Above all else, align with customers. Win when they win. Win only when they win.

Real estate is the key cost of physical retailers. That's why there's the old saw: location, location, location.

I strongly believe that missionaries make better products. They care more. For a missionary, it's not just about the business. There has to be a business, and the business has to make sense, but that's not why you do it. You do it because you have something meaningful that motivates you.

Focusing on the customer makes a company more resilient.

Many of the traits that make Amazon unusual are now deeply ingrained in the culture. In fact, if I wanted to change them, I couldn't. The cultures are self-reinforcing, and that's a good thing.

If you don't understand the details of your business you are going to fail.

In Seattle you haven't had enough coffee until you can thread a sewing machine while it's running.