All Quotes by Tom Peters
“Everyone has a chance to learn, improve, and build up their skills.”
“Excellent firms don't believe in excellence - only in constant improvement and constant change.”
“Almost all quality improvement comes via simplification of design, manufacturing... layout, processes, and procedures.”
“Life is pretty simple: You do some stuff. Most fails. Some works. You do more of what works. If it works big, others quickly copy it. Then you do something else. The trick is the doing something else.”
“Bosses: You make your living going to meetings. Hence any meeting that does not bubble and incite enthusiasm is a forever-lost opportunity.”
“EXCELLENCE in <140 Characters: Cherish your people, cuddle your customers, wander around, “try it” beats “talk about it,” Excellence or else, tell the truth.”
“Creating in all employees the awareness that their best efforts are essential and that they will share in the rewards of the company's success.”
“Without exception, the dominance and coherence of culture proved to be an essential quality of the excellent companies.”
“Transforming leadership, [is defined as] leadership that builds on man's need for meaning, leadership that creates institutional purpose … he is the value-shaper, the exemplar, the maker of meanings … he is the true artist, the true pathfinder.”
“Most of their real innovation comes from the market”
“Test fast, fail fast, adjust fast.”
“Every excellent company we studied is clear on what it stands for, and takes the process of value shaping seriously. In fact, we wonder whether it is possible to be an excellent company without clarity on values and without having the right sorts of values.”
“Life is too short for non-WOW projects.”
“If not excellence, what? If not excellence now, when?”
“The vitality of our network will determine our professional fate.”
“Reward excellent failures. Punish mediocre successes.”
“Service is the highest human calling.”
“Mastery is great, but even that is not enough. You have to be able to change course without a bead of sweat, or remorse.”
“Do not even flippantly badmouth anybody this week. Button it up.”
“The Big Four: Out-read 'em. Out-study 'em. Out-present 'em. Out-listen 'em.”
“As project chief you are creating a narrative, a story, a good yarn. If you look at the process-journey that way, you and your gang will … dramatically up the odds of a WOW outcome!”
“If a window of opportunity appears, don't pull down the shade.”
“The Peters Principles: Enthusiasm. Emotion. Excellence. Energy. Excitement. Service. Growth. Creativity. Imagination. Vitality. Joy. Surprise. Independence. Spirit. Community. Limitless human potential. Diversity. Profit. Innovation. Design. Quality. Entrepreneurialism. Wow.”
“What is my personal strategy for the next 10 hours? Who can I talk with or what can I volunteer for to learn something new?”
“Musing on the phrase ‘waste of time.’ So much more complex than it appears. Many ‘wastes of time’—small talk, daydreaming—are imperatives.””
“If you want to achieve Excellence, you can get there today. As of this second, quit doing less than Excellent work. The first 99.9% of getting from here to there is the determination to do it and not to compromise, no matter what set of road blocks those around you erect.”
“Have fun/Make it fun. … All human endeavor is about emotion. Zest, joy, pride—and fun—are near the heart of any successful enterprise.”
“Make the collective, professional pursuit of listening skills per se a keystone of corporate 'culture'.”
“The most important personal ‘core competence’ by far is a rich set of relationships.”
“The well-served customer...is an appreciating asset. Every small act on her or his behalf ups the odds of repeat business, add-on business, and priceless word-of-mouth referral.”
“Training in listening, in statistical techniques and problem cause-and-effect analysis, in group problem solving, in sophisticated financial analysis (for everyone)—and then constant retraining, for upgrading and learning new skills—simply must become the norm, for realtor, banker, or high-tech wizard.”
“The ... moral responsibility ... of every leader is staggering—an opportunity to be of service to (literally) civilization. Or not.”
“Read deep! Read often! Out-READ the 'Competition'!!!”
“Ask! Interviewing/information extraction is an (exceptionally important) ‘art’ that must be mastered!”
“Success is about executing what you are doing today with unquestionable, breathtaking excellence.”
“someone with whom I have an intimate relationship”
“in it with me for the long haul”
“someone with whom I co-invent the future”
“No such thing as a 'non-leader.' Every day offers every one of us scads of leadership opportunities.”
“R&D/good times and bad times. R&D may have to take its lumps in tough times ... But beware of cutting too much muscle.”
“Design, writ large, is increasingly the route to product or service differentiation.”
“Passionate servant leaders, determined to create a legacy of earthshaking transformation in their domain create/must necessarily create organizations which are ... no less than Cathedrals in which the full and awesome power of the Imagination and Spirit and native Entrepreneurial flair of diverse individuals is unleashed ... In passionate pursuit of jointly perceived soaring purpose and personal and community and client service Excellence.”
“Punctuality at meetings influences culture of punctuality, i.e., promise-keeping in general, on-time deliveries, etc.”
“Organizations exist only to serve. Leaders exist only to serve.”
“In the private or public sector, in big business or small, we observe that there are only two ways to create and sustain superior performance over the long haul. First, take exceptional care of your customers ... via superior service and superior quality. Second, constantly innovate. That’s it.”
“Regardless of age, regardless of position, regardless of the business we happen to be in, all of us need to understand the importance of branding. We are CEOs of our own companies: Me, Inc. To be in business today, our most important job is to be head marketer for the brand called You.”
“Management is about arranging and telling. Leadership is about nurturing and enhancing.”
“Communication is everyone's panacea for everything.”
“Regardless of age, regardless of position, regardless of the business we happen to be in, all of us need to understand the importance of branding. We are CEOs of our own companies: Me, Inc. To be in business today, our most important job is to be head marketer for the brand called You.”
“Business is about people. It's about passion. It's about bold ideas, bold small ideas or bold large ideas.”