--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A tough manager will have realistic…" description: "\"A tough manager will have realistic quotas for his employees that he keeps to himself and aggressively stretch quotas, anywhere from ten percent higher..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/898/twyla-tharp-1069_employee_a-tough-manager-will-have-realistic-quot_2800706.png" --- # A tough manager will have realistic quotas for his… ![“A tough manager will have realistic quotas for his employees that he keeps to himself and aggressively stretch quotas, anywhere from ten percent higher to a lot more, which he imposes on his staff. If his people miss the stretch numbers but exceed the realistic goals, he's happy. If he's a superb…” quote by Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/898/twyla-tharp-1069_employee_a-tough-manager-will-have-realistic-quot_2800706.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/898/twyla-tharp-1069_employee_a-tough-manager-will-have-realistic-quot_2800706.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/898/twyla-tharp-1069_employee_a-tough-manager-will-have-realistic-quot_2800706.png) > “A tough manager will have realistic quotas for his employees that he keeps to himself and aggressively stretch quotas, anywhere from ten percent higher to a lot more, which he imposes on his staff. If his people miss the stretch numbers but exceed the realistic goals, he's happy. If he's a superb manager, he knows how far they can stretch without breaking.” [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Effective managers set realistic goals privately while stretching expectations publicly, balancing ambition and feasibility **In simple terms:** Managers blend realistic and stretch goals for growth Key Takeaway Apply balanced goal setting in leadership Themes management goals performance Mood strategic motivational Type business leadership When to use this quote - business coaching - team leadership - performance reviews Key Concepts realistic stretch motivation Questions to Reflect On - How to calibrate stretch targets? - What signals indicate realistic limits? A Different Perspective Stretch goals may cause burnout if misaligned ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Employee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/employee/) [Goal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goal/) [Goals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goals/) [Leader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leader/) [Leadership](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leadership/) [Management](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/management/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Realistic goals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realistic-goals/) ## Related quotes > [I hope everybody loves me as a coach and loves me as a manager, but I'm realistic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joey-barton/i-hope-everybody-loves-me-as-a-coach-and-loves-me-as-a-manager-but-i/) [Joey Barton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joey-barton/) > [“Help the world grow, put her on the road of achievement by contributing your quotas”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ndianabasi-anderson/help-the-world-grow-put-her-on-the-road-of-achievement-by/) Ndianabasi Anderson > [I don't believe in quotas. America was founded on a philosophy of individual rights, not group rights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-thomas/i-don-t-believe-in-quotas-america-was-founded-on-a-philosophy-of/) [Clarence Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-thomas/) > [I am not in favour of quotas. Just put the best person into the job. It is not about gender; it is about experience,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-ahrendts/i-am-not-in-favour-of-quotas-just-put-the-best-person-into-the-job-it/) [Angela Ahrendts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-ahrendts/) > [I'm not out for quotas. I'm out to attract the best young men and women of our nation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-f-amos/i-m-not-out-for-quotas-i-m-out-to-attract-the-best-young-men-and/) [James F. Amos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-f-amos/) > [“Statistics can’t measure equal opportunity, just equal results. The government starts with the assumption that if, say, employment rates diverge from population makeup by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-sailer/statistics-can-t-measure-equal-opportunity-just-equal-results-the/) [Steve Sailer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-sailer/) > [If firms were made to hire according to quotas, it might optimize the percentage of women in the industry, but that doesn't necessarily translate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-tans/if-firms-were-made-to-hire-according-to-quotas-it-might-optimize-the/) [Gillian Tans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-tans/) > [A quota for women always amounts to a failure of politics. For me, economics is first and foremost the ability to act freely without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristina-schroder/a-quota-for-women-always-amounts-to-a-failure-of-politics-for-me/) [Kristina Schroder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristina-schroder/) > [My personal opinion is that, if you're a professional writer, that you do have quotas. So every day I do try to write 800-1,200…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-bohjalian/my-personal-opinion-is-that-if-you-re-a-professional-writer-that-you/) [Chris Bohjalian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-bohjalian/) > [Affirmative action based on quotas is wrong - wrong because it is antithetical to the genius of the American idea: individual liberty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kemp/affirmative-action-based-on-quotas-is-wrong-wrong-because-it-is/) [Jack Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kemp/) > [We believe that visa quotas should be lifted and people should visit anywhere they wish freely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-ahmadinejad/we-believe-that-visa-quotas-should-be-lifted-and-people-should-visit/) [Mahmoud Ahmadinejad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-ahmadinejad/) > [We do not believe in quotas. They would not only be undesirable, they would be illegal. There is legal protection for the autonomy of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-willetts/we-do-not-believe-in-quotas-they-would-not-only-be-undesirable-they/) [David Willetts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-willetts/) > [Race and gender quotas, whether in publishing, the media, or scientific research labs, are becoming more extreme and more ineluctable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-mac-donald/race-and-gender-quotas-whether-in-publishing-the-media-or-scientific/) [Heather Mac Donald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-mac-donald/) > [I don't believe in quotas for quotas sake, but I think companies without any women on their boards should write to their shareholders and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karren-brady/i-don-t-believe-in-quotas-for-quotas-sake-but-i-think-companies/) [Karren Brady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karren-brady/) > [If you still are growing, you go through the archetype of the statesman or stateswoman. You stop asking "What are my quotas?" and stop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/if-you-still-are-growing-you-go-through-the-archetype-of-the/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) ## More by Twyla Tharp > [“A lot of habitually creative people have preparation rituals linked to the setting in which they choose to start their day. By putting themselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/a-lot-of-habitually-creative-people-have-preparation-rituals-linked/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [I have learned over the years that you should never save for two meetings what you can accomplish in one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/i-have-learned-over-the-years-that-you-should-never-save-for-two/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [I always find that the best collaborations are when you work with people that know what they're doing, and you leave them alone to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/i-always-find-that-the-best-collaborations-are-when-you-work-with/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [I