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Famous Tom Peters Quotes

“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.”

PassionPeaceProcessHoursMistakeMonthsConceptsEntrepreneurPainfulExhaustingExhilaratingParcelUnbridled Passion
Book:The Pursuit of Wow!: Every Person's Guide to Topsy-Turvy Times
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“Obviously, despite hard work and heroic efforts, many dreams don't come true. But if we don't dare to dream and then throw muscle, heart, and soul into making the dream come true, then WoW Projects-and all of the emotional, intellectual, spiritual, and financial riches that they bring will surely NOT be our lot in life!”

IfsHeartSoulHardDreamSpiritualEffortCreativityEmotionalHard WorkProjectsIntellectualFinancialDareRichesDespiteLife ChangingMusclesWowHeroicDreams Come TrueHeart And SoulDare To Dream
Author:Tom Peters
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“Gandhi and Mandela and Churchill and JFK and Reagan and Thatcher and Sarkozy and Franklin and Washington set the tone to an incredible degree-their "personal style" was their "brand." ("It" starts with personal style of the tip-top leadership team. Sorry to be politically insensitive, but who would give a hoot about Tibet if it weren't for the look and style of the Dalai Lama?) Boss at any level: You're either on the "it" boat-or not.”

IfsGivingLooksLeadershipLevelsTeamStyleDegreesSorryIncrediblesBoatBrandsToneBossFranklinInsensitiveLamaAm SorryPersonal StyleTibetDalaiHoot
Author:Tom Peters
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“Winston Churchill said that appetite was the most important thing about education. Leadership guru Warren Bennis says he wants to be remembered as 'curious to the end.' David Ogilvy contends that the greatest ad copywriters are marked by an insatiable curiosity 'about every subject under the sun.'”

WantSaidImportantEndsLeadershipEducationSunSubjectsImportant ThingsCuriosityCuriousRememberedAppetiteAdsGuruInsatiable
Book:The Project50 (Reinventing Work): Fifty Ways to Transform Every
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“Business isn't some disembodied bloodless enterprise. Profit is fine - a sign that the customer honors the value of what we do. But "enterprise" ( a lovely word ) is about heart. About beauty. It's about art. About people throwing themselves on the line. It's about passion and the selfless pursuit of an ideal.”

PeopleHeartArtValuesPassionLinesCreativityFineHonorIdealsInnovationProfitCustomersPursuitLovelyEnterpriseThrowingSelflessWorkplace
Author:Tom Peters
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“The leaders who work most effectively, it seems to me, never say 'I'. They don't think 'I'. They think 'we'; they think 'team'.”

ThinkingSeemsKidsLeadershipLeaderTeamTeamworkEffectivenessGreat LeaderTeam BuildingWorld LeaderBusiness LeadershipTeam WorkEffective LeadershipGreat LeadershipLeadership By Famous LeadersLeadership And ManagementGreat TeamLeadership SkillsTeamwTeam WorkingGood LeadershipServant LeaderBuilding A TeamLeadership By Great LeadersGreatest LeadershipInspirational Team BuildingBuilding TrustLeadership TeamworkTeam Work InspirationalGreat TeamworkTeam LeadershipTeam MotivationTeam Building InspirationTeamwork And LeadershipTeam CollaborationTeam ManagementGreat Team BuildingGreat Team WorkTeam LeaderTeam BondingCollective Effort
Author:Tom Peters
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“The little people will get even, which is one of a thousand reasons why they are not little people at all. If you're a jerk as a leader, you will be torpedoed. And usually it won't be by your vice presidents; it will be on the loading dock at 3am when no supervisors are around.”

PeopleIfsLittlesReasonPresidentLeaderThousandVicesReason WhyJerkVice PresidentDocksSupervisors
Book:The Pursuit of Wow!: Every Person's Guide to Topsy-Turvy Times
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“Start by identifying the qualities or characteristics that make you distinctive from your competitors - or your colleagues. 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?”

DoneQualityWeekNotesWorthyCustomersCharacteristicsTraitsColleaguesStanding OutCompetitorsDistinctiveIdentifying
Author:Tom Peters
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“It boils down to studenthood-in-perpetuity / curiosity-in-perpetuity / applied fanatic restlessness. That is, a belief that life is ONE BIG LEARNING EXPERIENCE. Something mysterious happens to a curious, fully engaged mind - and it happens as often as not, subconsciously. Strange little sparks are set off, connections made, insights triggered. The results: an exponentially increased ability to tune up / reinvent / WOW-ize today's project at work.”

MindLittlesMadeBigsHappensTodayLife IsBeliefWorkAbilityResultsEducationStrangeProjectsConnectionsCuriosityInsightMysteriousCuriousEngagedTunesSparksWowFanaticsRestlessnessLearning ExperienceTune Up
Author:Tom Peters
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“Community. A friend started a real estate brokerage a few years ago. By the time she'd added her second employee, she was a pillar of her 35,000-person community. No rule says that only the local banker or car dealer can organize the program to raise supplemental funds for the public library or send the high school band on a well-earned special trip. Participating in community affairs, with time more than dollars, is good business from day one. It gets your name around, adds to your distinctiveness, and, best of all, makes you an attractive employer (which is the key to sustained success).”

YearsWellsPersonsRealSchoolNamesCommunityBusinessSpecialCarKeysBandHigh SchoolYears AgoProgramRaisesDollarsAddLibraryAffairLocalsAttractiveEmployeeFundEstatesOrganizeEmployersBankersPillarsDealerParticipatingPublic LibraryGood BusinessSchool BandCar DealerSustained Success
Book:The Pursuit of Wow!: Every Person's Guide to Topsy-Turvy Times
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“Like it or not - and often we don't - power is a pervasive phenomenon. From midnight decisions in the Oval Office that risk the lives of young Americans to quarrels over the kitchen table, power is part of every human equation. Yes, it can be - and often is - abused, in business as in all arenas of endeavor. But it can also be used to do great good for great numbers. And as a career-building tool, the slow and steady (and subtle) amassing of power is the surest road to success.”

HumansYoungUsedDecisionNumbersBusinessCareersPowerRiskBuildingOfficeToolsTablesKitchenSubtlePhenomenonEndeavorSteadyMidnightEquationsArenaQuarrelsRoad To SuccessOften IsOvalKitchen TableSlow And Steady
Book:The Pursuit of Wow!: Every Person's Guide to Topsy-Turvy Times
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