“Success is walking from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.”
Winston Churchill, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
CEO Says… Keep Your Head Up!
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Category Archives: CEO Says…
CEO Says… Don’t Wait & Work Hard
Let’s end the week with some inspirational words from Madam C.J. Walker [December 23, 1867 – May 25, 1919], CEO of Madam C.J. Walker Laboratories, cosmetics industry maverick, and one of the first female African-American entrepreneurs:
“There is no royal, flower-strewn path to success. And if there is, I have not found it. For if I have accomplished anything in life, it is because I have been willing to work hard.”
“I had to make my own living and my own opportunity! But I made it! Don’t sit down and wait for the opportunities to come. Get up and make them!”
Watch Biography’s mini-bio on the life and legacy of Madam C.J. Walker.
CEO Says… Learn From Unhappy Customers
“Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning.”
Bill Gates, philanthropist, Chairman + former CEO, Microsoft
CEO Says… Watch. Listen. Learn.
“Watch, listen, and learn. You can’t know it all yourself. Anyone who thinks they do is destined for mediocrity.” Donald Trump, CEO of Trump Organization
CEO Says… Doing Satisfying Work
“Those three things – autonomy, complexity, and a connection between effort and reward – are, most people will agree, the three qualities that work has to have if it is to be satisfying.” Malcolm Gladwell, journalist and author of The Tipping Point: How Little Things Make A Big Difference
CEO Says… It’s Not Easy Being In Charge
I think the hardest thing about my job is the way Whole Foods Market views itself philosophically – we are a business dedicated to meeting all the various stakeholders of the company’s best interests. And by stakeholders we mean customers, team members, stockholders, community, and the environment. Sometimes what is in the best interest of one stakeholder may not be in the best interest of another stakeholder, and as the CEO, I have to balance the various interests of the different constituencies and stakeholders to create win, win, win scenarios, and that can sometimes be very difficult to do. Everybody wants something from the CEO.”
John Mackey, Whole Foods Market CEO
CEO Says… Don’t Get Discouraged
One of the things I learned the hard way was that it doesn’t pay to get discouraged. Keeping busy and making optimism a way of life can restore your faith in yourself.
Lucille Ball, Iconic Actress + Film Executive
CEO Says… Be Critical Without Being Judgemental
So much of my work is trying to be critical without being judgmental. I try to make criticisms in a very, very specific way. The more specific it is — if someone can really understand where you’re coming from and what you’re suggesting — the more it will actually help them. With many artists, no one around them tells them the truth, so hearing the truth can be actually refreshing. – Rick Rubin, Co-President of Columbia Records + Producer Extraordinaire
[image by Paul Chatem]
CEO Says… Respect the Nerds!
Be nice to nerds. Chances are you’ll end up working for one. – Bill Gates, CEO + Chairman of Microsoft
[Photo from IMDB]