Remove Yourself From the Equation to Find Success

The following is a quote from Writer/Director Joss Whedon in reference to his upcoming cinematic take on Marvel's The Avengers:

Says Whedon, "There's a lot of me that got cut out, but I think part of the process in a situation like this is you make the movie, you make your movie, then you remove yourself out of the equation. At some point you stop looking beyond The Avengers movie, at your own stuff... You go, 'You know what, The Avengers are more important than I am so these things that I'm obsessed with aren't necessarily moving the story forward, and therefore they are baggage.'"

The exact same rule applies to leadership, to business, to politics.  When it becomes about you, you've lost.

Or, take it from a slightly different bent:

"Never let your ego set so close to your position that when your position goes, your ego goes with it."