Reduce the number of lawyers. They are like beavers – they get in the middle of the stream and dam it up.
DONALD RUMSFELDIf in doubt, move decisions up to the President.
More Donald Rumsfeld Quotes
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Death has a tendency to encourage a depressing view of war.
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Preserve the President’s options. He may need them.
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If you are not criticized, you may not be doing much.
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If you try to please everybody, somebody’s not going to like it.
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If the staff lacks policy guidance against which to test decisions, their decisions will be random.
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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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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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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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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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If it were a fact, it wouldn’t be called intelligence.
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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.
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Learn to say ‘I don’t know.’ If used when appropriate, it will be often.
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It isn’t making mistakes that’s critical; it’s correcting them and getting on with the principal task.
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There are known knowns, things we know that we know; and there are known unknowns, things that we know we don’t know. But there are also unknown unknowns, things we do not know we don’t know.
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Those who made the decisions with imperfect knowledge will be judged in hindsight by those with considerably more information at their disposal and time for reflection.
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Everyone’s saying you can’t do anything until you can do everything.
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Be able to resign. It will improve your value to the President and do wonders for your performance.
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The way to do well is to do well.
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Your performance depends on your people. Select the best, train them and back them. When errors occur, give sharper guidance. If errors persist or if the fit feels wrong, help them move on. The country cannot afford amateur hour in the White House.
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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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Presidential leadership needn’t always cost money. Look for low- and no-cost options. They can be surprisingly effective.
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Every day is filled with numerous opportunities for serious error. Enjoy it.
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You go to war with the army you have, not the army you might want or wish to have at a later time.
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If in doubt, move decisions up to the President.
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Arguments of convenience lack integrity and inevitably trip you up.
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There are a lot of people who lie and get away with it, and that’s just a fact.
DONALD RUMSFELD