If you stand up and be counted, from time to time you may get yourself knocked down. But remember this: A man flattened by an opponent can get up again. A man flattened by conformity stays down for good.
Every time we've moved ahead in IBM, it was because someone was willing to take a chance, put his head on the block, and try something new.
The best way to supervise your men is from their reports that they make out.
Nothing so conclusively proves a man's ability to lead others as what he does from day to day to lead himself.
Don't make friends who are comfortable to be with. Make friends who will force you to lever yourself up.
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?
