Quotes

Friendly cooperation will get you far more than unfriendly agitation in any market. When you treat your competitors with the courtesy and respect you would like, most will respond in kind, and the result is a stable, productive, profitable industry. On the other hand, an industry or market that is composed of vicious, unethical competitors will soon destroy itself. When you are asked how your products and services compare with those of your competitors, speak respectfully and politely about your rivals, but use the question to shift the discussion to your company and your products. Acknowledge others’ good points, and then move on. If you complain too much about the competitors, prospective customers may wonder what they are missing and refuse to buy until they have compared your products and services with those of others.

Try telling your boss about the things you like, and see how willingly he or she will help you get rid of the things you don’t like. In recent years, great strides have been made in overcoming the traditional adversarial relationship between workers and bosses. At last we’re learning that when we focus on better serving our clients and customers, everybody wins. When you begin to focus on what’s good in your company instead of what you don’t like, you will be amazed how quickly you will have more responsibility, and soon you will be teaching your employees how to do your old job.

Willing cooperation produces enduring power, while forced cooperation ends in failure. No civilization based upon the unjust treatment of its people has ever endured. A tyrant may force the cooperation of others for a time, but that power is never sustained. Only when people are accorded the respect they deserve do they willingly create and maintain successful organizations and societies. When you build a company or an organization based on fairness and justice for every member, you have built a power that will long endure. The best way to secure the commitment and unending cooperation of others is through the simple application of the Golden Rule. It is the most successful and long-lasting management theory ever developed. When you treat others as you would like to be treated were you in their situation, you will inspire loyalty and enthusiastic cooperation. Set high standards for yourself and others, treat them well, let them do their jobs and they will perform miracles for you.

No one is capable of giving directions unless he or she knows how to take directions and carry them out. An essential quality of leadership is developing the ability to persuade others to align their goals with yours and those of the organization. Until you, yourself, are able to join forces with others in the pursuit of a common objective, you will never persuade them to join your cause. Effective leaders recognize the value of working together, and they learn how to follow directions before being entrusted with the responsibility for the performance of others. Good leaders show by example how they expect others to behave. Even though the troops may be trained o follow orders unquestioningly, the officer always leads them into battle. You cannot push others to follow your example; you must pull them along with youl When you show by your every word and deed that you are a person of character, one who works for the greater good of the entire organization, your people will follow.

Ability is greater than money because it can be neither lost nor stolen. If you study the lives of very successful people, you will find that they rarely climb to the top of their business or profession and stay there. They often climb to the top and fall to the bottom several times during their careers, but they know that the one thing that got them where they are—their ability—is always there to help them reach the top again. Your ability is the one thing that you own exclusively; no one can ever take it from you.

When you close the door of your mind to negative thoughts, the door of opportunity opens to you. It is the nature of opportunity that it simply refuses to attach itself to negative thinkers. Negative minds cannot conceive exciting new business opportunities, invent innovative new products, solve difficult problems, or create beautiful music or works of art. All of these activities require a positive belief in yourself and your abilities. When you approach every challenge with a Positive Mental Attitude, you will always discover opportunities that others have overlooked. Relish your achievements and recall them when the going gets tough. Take comfort in the knowledge that you have succeeded in the past and you can do it again. You can do it if you think you can!

Unless you are an army officer, you can get better results by requests than you can by orders. Armies spend endless hours training people to follow orders without question. It’s an essential quality in a soldier. In everyday life, however, things don’t work that way. Business, political, and civic leaders have learned that ordinary people will perform exceptional tasks when they are asked—not ordered—to do so. Even when you are managing other people, you will achieve far more if you convert every order to a request. Introductory phrases such as, “Would you mind…” or “Could I ask your assistance in…” or the always effective “Please…” will ensure success far more than intimidating those who work for you. And when you need help from those whose paychecks you do not control, you will find them far ore responsive to requests than to orders.