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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.

Donald Rumsfeld

Think ahead. Don’t let day-to-day operations drive out planning.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Business Operation Planning Thinking
If we know anything, it is that weakness is provocative.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Knowledge Weakness
Let your family, staff, and friends know that you’re still the same person, despite all the publicity and notoriety that accompanies your position.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Family Friendship Person Position Publicity
Death has a tendency to encourage a depressing view of war.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Death Encouragement Tendency War
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.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Goals Head Obstacle Work
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.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Ego Government Moderate People President
Don’t speak ill of your predecessors or successors. You didn’t walk in their shoes.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Ill Shoes Speak Success Walk
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.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Imagination Knowledge
There are a lot of people who lie and get away with it, and that’s just a fact.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Fact Lie People
Reduce the layers of management. They put distance between the top of an organization and the customers.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Customer Distance Management Organization
Politics is human beings; it’s addition rather than subtraction.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Government Human Being Politics
If you try to please everybody, somebody’s not going to like it.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Please Try
Be precise. A lack of precision is dangerous when the margin of error is small.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Dangerous Error Lack Margin
Treat each federal dollar as if it was hard earned; it was – by a taxpayer.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Earn Money Tax
It is easier to get into something than to get out of it.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Bsuiness Motivational Politics Risk
Remember where you came from.
DONALD RUMSFELD

History One Liner Past Remember
Don’t necessarily avoid sharp edges. Occasionally they are necessary to leadership.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Edge Leadership Necessary
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 RUMSFELD

Deep Philosophy
The way to do well is to do well.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Inspirational One Liner
Don’t blame the boss. He has enough problems.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Blame Boss Enough Problem
Know that the amount of criticism you receive may correlate somewhat to the amount of publicity you receive.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Criticism Publicity Receive
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.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Decision Government Imperfection Knowledge Politics Reflection War
If in doubt, don’t. If still in doubt, do what’s right.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Doubt Inspirational Right
If you develop rules, never have more than ten.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Advice Rule
Let’s stick something in the ground and not pretend that it’s perfect.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Ground Perfection Pretend
Learn to say ‘I don’t know.’ If used when appropriate, it will be often.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Appropriate Learn Often
If in doubt, move decisions up to the President.
DONALD RUMSFELD

Decision Doubt President

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.

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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.

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Popular Authors

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