“Presidential leadership needn’t always cost money. Look for low- and no-cost options. They can be surprisingly effective.”

If in doubt, move decisions up to the President.

Preserve the President’s options. He may need them.

Let’s stick something in the ground and not pretend that it’s perfect.

Don’t speak ill of your predecessors or successors. You didn’t walk in their shoes.

Amidst all the clutter, beyond all the obstacles, aside from all the static, are the goals set. Put your head down, do the best job possible, let the flak pass, and work towards those goals.

If we know anything, it is that weakness is provocative.

Don’t blame the boss. He has enough problems.

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.

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.

Know that the amount of criticism you receive may correlate somewhat to the amount of publicity you receive.

Be precise. A lack of precision is dangerous when the margin of error is small.

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.

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.

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.

Be able to resign. It will improve your value to the President and do wonders for your performance.

Reduce the number of lawyers. They are like beavers – they get in the middle of the stream and dam it up.

True leaders establish success patterns that make everyone think success.

The first person you lead is you.

I’ve grown up watching Shah Rukh Khan and never really imagined that one day I will get to play the lead opposite him.

Earn your success based on service to others, not at the expense of others.

When the leader lacks confidence, the followers lack commitment.

Leaders must be close enough to relate to others, but far enough ahead to motivate them.

Every time you play for your country, there is responsibility. But when you are captaining, you can say so; you have to lead from the front and make sure the team follows the direction you want them to.

What hurts most is whenever I am leading, and then I lose the match, it is disappointing, and there are so many such matches.