50 Famous Leadership Quotes from Successful Entrepreneurs

Below are the list of 50 quotes taken from successful entrepreneurs. 

1. “If there is such a thing as good leadership, it is to give a good example. I have to do so for all the IKEA employees.” – Ingvar Kamprad

2. “The speed of the leader determines the speed of the gang.” – Mary Kay Ash

3. “People problems must sometimes be dealt with harshly. When you make an example of someone, make sure everyone knows what the lesson is. Punish one, teach a hundred.” – The Mafia Manager

4. “Sometimes, I think my most important job as a CEO is to listen for bad news. If you don’t act on it, your people will eventually stop bringing bad news to your attention and that is the beginning of the end.” – Bill Gates

5. “Kindness is more powerful than compulsion.” – Charles Schwab

6. “There are no working hours for leaders.” – James Cardinal Gibbons

7. “Don’t encourage overtime. Tell your people that the best way to impress you is to do a great job in the time allotted for it and then go home and relax.” – The Mafia Manager

8. “A real leader faces the music even when he doesn’t like the tune.” – Arnold H. Glassgow

9. “A little thing is a little thing but faithfulness in a little thing is a great thing.” – Hudson Taylor

10. “Be as careful as to the books you read as of the company you keep; for your habits and character will be as much influenced by the former as the latter.” – Poxton Hood

11. “Beware of those who stand aloof and greet each venture with reproof. The world would stop if things were run by men who say ‘it can’t be done.” – Samuel Glover

12. “Be great in little things.” – St. Francis Xavier

13. “Be a life long student, read as many books as possible.” – Nelson Mandela

14. “Calamity is the test of integrity.” – Samuel Richardson

15. “Your arrows do not carry, observed the master; because they do not reach far enough spiritually.” – Zen Master

16. “Cowards die many times before their death. The valiant never taste death but once.” – William Shakespeare

17. “You are in a war. You must plan to take the other guy down first and do it. Winning is not the best thing; it’s the only thing. If it were not, no one would keep score. To win the war, you must take charge. You must set the organization’s objectives, establish a chain of control, delegate, appraise performance, adjust and act.” – The Mafia Manager

18. “Courage is the first of human qualities because it is the quality which guarantees all others.” – Winston Churchill

19. “When somebody challenges you, fight back. Be brutal, be tough.” – Donald Trump

20. “To win one hundred battles in one hundred victories is not the ACME of skills. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the ACME of skill.” – Sun Tzu

21. “The ability to deal with people is as purchasable as a commodity as sugar or coffee and I will pay more for that ability than for any other thing under the sun.” – John D. Rockefeller

22. “Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak. Courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.” – Winston Churchill

23. “To lead people, walk behind them.” – Lao Tzu

24. “If you see a snake, just kill it. Don’t appoint a committee on snakes.” – Henry Ross Perot

25. “The most important thing in your business relationships is your reputation for honesty. If you can genuinely and sincerely fake honesty, you will be a success. Never doubt it.” – The Mafia Manager

26. “Punishing honest mistakes stifles creativity. I want people moving and shaking the earth and they are going to make mistakes.” – Henry Ross Perot

27. “After loyalty come ability, skill and competence. Promote only able people (and the occasional humbler). You find able people by testing them.” – The Mafia Manager

28. “Do not fear when your enemies criticize you. Beware when they applaud.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

29. “Effort and courage are not enough without purpose and direction.” – John F. Kennedy

30. “Fire is the test of gold, adversity of strong men.” – Seneca

31. “Good leadership consists of showing average people how to do the work of superior people.” – John D. Rockefeller

32. “Be prepared for betrayal from anyone on your staff, but especially from those you have the most trust in. Every betrayal must be repaid as quickly and as publicly as possible. If you should let a betrayal go unpunished, you are through as a leader.” – The Mafia Manager

33. “When people are placed in positions slightly above what they expect, they are apt to excel.” – Richard Branson

34. “Good judgment comes from experience and experience comes from bad judgments.” – Dr Warne W. Dyer

35. “He who establishes his argument by noise is weak and command shows that his reason is weak.” – Montaigne

36. “He who believes is strong; he who doubt is weak. Strong convictions precede great action.” – J. F. Clarke

37. “At meetings, have someone else float your newest ideas. Watch the reaction of the rest of your staff. Note who opposes, who supports, who links up with whom. See who responds with an open mind, whose mind is already made up, one way or the other. If you are going to walk on water, you have to know where the rocks are.” – The Mafia Manager

38. “Giving people self confidence is by far the most important thing that I can do because then they will act.” – Jack Welch

39. “It takes character and control to be understanding and forgiving.” – Dale Carnegie

40. “Before making an important decision, get as much as you can of the best information available and review it carefully, analyze it and draw up worst case scenarios. Add up the plus or minus factors, discuss it with your team and do what your guts tell you to do.” – The Mafia Manager

41. “The people who are doing the work are the moving force behind the Macintosh. My job is to create a space for them, to clear out the rest of the organization and keep it at bay.” – Steve Jobs

42. “Inventories can be managed but people must be led.” – Henry Ross Perot

43. “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and only five Minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you will do things differently.” – Warren Buffett

