If you don't have a competitive advantage, don't compete.

No vision is worth the paper it's printed on unless it is communicated constantly and reinforced with rewards.

What Sam Walton did was to go into one of the most mature industries of all and find a way to make it grow, grow, grow, double-digit, month after month, year after year. He did it by innovation, customer focus, and above all, speed.

No company, small or large, can win over the long run without energized employees who believe in the mission and understand how to achieve it.

A leader's role is not to control people or stay on top of things, but rather to guide, energize and excite.

I was never the smartest guy in the room. From the first person I hired, I was never the smartest guy in the room. And that's a big deal. And if you're going to be a leader - if you're a leader and you're the smartest guy in the world - in the room, you've got real problems.

Nothing is worse than the person in their 40s who says, 'I'm not going to learn this.' 'I don't carry an iPad.' That will label you and put you right in the corner. Some people do it as a badge of honor. I've seen them myself, they walk around bragging [about not knowing much about technology].