy's Mark I computer (a project my current employer helped to sponsor).




The Mark I Computer was invented in 1944. It was literally of roomful of noisy metal parts and was 55 feet long and 8 feet high. It was used by the U.S. Navy for gunnery and ballistic calculations.

She later was the co-inventor of the COBOL programming language which allowed computers to respond to words instead of numbers. Hopper frequently joked that this innovation was necessary because she couldn't balance her checkbook. Later in her professional career, she became the first woman Naval Reservist to be recalled to active duty. Her professional career culminated with her promotion to Rear Admiral by presidential appointment in 1983.




I first heard of Rear Admiral Hopper because of a 60 Minutes profile in that same year. I am not a technical guy and I wasn't impressed by the military, but after all these years I remember how impressive she was.


Rear Admiral Hopper was a great advocate for innovation and breaking the status quo. She frequently spoke on the subject as she toured throughout the U.S. speaking at conferences and professional meetings. Here are some of her famous quotes:

• "It is often easier to ask for forgiveness than to ask for permission."

(Lou Gerstner doesn't think organizations that operate this way can sustain success)

• "The most dangerous phrase in the language is, "We've always done it this way."


• "A ship in port is safe, but that is not what ships are for. Sail out to sea and do new things."

How often to we as leaders and as employees get too comfortable? Do we get complacent? Is our competitive advantage in jeapardy? Have we stopped raising the bar for organizational performance? Are we providing an environment where our employees can stretch and "build a little, test a little?" These are great questions in light of Grace Hopper Murray's statements above!

More on Rear Admiral Hopper: http://gracehopper.org/2009/about/about-grace-hopper/