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If there is a single tragic flaw that mars our biggest enterprises, it is conservatism – the failure to fail, and fail big, in an era of unprecedented volatility and ambiguity.

Tom Peters

David Ogilvy contends that the greatest ad copywriters are marked by an insatiable curiosity ‘about every subject under the sun.’
TOM PETERS

Copywriters Curiosity Subject Sun
Passion. The life of an entrepreneur is occasionally exhilarating, and almost always exhausting. Only unbridled passion for the concept is likely to see you through the 17-hour days (month after month) and the painful mistakes that are part and parcel of the start-up process.
TOM PETERS

Concept Exhilarating Mistake Occasionally Passion Peace
The simple act of paying positive attention to people has a great deal to do with productivity.
TOM PETERS

Positive Productive Work Simple
Knowing when to take your losses is an essential part of eventual success.
TOM PETERS

Essentials Knowing Loss
Ultimately, I think that the growth and sustainability of the e-book movement depends on authors and end-users (readers).
TOM PETERS

Book Growth Thinking
What you decide not to do is probably more important that what you decide to do.
TOM PETERS

Decide Important Probably
Effective listening is a professional achievement-achieved only through hard work.
TOM PETERS

Achievement Effective Hard Listening Work
Leadership is about tapping the wellsprings of human motivation – and about fundamental relations with one’s fellows.
TOM PETERS

Fundamentals Leadership Motivation
I’m fundamentally not interested in the Fortune 500 companies – in US, Mexico, anywhere. The real backbones of economic growth are small and medium businesses.
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Business Country Growth Real
Organizations exist to serve. Period. Leaders live to serve. Period.
TOM PETERS

Entrepreneur Leader Organization
What have you done lately – this week – to make yourself stand out? What would your colleagues or your customers say is your greatest and clearest strength? Your most noteworthy (as in, worthy of note) personal trait?
TOM PETERS

Colleagues Greatest Lately Networthy
Quite simply, no matter how hard you try, no matter how “open” you are, you’ll end up surrounded by “yes people.” It’s hard not to believe people who are repeating your own ideas. Resist the temptation.
TOM PETERS

Believe Friends Ideas
Success requires a persistent misreading of the odds.
TOM PETERS

Misreading Odds Persistent
…high end does not necessarily equal high price. It’s a matter of attitude.
TOM PETERS

Attitide Attitude Matter
The common wisdom is that … managers have to learn to motivate people. Nonsense. Employees bring their own motivation.
TOM PETERS

Common Motivation People
Winners must learn to relish change with the same enthusiasm and energy that we have resisted it in the past.
TOM PETERS

Change Learning Past

If there is a single tragic flaw that mars our biggest enterprises, it is conservatism – the failure to fail, and fail big, in an era of unprecedented volatility and ambiguity.

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Popular Authors

If there is a single tragic flaw that mars our biggest enterprises, it is conservatism – the failure to fail, and fail big, in an era of unprecedented volatility and ambiguity.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

More Tom Peters Quotes