Chapter Six: Overcome Defensiveness
Summary from book page 102


Overcoming defensive behavior is critical to the success of all enterprises, not just those in the developing world. To seize the opportunities identified in previous chapters, business and government leaders will need to develop more sophisticated sources of advantage. Gone are the days when cheap labor and access to raw materials - very visible and accessible advantages - will allow sustained success. Gone are the days when it is worthwhile to argue publicly about how to allocate finite resources. The challenge in the 21st century will be to work together to create sustainable sources of growth in a way that neither degregates the environment nor exploits human beings. This cannot be done in highly defensive environments. Today's sources of competitive advantage are more subtle than yesterday's. They are based on human relations, on productive reasoning, on trust, on cooperation. They are hidden sources of advantage that we must learn to develop.

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