44. “Outstanding leaders go out of their way to boost the self esteem of their personnel. If people believe in themselves, it’s amazing what they can accomplish.” – Sam Walton

45. “Don’t be too familiar with your followers; it may at first inspire affection but eventually, like all familiarity; it will breed contempt.” – The Mafia Manager

46. “I hire people brighter than me and I get out of their way.” – Lee Iacocca

47. “It’s alright to be Goliath but always act like David.” – Philip Knight

48. “If you want to be great and successful, choose people who are great and successful and walk side by side with them.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

49. “If you hear a voice within you saying ‘you are not a painter’ then by all means paint and that voice will be silenced.” – Vincent Van Gogh

50. “There will be times when you will have to be abrasive, even brutal to members of your staff. Don’t worry that your people will say bad things about you because of this. They already have. But in general, try to be pleasant and accommodating. Try to please the greatest number who work for you that you can; antagonize the fewest. Blow smoke.” – The Mafia Manager

Don't Look for the Next Opportunity. The One You Have in Hand is the Opportunity

Do we have to wait for success? How long do we have to wait for the real absolute opportunity? Well, the next opportunity would not probably happens. During our current projects, when we make mistakes and all things gone terribly wrong and everything tend to get worst and messy.

In the end, what we always do is give up and just get over it. To straighten all the mistakes, we make a false promise that the next jobs would be a good one and it will be the real opportunity for improvement.

However, the same situation loops consistently and we are still waiting for the right choice to execute the right move. The waiting continues and follow us until the dead end. Ended up like a total losers.

What is in your desk right now is the actual opportunity. Bring the ultimate efforts and determination and do your best now not then. It is the time now. Don't look for the next opportunity, the one you have in hand is the opportunity.

Quote by Paul Arden from the book "It's Not How Good You Are, It's How Good You Want to Be"

Content insight by Redzuan Harris, Cariblogger.com

Communicating Creatively with Customers

Businesses that know how to effectively communicate with their customers typically outperform their competitors. Consumers have become more savvy and require more engagement than ever before. It's important to consider that every customer is different, but there are some genuine factors that improve the quality of any service provided. That starts with how you communicate with your customers, but it's important to understand the new and exciting ways you can do that.

The Amazing "Social Media"

Lately, the entire concept of social networking and social media has become a focal point in online customer interaction. Customers online become accustomed to seeing a strong social media presence from all of the businesses whose services he or she uses. Social media tools include Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Linkedin, and the blog world. It's important for a company to have a strong following in each of these areas of networking in order to reach a wide audience and to appear to the rest of the world that other people are using and enjoying the service your business provides. There are a wide variety of social media strategies, and many are time consuming. It's important to gauge the level of social media your business needs before pursuing it further.

Communicate All the Time

Companies that are constantly communicating with their customers are giving them the information he or she needs, when he or she needs it. Many successful and prominent businesses send text messages online to all of their contacts. Over time, these businesses acquire a vast amount of user information and contact methods. More recently, online registration forms have been including an area to input phone numbers. This is another way of being able to communicate with customers. According to CBC/Radio-Canada, almost 92% of online consumers use a cell phone. This means that a simple text message can reach almost every single customer in a business and convey to them important information.

Email is Still King

Although not considered modern and exciting, email is still one of the best ways to communicate with customers. Emails can influence customers' feelings toward a company and its services. They are also used to provide information, distribute surveys, and create special email-only promotions. Emails go directly into a customer's inbox, which makes the conversation almost personal. Successful businesses have advanced email forms and newsletters that captivate an audience. Structuring emails so that they emit a positive response will keep users satisfied and assured that they picked the right company.

Reap the Rewards

A successful business can reach out to a wide audience of customers and convince them to spend money. In a marketplace that grows more complex and connected on a daily basis, customers are craving information that is attractive and doesn't waste their time. If a company can use communication tools to perfect this, it will receive a direct increase in customers and revenue.

By Juan Harris, Cariblogger.com

Do Not Seek Praise. Seek Criticsm

Appraisal is pleasing. Indeed. People are more likely to seek for praise than criticism. We tends to be a pretender rather to be a critical. We love to filter out all the bad and get to hear what we want to hear. If you have produced a piece of work, you will get your colleague of friends for approval and get other people to say good thing about it. What about criticism?

"Please tell me you like my works".

"I don't like people who don't appreciate my jobs".

"I think my work is better".

It probably OK to seek for praise. But it is better to crave for criticism. Try to view from other perspective. Don't see what good you have done, get to find what are the better things that you should have done.

"Whats wrong with it?".

"How can I make this better?".

"What are the things that you don't like about it?".

Try to convert your question and get to know the negative side of your ideas. You may get more improvement's ideas to make it better. Do Not Seek Praise. Seek Criticism.

Quote by Paul Arden from the book "It's Not How Good You Are, It's How Good You Want to Be"

Content insight by Redzuan Harris, Cariblogger.com

Books Every Startup Founder Should Read

Are you a startup founder? Do you need advice on what to do next but don’t know where to start looking? Do you feel like giving up on your company? Many startup companies do not last long because, after the company is started, founders and/or co-founders do not know what to do next.

