There are no “knowns.” There are things we know that we know. There are known unknowns. That is to say there are things that we now know we don’t know. But there are also unknown unknowns. There are things we do not know we don’t know.
DONALD RUMSFELDLet your family, staff, and friends know that you’re still the same person, despite all the publicity and notoriety that accompanies your position.
More Donald Rumsfeld Quotes
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Think ahead. Don’t let day-to-day operations drive out planning.
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If it were a fact, it wouldn’t be called intelligence.
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Everyone’s saying you can’t do anything until you can do everything.
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First rule of politics: you can’t win unless you’re on the ballot. Second rule: If you run, you may lose. And, if you tie, you do not win.
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Don’t necessarily avoid sharp edges. Occasionally they are necessary to leadership.
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Be precise. A lack of precision is dangerous when the margin of error is small.
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If in doubt, don’t. If still in doubt, do what’s right.
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The way to do well is to do well.
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Whatever your position, reach out to those who know more than you do, and have been around longer than you have. Find those people. Listen carefully. And learn.
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Every day is filled with numerous opportunities for serious error. Enjoy it.
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Let your family, staff, and friends know that you’re still the same person, despite all the publicity and notoriety that accompanies your position.
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Agreement can always be reached by increasing the generality of the conclusion; when this is done, the form is generally preserved but only the illusion of policy is created.
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If you try to please everybody, somebody’s not going to like it.
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Death has a tendency to encourage a depressing view of war.
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If we know anything, it is that weakness is provocative.
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The price of being close to the President is delivering bad news. You fail him if you don’t tell him the truth. Others won’t do it.
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There are a lot of people who lie and get away with it, and that’s just a fact.
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Know that the amount of criticism you receive may correlate somewhat to the amount of publicity you receive.
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Presidential leadership needn’t always cost money. Look for low- and no-cost options. They can be surprisingly effective.
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Arguments of convenience lack integrity and inevitably trip you up.
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Remember where you came from.
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Simply because you do not have evidence that something exists does not mean that you have evidence that it doesn’t exist.
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Reduce the layers of management. They put distance between the top of an organization and the customers.
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If you develop rules, never have more than ten.
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Enjoy your time in public service. It may well be one of the most interesting and challenging times of your life.
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Be able to resign. It will improve your value to the President and do wonders for your performance.
DONALD RUMSFELD