Favorite Quotes
“We never claim that our approach is the right one,” Bezos wrote, in a 2016 letter to shareholders. “Just that it’s ours.”
“One of the most common and unwise management practices in our workplaces today is the reliance (whether consciously or not) on fear and intimidation as a strategy for getting results. The neuro-psychology and other research on this is pretty clear; it doesn’t work.
Amy Edmonson
“The maniacal focus on cost cutting will not ultimately serve the interest of company stakeholders,” “We urge all companies to recommit themselves to growing the old fashioned way.”
Bob Goldin, co-founder of the Pentallect Inc. consulting firm
“Effective people know when to stop assessing and make a tough call, even without total information. Little is worse than a manager who can’t cut bait.”
Jack Welch, Winning
“CEOs can talk and blab each day about culture, but the employees all know who the jerks are. They could name the jerks for you. It’s just cultural. People just don’t want to do it.”
Jack Welch
Think about just exceeding expectations of every job you're being asked to do. Continually ask for feedback on how it's going. Ask everybody involved what you can do to do an even better job, and the world will beat down your door trying to ask you to do more and more. Alan Mulally
We're going to see leadership emerge as the most important element of business - the attribute that is highest in demand and shortest in supply.
Tom Peters
“Any jerk can have short-term earnings. You squeeze, squeeze, squeeze, and the company sinks five years later.”
Jack Welch
What I found over the years is the most important thing is for a team to come together over a compelling vision, a comprehensive strategy for achieving that vision, and then a relentless implementation plan.
Alan Mulally
“Recently, I was asked if I was going to fire an employee who made a mistake that cost the company $600,000. No, I replied, I just spent $600,000 training him. Why would I want somebody to hire his experience?”
Thomas John Watson Sr., IBM
Customers perceive service in their own unique, idiosyncratic, emotional, irrational, end-of-the-day, and totally human terms. Perception is all there is!
Tom Peters
The way you treat your employees is the way they will treat your customers
Richard Branson
“Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others.”
Jack Welch, Winning
You want your customers to value your service.
Jeff Bezos
Positive leadership - conveying the idea that there is always a way forward - is so important, because that is what you are here for - to figure out how to move the organization forward. Critical to doing that is reinforcing the idea that everyone is included.
Alan Mulally
Your employees are your company’s real competitive advantage. They’re the ones making the magic happen-so long as their needs are being met.
Richard Branson
Most discussions of decision making assume that only senior executives make decisions or that only senior executives' decisions matter. This is a dangerous mistake.
Peter Drucker
“I am convinced that nothing we do is more important than hiring and developing people. At the end of the day you bet on people, not on strategies.”
Lawrence Bossidy, GE
People work better when they know what the goal is and why. It is important that people look forward to coming to work in the morning and enjoy working.
Elon Musk
The result of long-term relationships is better and better quality, and lower and lower costs.
W. Edwards Deming
A brand for a company is like a reputation for a person. You earn reputation by trying to do hard things well.
Jeff Bezos
The magic formula that successful businesses have discovered is to treat customers like guests and employees like people.
Tom Peters
Lean isn't lean if it doesn't involve everyone
John Shook
If you are going to do kaizen continuously you've got to assume that things are a mess. Too many people just assume that things are all right the way they are. Aren't you guys convinced that the way you're doing things is the right way? That's no way to get anything done. Kaizen is about changing the way things are. If you assume that things are all right the way they are, you can't do kaizen. So change something!
Taiichi Ohno
All anyone asks for is a chance to work with pride.
W. Edwards Deming
The best customer service is if the customer doesn't need to call you, doesn't need to talk to you. It just works.
Jeff Bezos
The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn't said.
Peter Drucker
With most competitors moving ever faster, the race will go to those who listen (and respond) most intently.
Tom Peters
Management is about arranging and telling. Leadership is about nurturing and enhancing. Tom Peters
If people are coming to work excited. . . if they're making mistakes freely and fearlessly. . . if they're having fun. . . if they're concentrating on doing things rather than preparing reports and going to meetings-then somewhere you have leaders.
Robert Townsend
Don’t be afraid to admit when you don’t know- “I don’t know” is a fine answer.
John Shook
Sometimes when you innovate, you make mistakes. It is best to admit them quickly, and get on with improving your other innovations.
Steve Jobs
Great things in business are never done by one person. They're done by a team of people. Steve Jobs
Rule 1. Original data should be presented in a way that will preserve the evidence in the original data for all the predictions assumed to be useful.
Walter Shewhart
Technology is nothing. What's important is that you have a faith in people, that they're basically good and smart, and if you give them tools, they'll do wonderful things with them. Steve Jobs
“Common mission trap for companies: trying to be all things to all people at all times.”
Jack Welch, Winning
The Toyota style is not to create results by working hard. It is a system that says there is no limit to people's creativity. People don't go to Toyota to 'work' they go there to 'think'.
I think it matters whether someone has a good heart.
Elon Musk
With all my employees, I listen to them, trust in them, believe in them, respect them and let them have a go! I never believe I know better than they do and have been fortunate over the years to build up a very strong management team whom I can trust and take advice from.
Richard Branson
If you run a business, put on top your employees, then your consumers, and then your shareholders.
I really do believe that working together works, and it's amazing to me.
Alan Mulally
“When you are a leader, your job is to have all the questions. You have to be incredibly comfortable looking like the dumbest person in the room. Every conversation you have about a decision, a proposal, or a piece of market information has to be filled with you saying, “What if?” and “Why not?” and “How come?”
Jack Welch, Winning
