“We need to put ourselves in the shoes of our customers. That is my new battle cry. Live and breathe Starbucks the way our customers do.”

People want to be part of something larger than themselves. They want to be part of something they’re really proud of, that they’ll fight for, sacrifice for, that they trust.

Success is best when it is shared.

Success is something that has to be earned every day.

Work should be personal. For all of us. Not just for the artist and entrepreneur. Work should have meaning for the accountant, the construction worker, the technologist, the manager and the clerk.

Starbucks is not an advertiser; people think we are a great marketing company, but in fact we spend very little money on marketing and more money on training our people than advertising.

I honestly never dreamed at the time that I would one day own the Starbucks and or be in a position where we would have more than 10,000 stores around the world. It has just been an incredible journey for all of us.

Customers must recognize that you stand for something.

It’s one thing to dream, but when the moment is right, you’ve got to be willing to leave what’s familiar and go out to find your own sound.

Who wants a dream that’s near-fetched?

Great companies that build an enduring brand have an emotional relationship with customers that has no barrier. And that emotional relationship is on the most important characteristic, which is trust.

Victory is much more meaningful when it comes not just from one person, but from the joint achievements of many.

The success of the Starbucks has been based on this balance between profitability and a social conscience. Everywhere we’re doing business, were trying to manage the business through the lens of humanity.

Social and digital media is a bullet train, and that bullet train is not coming home.

In many places where coffee is grown, deforestation is a major issue. With Starbucks’ position in the marketplace and the respect and relationships we have, we can – and have, in some cases – been able to educate and influence people.

I believe life is a series of near misses. A lot of what we ascribe to luck is not luck at all. It’s seizing the day and accepting responsibility for your future. It’s seeing what other people don’t see And pursuing that vision.

Effective leaders share two intertwined attributes: an unbridled level of confidence about where their organizations are headed, and the ability to bring people along.

Conform to the enemy’s tactics until a favorable opportunity offers; then come forth and engage in a battle that shall prove decisive.

Everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about. Be kind. Always.

Real men despise battle, but will never run from it.

We fight too many battles that don’t matter.

Begin by seizing something which your opponent holds dear; then he will be amenable to your will.

Thus the expert in battle moves the enemy, and is not moved by him.

Life’s battles don’t always go to the stronger or faster man. But sooner or later, the man who wins is the man who thinks he can.

I would challenge you to a battle of wits, but I see you are unarmed!