don't mean this, but I'm going to say it anyway. I don't really think of pop art and serious art as being that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/i-don-t-mean-this-but-i-m-going-to-say-it-anyway-i-don-t-really-think/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [The art of these Fifties movies was in sustaining forever the moment before sex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/the-art-of-these-fifties-movies-was-in-sustaining-forever-the-moment/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [This is not a pleasant route for many young people to consider. You have to be either hopelessly passionate, or very stupid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/this-is-not-a-pleasant-route-for-many-young-people-to-consider-you/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [I often say that in making dances I can make a world where I think things are done morally, done democratically, done honestly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/i-often-say-that-in-making-dances-i-can-make-a-world-where-i-think/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [I had received my first establishment grants in response to applications filed the year before. To the pages of baffling forms I had simply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/i-had-received-my-first-establishment-grants-in-response-to/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [I find the aesthetics of the 20th century hopelessly barren.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/i-find-the-aesthetics-of-the-20th-century-hopelessly-barren/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [I don't think that scheduling is uncreative. I think that structure is required for creativity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/i-don-t-think-that-scheduling-is-uncreative-i-think-that-structure-is/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [I have always felt one of the things dance should do - its business being so clearly physical - is challenge the culture's gender…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/i-have-always-felt-one-of-the-things-dance-should-do-its-business/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [There really is nothing I ever had access to that I didn't appreciate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/there-really-is-nothing-i-ever-had-access-to-that-i-didn-t-appreciate/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [Destiny, quite often, is a determined parent. Mozart was hardly some naive prodigy who sat down at the keyboard and, with God whispering in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/destiny-quite-often-is-a-determined-parent-mozart-was-hardly-some/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [When it all comes together, a creative life has the nourishing power we normally associate with food, love and faith.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/when-it-all-comes-together-a-creative-life-has-the-nourishing-power/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [Things change all the time, so why do people make such a philosophical to-do that things are constantly in transition?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/things-change-all-the-time-so-why-do-people-make-such-a-philosophical/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) [Explore all 298 Twyla Tharp quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) ## More Employee quotes > [The thing about hitting kids is, think about if you were doing the same thing to another adult. Hitting your kid is really the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/the-thing-about-hitting-kids-is-think-about-if-you-were-doing-the/) [Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/) > [Trust is about keeping commitments, but in many instances, circumstances change and organizations therefore shed commitments, things such as retiree medical benefits, pension obligations,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-pfeffer/trust-is-about-keeping-commitments-but-in-many-instances/) [Jeffrey Pfeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-pfeffer/) > [“Work is a vehicle with which man chases some fleeting destination called a full tummy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/work-is-a-vehicle-with-which-man-chases-some-fleeting-destination/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [“Employment is an employee’s kissing of an employer’s ass. A salary is the employer’s pretense to be cleaning his ass.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/employment-is-an-employee-s-kissing-of-an-employer-s-ass-a-salary-is/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [LEGO has announced that they are shutting down their U.S. factory and moving it to Canada. LEGO employees say it's their fault because they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conan-o-brien/lego-has-announced-that-they-are-shutting-down-their-u-s-factory-and/) [Conan O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conan-o-brien/) > [“Pizza as a reward at work, gotta love it. Personally, I'd rather have that than a raise. Give me a pizza, boss, and let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/pizza-as-a-reward-at-work-gotta-love-it-personally-i-d-rather-have/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [This bill would allow an employee to bring a claim against an employer decades after the alleged initial act of discrimination occurred. Trial lawyers,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buck-mckeon/this-bill-would-allow-an-employee-to-bring-a-claim-against-an/) Buck McKeon > [The schoolmaster is the person who takes the children off the parents' hands for a consideration. That is to say, he establishes a child…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-schoolmaster-is-the-person-who-takes-the-children-off-the-parents/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [You have to treat your employees like your customers. When you treat them right they will treat your outside customers right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-kelleher/you-have-to-treat-your-employees-like-your-customers-when-you-treat/) [Herb Kelleher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-kelleher/) > [John Shook's experience shows just how important problemsolving is at Toyota - it comes before any other job skill for the graduate intake. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-burns/john-shook-s-experience-shows-just-how-important-problemsolving-is-at/) Martin Burns > [The ruler should employ person in tasks according to their abilities because Knowers ( or the means ) and efficient employees make impossible tasks also possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chanakya/the-ruler-should-employ-person-in-tasks-according-to-their-abilities/) [Chanakya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chanakya/) > [The first major issue you need to consider when focusing on today's workers: You have to know what motivates them. If you think it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-rottenberg/the-first-major-issue-you-need-to-consider-when-focusing-on-today-s/) [Linda Rottenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-rottenberg/) > [Recognition is powerful, as long as it's authentic and specific. Whatever their level on the inverted pyramid, employees wants to feel needed and valued.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-spector/recognition-is-powerful-as-long-as-it-s-authentic-and-specific/) [Robert Spector](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-spector/) > [Failing to differentiate among employees — and holding on to bottom-tier performers — is actually the cruelest form of management there is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-welch/failing-to-differentiate-among-employees-and-holding-on-to-bottom/) [Jack Welch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-welch/) > [Our society has become an employee society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/our-society-has-become-an-employee-society/) [Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/) [Browse all 1,184 Employee quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/employee/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A tough manager will have realistic quotas for his employees that he keeps to himself and aggressively stretch quotas, anywhere from ten percent higher to a lot more, which he imposes on his staff. 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