Whether you prevail or fail depends more on what you do to yourself than on what the world does to you.

The signature of mediocrity is not an unwillingness to change. The signature of mediocrity is inconsistency.

A visionary company doesn't simply balance between idealism and profitability: it seeks to be highly idealistic and highly profitable. A visionary company doesn't simply balance between preserving a tightly held core ideology and stimulating vigorous change and movement; it does both to an extreme.

Smart people instinctively understand the dangers of entrusting our future to self-serving leaders who use our institutions, whether in the corporate or social sectors, to advance their own interests.

The main point is first get the right people on the bus (and wrong people off the bus) before you figure out where to drive it. The second key point is the degree of sheer rigor in people decisions in order to take a company from Good to Great.

Those fortunate enough to find or create a practical intersection of the three circles have the basis for a great work life.

The people who don't have a great life are the ones who settle for a good one.