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

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.

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

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.

Many people around the President have sizeable egos before entering government, some with good reason. Their new positions will do little to moderate their egos.

Enjoy your time in public service. It may well be one of the most interesting and challenging times of your life.

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

Politics is human beings; it’s addition rather than subtraction.

Death has a tendency to encourage a depressing view of war.

With the press there is no ‘off the record.’

If in doubt, don’t. If still in doubt, do what’s right.

Your life does not get better by chance, it gets better by change.

Through discipline comes freedom.

I’d like to show an improved product rather than just talk about things we might do.

The most difficult matter is not so much to change the world as yourself.

Achievable goals are the first step to self improvement.

I used to say, “I sure hope things will change.” Then I learned that the only way things are going to change for me is when I change.

We all need people who will give us feedback. That’s how we improve.

Never wish life were easier, wish that you were better.