They are stuck in the beginning and don’t know how to get to the next level, having received incorrect advice or they have not been advised at all. No growth can take place because you are stuck in the positions for too long.

The best way to move forward, is to gain some knowledge and then apply it. As they say, ‘Knowledge is power’; so knowledge without action is rendered powerless. It is not enough to know. You have to do something with what you have received.

Here is a list of some of the best books on the market for any startup founder. Whether you like to read or not, should not influence your decision on whether you are going read these books. In these books are some great strategies on how to make your company a great success. That should be your number one reason for reading these books.

The Lean Startup by Eric Ries

This has become the second bible to most startup founders. If you are dedicated to effectively and efficiently building a business, this is the book to read. Lean manufacturing inspired all of the great lessons found in the book.

Reality Check by Guy Kawasaki

If you want some all-in-one start up advice, take some time out to read this 500-page book. It will be worth it. It may take you some time, but it will be worth it.

The Founder’s Dilemmas by Noah Wasserman

As a startup founder, you will face some common problems. Wasserman insightfully gives some great advice on how to deal with these.

Where Good Ideas Come From by Steven Johnson

Johnson outlines seven guiding principles in this book. They are applicable not only to startups but everywhere. If you follow these principles, you could come up with some great ideas to make company a success.

The Intelligent Entrepreneurby Bill Murphy

The book chronicles the stories of three graduates (all from Harvard’s Business School) and their businesses. Some great one are ‘Start-up as a couple’, ‘Founders’ relationships with investors’, and ‘Business model pivots and other personal accounts’.

Free: The Future of a Radical Price by Chris Anderson

The author is the editor-in-chief of the magazine, Wired. In the book, Anderson explains why freemium is the future of technology business.

Crossing the Chasm by Geoffrey Moore

When you launch, your product sales will go up. In the course of time, sales can decrease. In this book Moore explains why this is. He also explains how you can prevent your product from completely disappearing by adjusting your marketing strategy at certain times.

Business Model Generation by Alexander Osterwalder and Yves Pigneur

The book visually shows visual patterns of the common business model; it opens your mind to the business end of what you are building.

Founders at Work by Jessica Livingston

This book features interviews with the likes of Max Levchin (Paypal), Steve Wozniak (Apple), Stephen Kaufer (TripAdviror), Joshua Schachter (del.icio.us) and more. This book will make you realize that even these great companies all had to start somewhere and they all had their challenges. Today they are a huge success, yours can be too. You also get to see things from the founders’ perspective.

The Startup Playbook by David S. Kidder

The book contains some key practices, behaviours and ideas for success. Key founders like Caterina Fake (Flickr and Hunch), Reid Hoffman (LinkedIn), Sara Blakely (Spanx) and many more also share some great advice for startup founders.

Start-up: A Resource Book of The Founder by Steve Blank and Bob Dorf

The book shows you, step by step, how to create your new business. It also contains the management of the startup projects course.

The Art of the Start by Guy Kawasaki

This book is a definite guide for anyone who wants to start anything. It lays out all the tactics of bootstrapping, branding, rainmaking, positioning, recruiting, and pitching.

Delivering Happiness by Tony Hsieh

The book as an account of the success of Zappos, what the founders and employees went through and how they ultimately came up with their winning strategy. A great book if you feel like you are ready to give up on your company.

How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie

This book is known as one of the best known motivational books. It is also the first one of its kind. Since first published 1936, it has been ‘updated’ quite a few times. If you want to get the best of what the author has to offer in this book, find a copy that was published before the 1960’s. It will be worth all of your efforts.

Summary

Some of the authors of these books, gave a vivid description of what it takes to make a success of your startup company. They shared their own personal stories, or relayed those of others. Whether you are in the beginning stages of your startup or not, I’m sure you will be able to find a book, even in this list, that will help you at the level that you are now.

"I suggest that the only books that influence us are those for which we are ready, and which have gone a little farther down our particular path than we have yet got ourselves"

E.M. Forster, Two Cheers for Democracy, 1951.

By Leandre de Bruyn, Cariblogger.com

It's Not What You Know, It's Who You Know

After reading this chapter, It makes me feel bloated. Here are the situations. You are a talented and knowledgeable IT professional. You have an impressive and outstanding skills that makes you big score on your salary and earn company respect. Despite of your infamous fame in the company, you are shy and polite person. Love to stay alone not socialize. Nobody knows you.

Your friend, however, is just a plain person, less knowledge and lack of IT skills. But great in knowing and getting around people inside and outside the company. Your friend, print a business card and with good words and socialize with people. Been accepted into the community and been well recognized as a IT guys with great attitude.

Your friend, is a somebody to the people and was granted, blessed and appreciated with lots of opportunity. While you, with lack of social skills and reluctance to be around people will stay forever alone. Unnoticed and nobody to the people.

Yes. This is the reality of life. It's not what you know, It's who you know. Cheers.

Quote by Paul Arden from the book "It's Not How Good You Are, It's How Good You Want to Be"

Content insight by Redzuan Harris, Cariblogger.com

How to Convert a Great Idea into a Reality?

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